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The Roman Empire grew for the following reasons:

1. Roman roads were well-built

2. Powerful army

3. Competent emperors and generals

The Roman Empire covered most of Europe, most of North Africa, and some of Asia.

This created problems.

The provinces did not always do what they were told. Rome seemed very far away to the people in the

provinces.

The empire was expensive to operate. It spent a lot of money supporting its provinces on the

following:

a) building new roads, aqueducts, public buildings etc.

b) supporting the army

c) expanding its borders

Rome needed to conquer new lands in order to collect more taxes so that it could refill its bank accounts.

General Diocletian was chosen by the army to be the new emperor of Rome.

He placed price controls on goods and services in order to make them affordable.

Any shop owner who overcharged a client for an item or a service could be put to death!

He decided it would be easier to manage Rome if it was split in half.

This created two Roman empires - the Western & Eastern Roman Empires.

Each side had an emperor.

Diocletian chose to rule the Eastern Roman Empire.

Before leaving, he moved a great deal of Rome's money over to the Eastern Roman Empire.

476 AD: FALL OF ROME Rome was first a monarchy, then a republic, then an

empire – it all lasted for over 1200 years. Although Rome had some wonderful emperors, it also

suffered from a series of bad, corrupt and crazy emperors.

There were lots of reasons why Rome fell.

Problems towards the end of the Empire included:

1. Poorly governed (managed)

2. Corrupt army due to dishonest generals and non-Roman soldiers.

3. Civil wars broke out between different political groups.

4. Incompetent emperors who made poor choices for the empire

5. Too many slaves put many Romans out of work.

6. The rich became lazy and showed little interest in trying to solve Rome’s problems.

7. The poor were overtaxed & overworked.

Products became to expensive to affordable. Businesses began to struggle and trade decreased. Romans began to starve and die of diseases. Population decrease made managing farms difficult. The Empire starting shrinking. The barbarian tribes* began conquering different parts of

the empire.

*Huns, Visigoths, Franks, Vandals, Saxons, etc.

Rome tried to solve some of their problems by splitting the Roman Empire in half, hoping that would make the empire easier to manage.

The Western Roman Empire became weaker.

By 400 AD, the barbarian tribes finally defeated Rome.

In 476 AD, the Visigoths sacked (plundered) Rome.

Europe entered the Dark Ages.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcuVJUKZvx4

The Eastern Roman Empire did well (renamed “ the Byzantine Empire”).

It would last for another 1000 years.

BARBARIANS They were tribes of warriors who invaded the Roman

Empire from the Northeast.

They eventually swept across Europe and destroyed the Roman Empire and formed independent Kingdoms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJYVi16vp8k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plsh2YmfE1g

The Return of Christianity

Most barbarians were pagans.

They did not believe in Christ.

Churches were abandoned wherever they settled.

By 500 AD churches almost disappeared in many parts of Europe.

Church leaders in Rome decided to send out monks to teach about Christianity.

Barbarians would eventually convert to Christianity.

Churches & monasteries were built all over Europe.

Monks made and kept handwritten copies of holy books in their monasteries.

THE RISE OF ISLAM Mohammed began preaching about Allah. Many people in Arabia became Muslims and mosques

were built everywhere. It was spread by merchants and soldiers.

Prince Charles was crowned king and inherited most of land we now call France.Known as “Charlemagne” (means Charles the Great)His mission was to create a Christian empire.

Wanted to conquer non-Christians and convert them to Christianity.

He had churches and monasteries built throughout Europe.

His empire collapsed soon after his death due to constant invasions from Vikings and tribes of Magyars.

Europeans were divided into fourfour main classes and each group had different jobs to do.

You were born into a class of people and generally stayed in that class for your entire life.

Working hard did not change your status.

For safety and for defense, people formed small communities around a central lord or master.

The lord’s job was to defend the people living in his manor.

The manor included the castle, the church, the village, and the surrounding farm land.

The king awarded land or fiefs to his most important lords (nobles), barons, and bishops.

