Top Ten Medieval Civilizations

The medieval period (476 A.D - 1400 A.D) is known as the Dark Ages, when the Bubonic Plague hit and trade declined. However, the medieval period is also a time of enlightenment. These are the top ten medieval civilizations.
The Top Ten
1 Islamic Caliphates

To say the truth, the Islamic Caliphs were dominant rulers. They were one of the many great empires who brought Persia to its feet. The Islamic Empire is the greatest and only empire that is for a religion. The Islamic Empire even reduced the #2 on this list, the Byzantine Empire, to a city, which is Constantinople. The Islamic Caliphates also took over parts of Spain and conquered Egypt and Northern Africa. They pretty much won every battle they put up and they lost only a battle to Vienna. They also gave us most of our modern knowledge. If they didn't work hard and store knowledge into libraries, we won't even know the Greeks or their ideas, or even logic, mathematics, and more. They also had advancements in health and medicine, and they invented the English numbers. The Islamic Empire also wrecked the remaining Jews after Roman rule. The remaining Jews were foolish to try to oust their sacred prophet from an Arabian city. I mean...yeah, they both had same ideas, and they both mentioned an angel named Gabriel. The Caliphates also had ties with the African Federation of Mali, whose greatest ruler was Muslim, and was allies with Islamic Egypt. But, nonetheless, the Islamic Caliphates forged the largest and most powerful empire during the medieval time.

2 Byzantine Empire

Culturally, politically, and militarily, they were a huge heavy hitter during the medieval era. They had to be; incessant attacks by Islamic factions (motivated by both political reasons and good old-fashioned conquest) hammered these people for centuries, and they still held out with remarkable skill and aplomb, only really faltering when the western catholic factions struck at their rear (most notably the sack of Constantinople during the fourth crusade). In fact, if we want to talk about longevity, the Byzantines were technically the unbroken continuation of the Eastern Roman Empire that split away some time before the fall of Rome (or at least that was what it's citizens were fond of proclaiming). All in all, an incredibly powerful and influential empire that survived the fall of antiquity, and dark ages, and the Muslim conquests until finally succumbing to enemies crowding in from every side, and even then it's unique style and iconography artwork remains distinct and prized to this day.

3 Song China
4 Mongols
5 Mali

Stories that have been spread orally for hundreds of years tell of a leader named Mansa Musa. They say he was so rich (because of the salt-gold trade in West Africa) that he bankrupted the economy of Egypt fir many years because he spent so much gold there. The people of Mali also created the huge mud-brick mosques in Djenné, Gao, and Timbuktu.

Scholars of Djenné were the first in history to directly root out the dangers of smoking and Tobacco. Their economy was the largest as they and Songhai Kings could dictate the prices of gold by themselves. Mali was a centre of education for the whole world.

6 England

Writing the Magna Carta, England played a big part in medieval society. The university of Oxford was founded at this time, and is still a standing institution today. They fended off many invaders, such as the Spanish Armada.

Powerful naval and diplomatic force, last time invaded was 1000 years ago.

7 Ancient Japan

Japan is a country that fended off the Mongol invasions for centuries. It developed a feudal society similar to Europe's, made up of daimyos, samurais, and shoguns. During the cultural flowering of Japan, haikus (you know, 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) and Noh dramas, plays compared to the Classical Greek plays, were invented. They also invented two new forms of Buddhism.

8 Frankish Empire

The Frankish Empire brought Roman Catholicism into Central Europe and Charlemagne one of there great leaders leading the Frankish Empire, made the Empire into a successful Empire and became the first Holy Roman Emperor, thus creating the Holy Roman Empire. The Frankish Empire defeated numerous empires such as the Islamic Caliphates, the Byzantines and Gothic Kingdoms such as the Visigothic and Ostrogothic Kingdom.

One of the first medieval empires, the French defeated England in the Hundred Year War. They took part in the Age of Faith, inventing the Gothic style of cathedrals. Charlemagne and Clovis are two of the many great rulers of this empire.

9 Mayans
10 Holy Roman Empire

The Caesar has marked you for death, ready yourself for battle!

The Contenders
11 Ottoman Empire
12 Khmer Empire

The Khmer Empire was one of the most advanced and most powerful Empires during the whole Asian history, it was far better then the Tang Dynasty and has defeated other strong kingdoms like the Champa Kingdom, the Vietnamese and the Srivijayan Empire.

This civilization isn't known by most Americans, but they created some of the largest Hindu temples in Southeast Asia and the world. The capital city of Angkor what was truly one of splendor.

This civilization lasted a very long time with all of the power it had.

13 Serbian Empire
14 Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

Never lost a war in medieval times.

15 Spain

Fighting the mighty Islamic caliphs, the Spanish rose as one of the world's largest empires, conquering the whole of Latin America, Peru, the Philippines, and more.

16 Pandyan Empire
17 Bulgarian Empire
18 Inca Empire
19 Persian Empire
20 Kanem Empire
21 Hungarian Kingdom
22 Zulu Kingdom
23 Empire of the Huns

The Hun barbaric group built a vast empire in Europe that exceeded any other barbaric group and they booted everyone out except the FAITHFUL FRANKS.

24 Greece
25 Visigoths
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