Alfred the Great UnifiedThe Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy

ENGLAND

• King Alfred the Great united the various kingdoms of England that had been ruled by Anglo-Saxon kings• Gradually united kingdom under one rule, calling it

England – “land of the Angles”• Angles, Saxons, Germanic people were united

NORMAN CONQUEST

• 10/4/1066, William of Normandy defeated King Harold of England at the battle of Hastings• William was then crowned King of England• Norman knights received land as a fief and swore

allegiance to the king• William unified the land• Marriage of French & Anglo-Saxons led to a new

English culture

William I, the ConquerorBrought Norman

Feudalism To England

HENRY II

• Henry II enlarged English monarchy (1154-1189)• Added land by marrying Eleanor of Aquitaine of France

• Expanded the power of the royal courts & king’s power/increased # of criminal cases tried on the king’s court• Introduced jury trial

• Common law replaced law codes across the kingdom• Unified body of laws• Judges decisions for the base of law in various English

speaking countries

HENRY II’S SONS

• Henry succeeded by son Richard the Lion Hearted.• When Richard died, his younger brother – John

took the throne.

KING JOHN

• Ruled from 1199 to 1216

• Cruel to subjects – squeezed a lot of money out of them• Weak military leader• Lost territory – Normandy and northern France• Alienates the Church• Threatens to take away self-government charters of

towns

MAGNA CARTA

• English nobles resented the growth of the king’s power/ rebellion was raised against King John

• 1215, King John was forced to put his seal on the Magna Carta• Parliament would not fund his war if he did not sign the document• Parliament: a body of representatives that makes laws for a nation

• Nobles wanted to safeguard their own feudal rights• Magna Carta = document guaranteeing basic political

rights in England, drawn up by nobles and approved by King John in 1215• written recognition that the power of the king was limited

John Was Forced

To Sign the Magna

Carta in 1215

MAGNA CARTA

• Limit King’s power• Increase power of Nobles• No taxation without representation• Jury trial • Protection of Law

• Basic legal rights of Great Britain and United States.

ENGLISH PARLIAMENT

• Another step toward a democratic government came during the rule of the next English King, Edward I• Edward needed to raise taxes for war in 1295• He summoned 2 burgesses (citizens of wealth and property) from

every town and 2 knights from every country to serve as a parliament legislative group.

• First met in November 1295 at Westminster Abbey

• Eventually 2 houses were formed• Nobles & church lords formed = House of the Lords• Knights & townspeoples = House of Commons

• Parliaments granted taxes & passed laws• Provided a check on royal power• King called them whenever a new tax was needed.

Edward I Called a ParliamentOf Lords and Commons

FRANCE

• Kings of France too looked for ways to increase their power.

• After the breakup of Charlemagne’s empire, French counts and dukes ruled their lands independently under the feudal system.

• Hugh Capet was chosen to be king by west Frankish nobles establishing the Capetian dynasty (987-1328)

• Capetians had little power & only controlled the land around Paris/ Dukes had more power than kings

PHILLIP II (PHILLIP AUGUSTUS)

• Powerful Capetian King• 1180-1223• King @ 15• As a child he watched his father

lose land to King Henry II of England

• Set out to weaken power of English kings in France

• He was the turning point in the French monarchy

• Tripled the lands under his control from King John.Waged war against England and gained control of Normandy & Aquitaine

• More powerful than his vassals for the first time

FRENCH KINGDOM

• Phillip II successors continued to add land to the Kingdom

• Louis IX ruled 1226-1270 - deeply religious man who later made a saint by the Catholic church/Known for his attempts bring justice to his people – created French Appeals Court• Strengthened monarch while weakening feudal ties

• Phillip IV (1285-1314), Phillip the Fair, effective in strengthening the French monarchy & expanding the royal bureaucracy

• Phillip IV started a French parliament/Estates General• Estates General: an assembly of representatives from all 3 of the

estates, or social classes, in France

Philip IV Called the Estates-General to Raise Taxes

ESTATES-GENERAL

• 1st Estate:• CHURCH LEADERS

• 2nd Estate:• Great lords

• 3rd Estate:• Commoners: wealthy landowners & merchants

BEGINNINGS OF DEMOCRACY

• England and France begin to establish a democratic tradition• A centralized government is created to rule

widespread lands• Common law and court system support a central

government• Commoners included in decision making

AVIGNON & GREAT SCHISM

• In 1300 Pope Boniface VIII attempted to enforce papal authority on kings as previous popes had.

• When King Philip IV of France asserted his authority over French bishops, Boniface responded with an official document that stated that kings must always obey popes.

• Philip IV imprisons Pope Boniface VIII and plans to bring him to trial.

• But pope was rescued but Pope dies soon after.

• Never again would a pope be able to force monarchs to obey him.

• Great Schism: a division in the medieval Roman Catholic Church during which rival popes were established in Avignon and Rome

GREAT SCHISM

• 1305, Philip IV persuaded the College of Cardinals to choose a French archbishop as the new pope.

• Clement V (newly selected Pope) moved from Rome to city of Avignon (in France)• Popes lived here for next 69 years.

• The move to Avignon badly weakened the Church.• But when reformers tried to move papacy back to Rome the

result was worse.• In 1378, Pope Gregory XI died while visiting Rome.

• College of Cardinals then met in Rome to choose successor.• As they deliberated they could hear mob outside chanting “A

Roman, a Roman, we want a Roman for pope, or at least an Italian.”

• Cardinals chose an Italian, Pope Urban VI

GREAT SCHISM: 1378

• Many cardinals immediately regretted their decision because Urban VI’s passion for reform and his arrogant personality caused the cardinals to elect a second pope a few months later.

• Now 2 Popes• Pope Urban VI: Italian Pope – lived in Rome• Pope Clement VII: French Pope – lived in Avignon

• Each EXCOMMUNICATE the other as a false pope.• Split causes Great Schism

• Council of Constance attempted to end the Great Schism in 1414 by choosing a single Pope.• Forced other Popes to resign• Chose Martin V as Pope• Ended the Great Schism but left the papacy greatly

weakened.