Evolution of social systems in Europe

In the course of time many attempts have been made to obtain a clearer picture of the main factors that have dominated the sequence of social structures, and differences of opinion have often been very sharp. But it would be difficult to dispute that the result has been at least that a number of important factors stand out more clearly and that some light has been shed on certain aspects of the course followed by the evolutionary processes. Based on this assumption the following chapters are
intended to give a brief sketch of the evolution of social systems, i.e. changes in the structure of classes, first in antiquity in some countries bordering on the Mediterranean and then from the early Middle Ages on in Western Europe. An attempt will be made to confine this sketch to broad outlines, in the opinion that only a survey limited to the most important facts can hope to show the existence of causal relationship between these facts and hence to highlight some fundamental characteristics of the seuence of social systems. Perhaps such a survey may also contribute to distinguishing somewhat more clearly the
changes that are afoot in modem society and seeing them as part of an evolutionary process stretching over many
centuries.