What are the middle ages?

It has become accepted in the academic world that the middle ages fall roughly between the years 476 CE and 1500 CE, beginning with the fall of Rome. The end date has been subjected to more controversy and generally depends upon ones area of study, or sometimes nationality, as to what event is used as the signal for the modern era. The term middle ages was an invention of of the Italian Renaissance when historians, like Leonardo Bruni in his 1442 History of the Florentine People, began dividing history into three eras rather than two. These became the Ancient, Middle, and Modern. 

The middle ages has sometimes been called the age of ages, for it incorporates so many different culturally significant time periods that it cannot be defined by one overall theme. The decline of the Roman Empire left a power vacuum that allowed the rise of the Catholic Church in the west, and smaller empires in the east. Because the study of history is the study of insert topic here, historians often limit their focus. The main events when discussing the middle ages in Europe center around wars of politics and wars of religion, and sometimes it is difficult to separate the two. 

My focus will primarily center in southern France, but will include any topic which would effect the people there. There will be posts on wars, religion, politics, art, and discourse on the variety of cultural differences that influenced daily life.

For more general information The History Guide is a great place to find lectures on every period in history.