The Middle Ages were marked by economic and territorial expansion, demographic and urban growth, the emergence of national identity, and the restructuring of secular and ecclesiastical institutions. Readers will learn about the great achievements of the ninth through twelfth centuries, a time when people were often categorized into three orders: those who fight, those who pray, and those who labor. Other notable events and phenomena examined in this authoritative history include the Carolingian renaissance, the Crusades, Gothic art and architecture, the papal monarchy, the birth of the university, and the recovery of ancient Greek thought.