History of Technology During THE MIDDLE AGES by Sydney Yankee

Horse Shoe

99syankee — 2015-02-12 12:56:21 UTC

"At the outset of the Middle Ages the basic power sources for most tasks were humans and animals. During the Middle Ages the harnessing of animals underwent changes that increased productivity by as much as 200 percent. Farming altered the natural environment to the benefit of humankind. Anything that improves the efficiency or productivity of agriculture benefits the entire civilization. During the medieval period, when 90 to 95 percent of the European population tilled the soil, farmers made the most important advances in agricultural technology of any era before the Industrial and Chemical Revolutions."

Horse Shoe

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:05:57 UTC

"The first instrument of this power revolution was the horse. By the invention of the horseshoe, the padded, rigid horse collar, and the stirrup, all of which first appeared in the West in the centuries of the Dark Ages, the horse was transformed from an ancillary beast of burden useful only for light duties into a highly versatile source of energy in peace and war. Once the horse could be harnessed to the heavy plow by means of the horse collar, it became a more efficient draft animal than the ox, and the introduction of the stirrup made the mounted warrior supreme in medieval warfare and initiated complex social changes to sustain the great expense of the knight, his armor, and his steed, in a society close to the subsistence line."

Horse Shoe

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:06:59 UTC

"Another seemingly simple development had appeared around 500–600: the humble horseshoe. The Romans seem to have used a form of sandal to protect their horses’ hooves, and in the relatively dry climate of the Mediterranean region, these hoof coverings were not regularly needed. In the wetter climate of northern Europe, however, horses’ hooves are much more prone to rot, causing crippling damage. Nailing iron horseshoes to horses’ hooves not only keeps them a bit above wet ground, keeping them drier, but also provides horses with additional traction, just as modern shoes allow people to walk or run faster and harder than they can barefoot."

INVENTION OF THE HORSE SHOE

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:11:28 UTC

INNOVATION OF THE WHEELBARROW

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:34:46 UTC

The Wheelbarrow

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:40:06 UTC

"Although the wheelbarrow in a primitive form was in use in early Greece, the modern form of the wheelbarrow did not take shape until the Middle Ages. Primitive wheelbarrows had a wheel in the center of the barrow, whereas modern wheelbarrows have the wheel at or near the front."

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:43:42 UTC

Used when building castles to carry large loads of heavy stones.

Quickly adapted for agirculture. This invention is still used to this

day to carry large/light loads to another destination.

99syankee — 2015-02-12 13:47:23 UTC

Wheelbarrows eased farming and agriculture, increasing food and crop

production along with the general population, allowing for better quality

produce and saving a lot more time in the process of moving heavy

items; the wheelbarrow invention of the Middle Ages definetly had

influence on how modern society performs the process of farming

and agriculture today.

INNOVATION OF THE WATERMILL

99syankee — 2015-02-15 16:56:08 UTC

The Watermill

99syankee — 2015-02-15 16:58:41 UTC

"Watermills were a staple of some villages, most towns, and all cities from the ancient world onwards. Mills provided the power to grind grain into the principal processed food, flour, which fed society right into the modern period."

99syankee — 2015-02-15 17:01:29 UTC

Water mills acted as an income for the feudal lords, and because the rulers had enough money, they were able to build more and more mills, bring in more and more money.

The Watermill

99syankee — 2015-02-15 17:03:56 UTC

"Flowing river water drove water mills, which were used all over Europe throughout the MiddleAges. In 1044 tidal mills appeared in Venice. Mills, used at first to grind corn, were adopted by beer makers in eighth-century France and spread rapidly to other industries. By the eleventh century mills were being used to drive bellows and hammers in forges."

Canal Systems

99syankee — 2015-02-15 17:04:57 UTC

"In low-lying areas whose land was close to sea level, canal systems were built during the MiddleAges. Europe’s most famous canal system is in Venice, a city built on a group of islands. In northern Europe people living in the low-lying areas of the Netherlands, Flanders, and East Anglia (in eastern England) also created systems of canals and dikes (drainage ditches)."

WORKS CITED

99syankee — 2015-02-15 17:23:29 UTC

IN CONCLUSION

99syankee — 2015-02-15 17:28:29 UTC

Most of the inventions/innovations that are represented in the Middle Ages time period were mostly to improve the ability to farm. These inventions/innovations helped increase the work force and increase productivity of the economy. Overall, if the Middle Age technology advancement era had been skipped over, farming and landscaping, along with sources of power would be much different in the years to follow.

99syankee — 2015-02-15 17:55:32 UTC

These watermills sparked other ideas that led to the creation of many inventions used today.