A fief a unit of land that included at least one village, huts for the serfs, the manor house or castle, and areas set aside to grow, feed, or catch food - the fields, pasture land, and woods.

The peasants (serfs) worked and lived on the land.

In exchange, the lord protected them.

Heavily taxed

Required to give most of their crops to their lord.

He awarded land (called fief) to his vassal.

The vassal had to find peasants to cultivate the land.

He had to protect his vassal.

He had to administer justice.

A vassal promised loyalty to his suzerain.

He had to fight alongside his suzerain and give him money (if needed)

He advised the suzerain. He had to find soldiers to fight alongside his suzerain.

They were wealthy lords who fought on horseback.

They provided protection.

Only church in Europe during the Middle Ages. Most Europeans were Christian. Everyone had to live by the Church's laws and pay

heavy taxes to support it.

It also accepted gifts (ex: land, money) from people who wanted special favors or wanted to be certain of a place in heaven.

Such gifts allowed the Church to become very powerful, and it often used this power to influence kings to do as it wanted.

Although Europeans were very religious, the mass was said in Latin, a language most people did not understand.

It believed in labor (work hard) and in prayer.

It also made it very clear that if you wanted to get to heaven, you had to participate in the sacraments.

What were the sacraments? They were a simple set of steps that, if followed, would open the doors to heaven. 

The Church charged people money for some of the sacraments and demanded donations to feed the poor and to build new churches. 

ENEMIES OF THE CHURCHENEMIES OF THE CHURCH

People who questioned the teachings of the Church were punished.

They were known as heretics.

They were often tortured and killed by inquisitors.

Head of the Church

They had a great amount of power to influence kings.

He wanted the power of all the rulers in Europe.

He always argued with Holy roman emperors and kings of France.

The Pope had the power to excommunicate.

This meant that the person could not attend any church services or receive the sacraments and would go straight to hell when they died.

At a time when everyone believed in heaven and hell and all belonged to the Church, this was an awful punishment.

A monk is a man who has chosen to devote his life to a certain discipline of prayer.

A priest named Benedict built a monastery in Italy. The rules he established were called Benedictine Rule.

All monks had to take three vows: 1. Vow of poverty2. Vow of chastity (stay single)3. Vow of obedience (obeyed the church and the

rules of the monastery)

As the populations in Europe increased, hygienic conditions worsened, leading to health problems.

Medical knowledge was limited (ex: drugs like

antibiotics did not exist) and Europe did not have a health care system.

There were many myths and superstitions about health and hygiene (i.e. believed that disease was spread by bad odors).

It was believed that diseases resulted from sin.

When faced with the need for quick cash, nobles offered their serfs a chance to buy their freedom.

Because the serfs had sold goods at the marketplaces, many were able to buy their freedom.

As the serfs left, the feudal system declined.  The serfs were free, but where could they go? Some stayed on the land and worked for the

nobles for payment. Some joined the crusades. Most new freemen moved to the rapidly growing

towns in search of work.

In the 14th century (1347 AD), a horrible disease struck Asia, Africa, and Europe.

A ship returning from Asia to Italy brought a terrible plague called the Black Death.

In 6 years nearly 1 in 3 people living in Europe died.

People were sick everywhere. Whole villages were wiped out. 

It was spread by blood sucking fleas.

People thought plague was sent by God to punish them for their sins.

“Flagellant Brothers” tried to stop the disease by whipping their bodies. Since plague was transmitted through contact with blood they actually spread the disease.

At first, people locked their doors trying to protect themselves. They carried flowers to block out the smell of the dead and dying.

The skies were filled with ashes as people burned houses filled with the dead. Villages filled with the dead were burned down, to contain and kill the disease. Nothing worked. 

Outbreaks of the plague continued for two hundred years.

The cause of the plague was not discovered until the 20th century (1900's.)

Today, this disease is called the bubonic plague. We have a vaccine for the plague should an outbreak ever happen again.

We're lucky! The people in the Middle Ages did not have vaccines to protect themselves from many diseases as we do today.