Thus, the centuries preceding and after the collapse of Rome (476) were a vigorous age of self-discovery and self-definition for all of the aforementioned peoples.

Many academics refer to this time period as Late Antiquity (250–800 C.E.) since it occurred between the end of the ancient world and the beginning of the Middle Ages. It saw a fresh appropriation of old history by Jews, Christians, Muslims, and pagan Germanic and eastern tribes, all vying for their origins in the past (from which they derived authority) and their role in the future (where they would exercise power).

During the process, each absorbed the best qualities of the other. The Jews had long absorbed the appealing stories of the ancient Mesopotamians, and the Christians had taken the Jewish biblical predictions, while the Christians had adopted the Jewish biblical prophecies.

The German tribes did not appear out of nowhere in the West. They were first a token and benign presence on the outskirts of the empire, if not within it. For centuries before to the great migrations from the north and east, Roman and Germanic civilizations coexisted amicably. Barbarians were "imported" by the Romans as servants, slaves, and warriors. Barbarian legions were led by Roman legions.

This peaceful cohabitation came to an end in 376, with a large inflow of Visigoths, or "west Goths," into the empire. The Visigoths, skilled riders and powerful soldiers, were forced into the empire by the Huns, a famously vicious race from what is now Mongolia. The Visigoths eventually made their way to southern Gaul and Spain.

Italy and the "eternal city" of Rome suffered catastrophic blows in the early fifth century. The Visigoths, led by Alaric (about 370–410), destroyed Rome in 410. In 452, the Huns invaded Italy, commanded by Attila, the "scourge of God." In 455, Rome was sacked once more, this time by the Vandals.

By the mid-fifth century, authority had shifted decisively from the hands of Roman emperors to those of barbarian chieftains in Western Europe. The barbarian Odovacer (ca. 434–493) ousted the last Western emperor Romulus Augustulus in 476, the standard date given by historians for the collapse of the Roman Empire. Zeno (r. 474–491), the Eastern emperor, accepted Odovacer's power in the West, and Odovacer recognised Zeno as the sole emperor, contenting himself to serve as Zeno's Western viceroy.

Barbarians from the west and east had engulfed the Western empire by the end of the fifth century. The Ostrogoths migrated to Italy, the Franks to northern Gaul, the Burgundians to Provence, the Visigoths to southern Gaul and Spain, the Vandals to Africa and the western Mediterranean, and the Angles and Saxons to England

These barbarian military conquests, however, did not wipe out Roman civilization; Western Europe's new rulers were eager to learn from the people they had conquered. They respected Roman civilization and had no wish to annihilate it. Except in Britain and northern Gaul, Roman law, governance, and the Roman language, Latin, coexisted alongside the emerging Germanic institutions. Under Theodoric, tribal custom increasingly gave way to Roman law in Italy.

Vassalage entailed paying "fealty" to the lord. To pledge allegiance was to vow not to do anything that may jeopardize the lord's well-being and to perform personal duties for him at his request. Military service as a mounted knight was one of the most anticipated services.

This may include a short or lengthy military expedition, escort duty, castle watch duties, or putting his own stronghold at the lord's disposal, if the vassal owned one. Over the conditions of service, there was constant negotiating and arguing.

The number of days a lord might request services from a vassal was limited. In the eleventh century France, forty days of service a year was deemed sufficient. It also got popular.

Aside from military duties, the vassal was supposed to advise his lord and sit as a member of his court while it was in session. The vassal also owed his lord financial help when his lord was clearly in need or suffering, such as if he was captured and needed to be ransomed, or if he was preparing for a crusade or a significant military war.

Money gifts may also be anticipated when the lord's daughters marry or his sons become knights.

Bishops and abbots pledged loyalty to the king and received their positions as a benefice from him beginning with the reign of Louis the Pious (r. 814–840). During the investiture ceremony, the king formally "invested" these priests in their positions.

This practice had long been a source of contention within the church, and lay investiture of clergy sparked a severe clash between church and state in the late tenth and eleventh centuries. Reform-minded clergy revolted against what they saw to be involuntary ecclesiastical vassalage at the time. Even reformist priests, on the other hand, praised the king's transfers of land and authority to the clergy.

The ruler had certain responsibilities to his vassals.

First, he owed it to the vassal to defend him from bodily danger and to represent him in public court. The ruler provided for the physical support of the vassal by bestowing a benefice, or fief, once loyalty was pledged and homage was given.

The early Middle Ages' agrarian economy was structured and managed by town farms known as manors. Peasants worked as tenants for a lord, a more powerful landowner who gave them land and tenements in exchange for their services and a share of their crops. The demesne was the portion of the land managed for the lord, which included around one-quarter to one-third of the arable land.

All of the crops that were cultivated there were harvested for the lord. The property also featured common pastures for grazing animals and woodlands kept only for the lord's hunting pleasure.