The Rise of EuropeChapter 7

Invasions during the Middle Ages

The Rise of Europe

The Germanic Kingdoms

I. TribalA. Farmers

B. Herders

II. GovernmentA. No written laws or cities

B. Elected Kings

C. Warrior nobles – swore allegiance to the King

1. Weapons

2. Spoils of war

III. Small Kingdoms take over Europe by 700 AD.

King Clovis - Franks

King Clovis kept many Roman customs but most important decision was converting to Christianity. He also gained the support of the Pope (Leader of

Christian Church in Rome).

Europe and the Muslim World

I. Islam appears in Arabia in 622 A.D.II. Created a new Civilization and built a huge and

expanding empire.III. Muslim armies overran Christian lands

A. Palestine to North Africa to SpainB. Invaded France: Charles Martel

(Franks)C. Battle of Tours – Christian Warriors

defeat the Muslims. Sign from God? This is a sign of things to come (The Crusades).

D. Muslims do not expand any further into Europe but continue to rule parts of Spain. Europeans and Muslims trade.

The Age of CharlemagneI. Charlemagne-”Charles the Great” II. 46 year reign: reunited most of the Roman

empireIII. 800 A.D.-Pope Leo crowned him Emperor of

the Holy EmpireIV. Leo revived the ideal of a united Christian

community1. Enraged the Eastern empire – Emperor saw himself as the sole Roman ruler.2. Widen the split between east and west (Roman Catholic vs. Orthodox)3. Set up power struggle between future popes and German emperors.

GovernmentI. Spread Christianity through conquered

lands. (Church and Govt worked as one)A. SaxonsB. Slavs

II. Nobles ruled regionsA. LandB. Support and supply soldiers for armies

II. Missi dominciA. Check on roadsB. listen to grievancesC. Make sure justice was done

Revival of LearningI. Court at Aachen: second RomeII. Revive Latin learningIII. Only clergy literate-barelyIV. Charlemagne-read, not writeV. Founded school: Alcuin of York

A. grammarB. RhetoricC. LogicD. Arithmetic: GeometryE. MusicF. Astronomy

Light Green shows area he controlled when he inherited from his father and jointly ruled with his brother.

Dark green shows the areas that Charlemagne conquered throughout his reign.

Area controlled by Muslims

I. Charlemagne died in 814 A.D.

II. Power struggle begins within family.

III. Grandsons drew up Treaty of Verdun which divided his empire into 3 regions

IV. Legacy of Charlemagne

A. Extended Christianity

B. German, Roman and Christian traditions were blended

C. Set up strong, efficient government

D. Used as model for later kingdoms

InvasionsI. Muslims invaded Sicily in late 800’sII. 896-Magyars (present day Hungary): For

50 years: Attacked Germany, France and Italy.

III. Vikings – ships were high tech.A. Norway, Sweden, DenmarkB. looted and burned communities along the coast of EuropeC. Traders and explorersD. Settled in Northern European Communities.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/vikings/village.html#thumb1

Chapter 8.2

Feudalism and the Manor EconomyFeudalism & the Manor Economy

8.2

The Emergence of Feudalism

Due to invasions, leaders couldn’t maintain order…thus people needed protection.

Feudalism: system in which lords would divide their landholdings among lesser lords (vassals).

– Vassals: pledged service and loyalty to the more powerful lords.

Feudal contract: LAND = LOYALTY. Vassals would be given a fief (land). Fief = land, peasants to work land, towns, and buildings. Lord promised to protect. Vassal pledged to provide 40 days of military service EACH year.

Structured Society

You could be a Lord and a vassal at the same time.

What if both of your Lords quarreled with each other?

Vassals would have a liege lord (first loyalty)

Structured Society

Monarch

Lord Lord Lord

Knights Knights KnightsKnights Knights Knights

Serfs SerfsSerfs Serfs Serfs Serfs

Warfare is a way of LifeNobles

– Trained as knights from boyhood: mounted warrior

• At age 7, boys that were selected, would be sent to the Castle of his father’s lord.

