The Middle AgesCorresponds to Chapters

13 and14

Invaders attack Western Europe

• The Vikings invade the North• Warlike Vikings raid Europe from

Scandanavia• Viking long ships sail in shallow

water, allowing raids inland• Eventually, many Vikings adopt

Christianity & become farmers• Magyars & Muslims Attack from

the East & South• Magyars (Hungarian nomads)

invade W. Europe in late 800s• Muslims strike north from Africa,

attacking through Italy & Spain• Viking, Magyar, Muslim invasions

cause widespread disorder, suffering

A new social order: Feudalism

• Feudalism Structures Society• 850 – 950, feudalism emerges –

political system based on land control

• A lord (landowner) gives fiefs (land grants) in exchange for services

• Vassals – people who receive fiefs – become powerful landholders

• The Feudal Pyramid• Power in feudal system much like

a pyramid, w/ king at the top• Kings served by nobles who are

served by knights; peasants at bottom

• Knights defend their lord’s land in exchange for fiefs

Feudalism Con’t

• The Feudal Pyramid• Power in feudal system

much like a pyramid, w/ king at the top

• Kings served by nobles who are served by knights; peasants at bottom

• Knights defend their lord’s land in exchange for fiefs

Feudalism and Social Classes

• Social Classes are well defined• Medieval feudal system classifies

people into 3 social groups– Those who fight: nobles & knights– Those who pray: monks, nuns,

leaders of Church– Those who work: peasants

• Social class is usually inherited; majority of people are peasants

• Most peasants are serfs – people lawfully bound to place of birth

• Serfs aren’t slaves, but what they produce belongs to their lord

Manors: The economic side of feudalism

The Lord’s Estate• The Lord’s estate, a manor, has

an economic system (manor system)

• Serfs & free peasants maintain the lord’s estate, give grain

• The lord provides housing, farmland, protection from bandits

A self- contained World

• Medieval manors include lord’s house, church, workshops, village

• Manors cover a few square miles of land, are largely self-sufficient

The harshness of Manor life

• Peasants pay tax to use mill & bakery; pay a tithe to priest

• Tithe – church tax – is equal to 1/10th of a peasant’s income

• Serfs live in crowded cottages with dirt floors, straw beds

• Daily life consists of raising crops, livestock; feeding & clothing family

• Poor diet, illness, malnutrition make life expectancy 35 years

• Serfs generally accept their lives as part of God’s Plan

Knights: Warriors on Horseback

• The Warrior’s role in feudal society

• By 1000s, W. Europe is a battleground of warring nobles

• Feudal lords raise private armies of knights

• Knights rewarded w/land; provides income needed for weapons

• Knights’ other activities help train them for combat

The Code of Chivalry

• By 1100s knights obey code of chivalry – a set of ideals on how to act

• They are to protect weak & poor; serve feudal lord, God, chosen lady

• A knight’s training• Boys begin to train at 7; usually

knighted at 21• Knights gain experience in local wars &

tournaments – mock battles

The reality of warfare

• Castles are huge fortresses where lords live

• Attacking armies use wide range of strategies & weapons

• See page 366 in textbook

Poems & Songs

• Epic poems recount a hero’s deeds & adventures

• Troubadours – traveling poet-musicians – write & sing short verses

• Most celebrated woman of the age is Eleanor of Acquitaine

• Eleanor’s son, Richard the Lion-Hearted

Women’s role in feudal society

Status of women• According to the Church & feudal

society, women are inferior to men

• Noblewomen• Can inherit land, defend castle,

send knights to war on lord’s request

• Usually confined to activities of the home or convent

• Peasant Women • Most labor in home & field, bear

children, provide for family• Poor, powerless, do household

tasks at young age

The Power of the Medieval Church

• The Pope• Head of the Church was

called “pope”• The Pope gets name

from Latin word for “father”; considered the father of the church

• In beginning of the Church, nobles could pick the Pope

The Sacraments

• sacraments = church rituals done to get God’s grace. Without God’s grace, you couldn’t get into Heaven

• Examples of sacraments are baptism, penance, & the Eucharist (Communion)

• If you did something wrong, the church could excommunicate you (kick you out); can’t receive sacraments, won’t go to Heaven

The Power of Mass

• Mass = name for church services

• Mass conducted in Latin, most peasants did not understand it; gave priests a lot of power over the people

• Peasants got info from statues, paintings, & windows

Noble Influence

• The Church supposed to be a religious institution; nobles used church for their own gain

• “Donations” of land & money to church could result in a position as a bishop or other church official

• People that the king or a noble didn’t like could be threatened w/ excommunication unless agree w/ nobles

Monastic Life

• Monks/ nuns tried to avoid problems w/ taking money from nobles & lived simple lives

• took vows of silence & lived separate from rest of world

• spent lives making schools & hospitals, providing for poor/needy, producing beautiful copies of books by hand

The Church as a Judge

• The regular church was still very powerful & had courts in which it could try people for crimes against the church

• One of the biggest crimes was called heresy (denial of church teachings)

