Feast and Famine - The Limestone Legacy

Between 1000 and 1300 AD, northern Europe was utterly transformed - from isolated groups of poor peasants, living at the mercy of marauding Vikings, to a rich society with bustling cities graced by magnificent architecture. This extraordinary progress was built on a single geological resource - limestone. It lay at the roots of the fantastic agricultural boom of medieval times, and could build cathedrals of breathtaking proportions. But when the climate worsened in the 14th century, half the population of Europe died.