Asia Following The Middle Ages

For hundreds of years Europe had been suffering through a difficult period known as the dark ages. During this time the lives of the people who lived in Europe were hard. They lived in poverty, with little food, poor shelter, and rampant disease. Crime and war was everywhere.

This all began to change during the Renaissance. Western Europeans began to rediscover the knowledge of the past. As they did, economic conditions improved greatly, provided jobs and opportunity for millions of people.

During these dark ages, life in Asia thrived. Many of those who lived in the great civilizations of Asia enjoyed a much higher standard of living.

As Europe ascended out of the dark ages, and began to build their wealth and technologies, what impact did they have on the neighbors in Asia? How did these empires in Asia adapt to an increasingly modern world?