• Heretics (people who committed heresy) were excommunicated from the church

• Heresy considered as bad as treason

The Inquisition

• a court set up to prosecute heretics

• People could be accused of heresy by their enemies, investigated by the church

• Sometimes heretics tortured to try & get them to confess to their crimes

The Crusades

• Goals of the Crusades• Pope wants to reclaim

Jerusalem & reunite Christianity

• Kings use Crusades to send away knights who cause trouble

• Younger sons hope to earn land or win glory by fighting

• Later, merchants join Crusades to try to gain wealth through trade

The 1st & 2nd Crusades

• Pope promises Crusaders who die a place in Heaven

• 1st Crusade: 3 armies gather at Constantinople in 1097

• Crusaders capture Jerusalem in 1099

• Captured lands along coast divided into 4 Crusader states

• Muslims take back one in 1144; 2nd Crusade fails to retake it

• 1187: Saladin – Muslim leader – retakes Jerusalem

The 3rd Crusade

• 3rd Crusade led by 3 powerful rulers

• Richard the Lion-Hearted: king of England

• Phillip II of France abandons Crusade after arguing w/ Richard

• Frederick I of Germany drowns during journey

• 1192: Richard & Saladin make peace

• Saladin keeps Jerusalem but allows Christian pilgrims to enter city

Later Crusades

• 4th Crusade: Crusaders loot Constantinople in 1204

• 2 other Crusades strike Egypt, but fail to weaken Muslims

Outcome of the Crusades• Most of Spain controlled by the Moors (a Muslim people)• Christians fight Reconquista – drive Muslims from Spain,

1100-1492• Spain has inquisition – court to suppress heresy; expels

non-Christians• The Crusades change life• Crusades show power of Church in convincing thousands

to fight• Women who stay home manage estates & business

affairs• Merchants expand trade, bring back many goods from SW

Asia• Failure of later Crusades weakens pope & nobles,

strengthens kings• Crusades create lasting bitterness bt Muslims & Christians

Changes in Medieval Society

• Changes in agriculture• Harnessed horses replace

oxen in pulling plows & wagons

• Horses plow 3 times as much a day, increasing food supply

• The 3-field System• Around 800, 3-field system

used: plant 2 fields, let one rest

• This produces more food & leads to population increase

Development of Guilds

• Guilds develop – organization of people in the same occupation

• Merchant guilds begin 1st; they keep prices up, provide security

• Skilled artisans form craft guilds• Guilds set standards for quality,

wages, prices, working conditions• Guilds supervise training of new

members of their craft• The wealth of guilds influences

govt. & economy

The Commercial Revolution

• Fairs & Trade• Europe sees Commercial

Revolution – changes in business & trade

• Trade fairs held several times a year in towns

• Trade routes open to Asia, N.Africa, & Byzantine ports

• Business & Banking• Merchants develop credit to avoid

carrying large sums of money• Merchants take out loans to

purchase goods, & banking grows• Society Changes• Economic changes lead to the

growth of cities & of paying jobs

Urban life flourishes

• Growing urban population• 1000-1150, Europe’s pop. rises

from 30-42 million• Most towns are small, but they

help drive change• Trade & towns grow together• Towns are uncomfortable:

crowded, dirty, fire hazards• Serfs can become free by living in

a town for a year & a day• Merchant class shifts the social

order• Feudal lords tax & govern towns,

causing resentment• Towns are taken over by town

merchants (burghers)

England Develops

• The Norman Conquest• In 1066, England is invaded by

William the Conqueror• He defeats his rival & becomes

king• William hands out land to his

supporters• Juries & Common Law• Henry II – king of England – sends

judges to all parts of England & institutes juries

• The judges’ decisions form English common law – unified body of laws

• Common law forms the basis of law in many English-speaking countries

The Magna Carta

• 1215: English nobles force King John to sign Magna Carta

• Magna Carta – limits king’s power & guarantees basic political rights

• English people argue the rights are for all people, not just nobles

• The Model Parliament• 1295: Edward I summons wealthy

townsmen & knights to raise taxes

• Together w/ bishops & lords, they form a parliament – legislative body

• Parliament has 2 houses: House of Lords, House of Commons

The Model Parliament

• 1295: Edward I summons wealthy townsmen & knights to raise taxes

• Together w/ bishops & lords, they form a parliament – legislative body

• Parliament has 2 houses: House of Lords, House of Commons

Whats with all the NumbersXVI V IV…

France

• Hugh Capet and family rule small territory around Paris, power spreads and their rule last over 300 years.

• Est. heriditary rule, eldest son…

• Phillip II– 15 yo, reigned for 45

years– Doubled lands through

marrage– Created royal army

France Con’t

• Louis IX Phillip II’s grandson. – Puts a ban on private

warfare Why?– Creates common

currency Kings own. Why?

France Con’t

• Phillip IV, Phillip the Fair. Louis IX grandson

• Called forth the Estates General to pay for wars.

• EG assembly of clergy nobles and towns people. Never as powerful as parlaiment.

Henry IV• Has a major fight with Pope

Gregory VII, the Pope condemned lay investure (the giving of symbols of office such as a ring or staff). King Henry refused to stop the practice. Pope proclaimed Henry deposed and urged the Germans to select another ruler. Henry went to the pope and begged for forgiveness. For 3 days he stood outside the gate begging for mercy. He was forgiven. In 1122 church officials and representation known as the Concordat of Worms allowed the King to name bishops and grant them land. Also gave the Pope the right to reject unworthy candidates.