International school students might be interested to know that the plural form of the term, Middle Ages, is used in English and Dutch while other European languages use the singular form (French le moyen âge, German das Mittelalter, Spanish edad media). The Middle Ages form the middle period in a division of European history into three ‘ages’: the classical civilization of Greece and Rome, the Middle Ages, and the modern period. The Middle Ages are themselves often subdivided into three.

The early medieval period was from the 5th to the 8th century. Sometimes called the Dark Ages, this period is associated with the consequences of the break up of the Roman Empire and regular invasions into Europe by non-Christian ‘Barbarians’.

The middle period (the High Middle Ages) follows, a time of the feudal system, castle and cathedral building, new methods in warfare and the growth of towns. The last span (the late Middle Ages) is a later period of growing power of kings and queens, increasing importance of trade, and weakening of the feudal system after the 14th century plague.

There is even less agreement on the date of the end of the Middle Ages. The Turkish capture of Constantinople or the end of the Anglo-French Hundred Years' War (both 1453), the invention of the printing press by Johann Gutenberg (around 1455), the fall of Muslim Spain or Christopher Columbus's voyage to America (right) both 1492, the Protestant Reformation starting 1517 are all possible end-dates.