Middle Ages Vocabulary

Town

-a communitysmaller than acity and largerthan a village.

Charter-a written grant of rightsand privileges by a ruler

or government to acommunity, class of

people or organization.

Guild

-an organizationof people who

work in the samecraft or trade.

Apprentice

-a person whoworks for an expert

or master in atrade or craft in

return for training.

Commerce

-the buyingand selling of

goods.

Merchant

-somebody whosells goods,products orservices.

Bubonic Plague

-a deadlycontagious diseasecaused by bacteria

and spread byfleas on rats.

Privy

-an outhouseor outsidebathroom.

Stock or Stockade

-a form ofpunishment...awooden frame withholes for the person'slegs and/or arms.

Magna Carta-a written agreement from1215 that limited theEnglish king's power andstrengthen the rights of thenobles...and eventually,the rights of the commonpeople.

Habeas Corpus

-the principle thataccused personscannot be held in

jail without theconsent of a court.

Crossbow-a medieval weapon

made up of a bow that wasfixed across a wooden

stock and operated by a trigger.

Good for only shortrange.

Cannon

-a weapon thatfired heavy ironballs or otherprojectiles througha simple iron tube.

Longbow

-a large bow usedfor firing featheredarrows. Good for

long range.

Truce

-anagreed-uponhalt (stop) in

fighting

Nationalism-identification with,

and devotion to,the interests ofone's nation.

Hundred Years’ War-a series of warsfought by France

and Englandbetween 1337 and

1453.

Specialization

-to focus on aspecific job or partof a job. -to make a

specific type ofgood/product.

Parliament

-governing bodythat gave a voice

to common peopleas well as

nobles/lords.

Medieval Faire

A gathering of buyers and sellers, assembled at a particular place with their merchandise for trade.

Crusades

A series of military expeditions from Christian Europe to Palestine between the 11th and 13th centuries to reclaim the “Holy Land.”

InterdependenceA relationship

between one or more groups when each gives and gets from the others

Groups of people who rely on each other and really need to work together.