Norman Cohn on Medieval Utopianism

>Each case occurred under similar circumstances - when population was increasing, industrialization was getting under way, traditional social bonds were weakened or shattered, and the gap between rich and poor was becoming a chasm. then.. a collective sense of impotence and anxiety suddenly discharged itself in a frantic urge to smite the ungodly.. and bring int being that final Kingdom where the saints, clustered around the great sheltering figure of their Messiah, were to enjoy ease and riches, security and power for all eternity.