In this subject students consider the art and architecture of Europe in the Middle Ages starting in the Dark Ages, when the Roman Empire had declined, in the face of barbarian invasions. We analyse selected examples of the art of these barbarian peoples. The career of Gregory the Great spans the end of the ancient Roman world and the early Middle Ages. The rise of Islam in the seventh century led to the Muslim conquest of Spain and the subsequent campaigns of reconquest. From the tenth century the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela was most popular. The monks of Cluny promoted the pilgrimage. Students will look in detail at the Romanesque and early Gothic art and architecture to be found along the pilgrim routes through France and Spain, and at the art and architecture associated with monasteries.

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