# Where to live in 600 AD: Early Middle Ages in Europe **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 15, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344 "2010-06-15T19:54:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_Wikipedia_Cites)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/1 "2010-06-15T19:54:19Z")
Supposing it’s just about 600 AD, and you and your family are looking for a good spot in Europe to live. Which one is best for your long term survival and familial prospects? Famine and war avoiding are good first steps . . . but WHERE? ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/2 "2010-06-15T20:06:40Z")
I think I would go for Wisigothic Spain. It should be OK until the Muslim invasion, by which time I would be long dead. ETA : is the Byzantine empire an allowed option? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/3 "2010-06-15T20:07:07Z")
Do you have money or are you peasants? With money Constantinople could afford a good life, though whether it’s in Europe or not depends a bit on where you’re standing at that moment. Rome itself is a big salvage yard with its marble columns and slabs and statues being quarried for use in building projects all over Europe, but the Pope is there and the land is still producing. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/4 "2010-06-15T20:14:29Z")
Moved to IMHO from Great Debates. I think this will do better here. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/5 "2010-06-15T20:16:13Z")
Ireland wouldn’t be too bad. The viking invasions didn’t start for a couple of centuries and most of the warfare was tribal so it could be avoided. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/6 "2010-06-15T20:18:25Z")
Does England count as Europe? You might have found [Kent under King Aethelberht](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelberht_of_Kent) a relatively secure and comfortable place, at least if you’re not one of them there pagans. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/7 "2010-06-15T20:23:11Z")
Byzantium was at its height, so things were probably good throughout the empire. Even if you weren’t rich, at least you had law and order, decent roads, and peace. Plus the weather was good. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/8 "2010-06-15T20:24:19Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Do you have money or are you peasants? With money Constantinople could afford a good life, though whether it’s in Europe or not depends a bit on where you’re standing at that moment. I wouldn’t want to be in Constantinople in and around 600. There was plague in Constantinople in 600, and a famine that caused rioting in 602. Also, a two decade war is about to break out with the Persians that will result in the city being sieged. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/9 "2010-06-15T20:31:16Z")
Constantinople was not all that safe in the period following 600AD. It was my first thought and I checked. Near Rome was Ravenna I think is the name and it was doing pretty well in that time period. The period of [Exarchate of Ravenna](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exarchate_of_Ravenna)makes this a fairly safe place to try and raise a family. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/10 "2010-06-15T20:33:30Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Do you have money or are you peasants? Money? Unless you have gold or silver, you have nothing. What skills do you have that are relevant to AD 600? You can read and write, but can you read and write Latin? If your only spoken language is English, you’ll be totally non-understandable everywhere. Math skills or some very basic accounting knowledge might be useful. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/11 "2010-06-15T20:36:44Z")
> [@Oredigger77](#): > > Ireland wouldn’t be too bad. The viking invasions didn’t start for a couple of centuries and most of the warfare was tribal so it could be avoided. I was thinking about Ireland but warfare was small scale and fairly often and the place was pretty rustic and backwards. No matter what disease and pestilence would make live to a ripe old age difficult. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/12 "2010-06-15T20:41:24Z")
> [@Oredigger77](#): > > Ireland wouldn’t be too bad. They were just starting to write the [Book of Kells](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Kells) in AD600, so life can’t have been too bad for at least some people. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/13 "2010-06-15T20:48:42Z")
[Iona](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iona) and its nearby islands would seem safe enough. Boring, and it would be a hard life to scratch out, but definitely safe. And a beautiful place to be, at that. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/14 "2010-06-15T20:56:23Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Do you have money or are you peasants? With money Constantinople could afford a good life, though whether it’s in Europe or not depends a bit on where you’re standing at that moment. Seventh century Constantinople was pretty much being pounded by enemies and the population fell by almost 90%. Not to 90%, by 90%. You’re thinking of Justinian’s era, which was in the 6th century. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/15 "2010-06-15T21:46:27Z")
Constantinople had disease problems. I’d pop for Ireland. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/16 "2010-06-15T22:42:05Z")
It’s hard to know what the south of France was like back then, but I can’t imagine it being all that bad. Same weather. Same landscape. And probably good wine as well. Yeah, I’ll take my chances on somewhere in the south of France. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/17 "2010-06-16T01:09:44Z")
> [@Oredigger77](#): > > Ireland wouldn’t be too bad. The viking invasions didn’t start for a couple of centuries and most of the warfare was tribal so it could be avoided. Yeah, but you’d have to deal with my family. They’re CRAZY. > [@What\_Exit](#): > > No matter what disease and pestilence would make live to a ripe old age difficult. Not so true. Generally, if you survived, my family has records of living to 80 fairly regularly, and up to 125 for “Old Sabbath”. Pretty sure that last one’s off for some stupid reason, but the general age is maybe 10 years off the 90-95 typical of my family since we came to the USA. Those of us who didn’t die of doin’ stupid things, that is. And don’t forget Patrick’s Monasteries. They salvaged a lot from the fall of Rome. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/18 "2010-06-16T15:08:25Z")
What was Paris like under the Merovingians of that time? ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/19 "2010-06-16T16:09:19Z")
I think I’d tag along with the Irish monks who settled Iceland. Out of the way, and just about to start a major warming period. ---
**Author:** ![No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_Wikipedia_Cites)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344/20 "2010-06-16T16:24:07Z")
Ok I’m going to pick Ravenna, for its easily defensible position and roman surviving culture. Ravenna: WINNER! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-live-in-600-ad-early-middle-ages-in-europe/543344.md?page=2)