We will deal mostly with the period between the 11th and 15 centuries, a period that saw a radical change in the west. We shall see how the Church became a dominant player in the political sphere, how the Mendicant orders changes basic concepts of social communication, how the new institutions of learning, the universities, created a new learned elite that served both secular and ecclesiastical powers, and we shall see how the new learning made the West less tolerant to than it was before the knowledge revolution. We shall talk about ideas and institutions that shape identities and cause people to build lasting cultural monuments and tear each other to pieces. 

 
Dr. naama cohen -Hanegbi

1-The course will focus on the Early and High Middle Ages (6- 11 centuries). We will consider the formulation and configuration of the governing institutions, both religious and secular, focusing on such topics as: knighthood, feudal relationships, kingship, monastic life, church hierarchy and in key processes in the era. As a foundation course, it will aim to introduce students with key issues of the history of the Middle Ages, while providing basic analytical skills essential to the period.
2.The course will focus on the later Middle Ages (12th to 15th centuries): the formation of the towns and communes, and central religious, social, economic, cultural and intellectual developments in the period. As a foundation course, it will aim to introduce students with key issues of the history of the Middle Ages, while providing basic analytical skills essential to the period.