We would like to thank Dr. Christopher Brooks, the original author of Western Civilization, from which this work is derived. His three-volume open educational resource (OER) provided more than we needed for our class, “Greeks, Romans, Kings, and Crusaders.” Therefore, we pared it down to a single volume that ends at 1500 CE. We left his thorough treatment of ancient cultures, the Byzantines, and the Muslims mostly intact, and we reworked his chapters on the Early, High, and Late Middle Ages to meet the needs of our course. We are grateful for the enormous effort that his foundational work provided and also for his commitment to providing no-cost textbooks to college students nationwide and around the world.
We would also like to express our gratitude to the University of Colorado Boulder Libraries staff who helped us with this project. They trained us in OER and provided guidance during the project. They informed us about the Open CU Boulder program.
The creation of this work The Origins of European Civilization was supported by Open CU Boulder 2020-2021, a grant funded by the Colorado Department of Higher Education with additional support from the CU Office of the President, CU Office of Academic Affairs, CU Boulder Office of the Provost, and CU Boulder University Libraries.
Finally, our deepest sense of gratitude goes to our families, who provided so much encouragement and emotional support as we embarked on the time-consuming processes involved in writing a book during the COVID-19 pandemic. When so many of us had few outlets for social gatherings, we likely compounded the isolation and sense of separation that we all felt during this time by being so unavailable. We are grateful for the love and patience that our families gave us while we pursued a project that we embraced. Without their understanding and encouragement, this book never would have seen the light of day. Thank you.