– Laziness not accepted. Very strict and disciplined.

– “Dubbed” a knight in public ceremony– Served with other knights– Tournaments: mock battles after 1100 A.D.

(Watch the movie “A Knights Tale”.

Castles: with towers (typically fought over a castle due to its strategic location: river crossings, harbors, mountain passes, etc.

motte: fortified from attack (on a hill)

Medieval Castles

Noblewomen

Lady of the manor: Took overSupervised vassals

Managed the household

Agricultural and medical tasks

Might even have to go to war to defend estate

Women of note:

Eleanor of AquitaineQueen of France: Married to Louis IV

Queen of England: Married to Henry II

Mother of King Richard and King John

Women kept dower rights: land

Sent out to be fostered– Should know how to spin and weave– Supervise servants– Few were educated– Expected to bear children and obey

husband– *Parents would arrange your marriage

Chivalry: code of conduct– Knights = brave, loyal and true to their

word• Can’t attack opponents until they have armor• Must treat prisoners well - but this applies only

to nobles.– Must protect peasants and noblewomen.

• Placed women on pedestal: protected and cherished.

Troubadours or wandering poets sang songs that praised women’s wit, perfection and beauty.

Peasants and Manor Life

Manor: Lord’s estate• Included one or more villages and surrounding land.• Most of population were peasants (lived and worked on

the manor)

Serfs: Bound to the land• Not Slaves but also Not free!• Couldn’t leave the manor without permission.• If your manor went to another lord, you went with it.

Mutual obligationsPeasants – farmed the land, paid money if inherited land, needed permission to marry, payments at Christmas/Easter, & paid with products (chickens, etc). Could farm some land for self and lord was required to protect its people.

Self-Sufficient

Peasants would produce everything that was needed.

Never left the village• No school• Lived in a bubble (Watch Truman Show)• Village, Church, Lord’s Manor House, Strips of farm

land for the inhabitants

Peasant Life• Entire families helped farm• Starvation common in the winter – life expectancy was

35 years old• Slept in a hut with your livestock• Couldn’t eat meat (punished)

PEASANTS

Serfs were bound to the land. They were not slaves, yet they were not free.

Serfs made up the majority of the population in medieval society.

Life was very harsh.

Warfare was a way of life.

Many trained from boyhood to be knights, or mounted warriors.

Were the ‘upper class’ or aristocracy of society

Life was better than serfs’

PEASANTS NOBLES

The Medieval Church

7.3

The Church and Medieval Life– The church became the most powerful force in Europe.– In 597, Pope Gregory I sent Augustine to England to

convert the Anglo-Saxons.• By Late Middle Ages, Western Europe is a Christian

Civilization – viewed with suspicion if didn’t belong to the church.

– Women spread the faith through marriage.– Parish priest was the only contact in the manor villages:

Celebrated mass and administered the sacraments-the sacred rites of the church.

• Believed that the Sacraments led you to Salvation

– Priest preached the gospels and the teaching of the church. They guided the villagers on issues concerning values and morality.

– Baptism = entrance into the church/community.– The priests offered assistance to the sick and needy.– Married nobles and peasants, conducted baptisms and

buried the dead.

– Church buildings increased in beauty as Medieval period progressed.

– Could house relics (possessions/remains of Saints)

– Many people would come pray before the relics (pilgrimages)

– To support churches – tithe – 10% of income (required).

– Tithe supported the priest – Church calendar: holy

days and saint days

Attitude towards Women

– Before God - men and women equal.• On Earth, women easily deceived and led into

sin.

– Ideal woman – Mary, mother of Jesus

Monks and NunsMonk: Benedictine 530 A.D.Benedictine Rule (3 vows): Obedience, poverty,

and chastity.3 Periods per day – worship,

work (farming), and study.Took care of sickCreated SchoolsOffered lodging to travelers

Copied ancient works

Abbess Hildegarde: wrote music and booksWomen could not become priests

Restriction of nuns in later medieval church

Church Power Grows– Church gains power in the world– The pope was the spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic

Church. – The pope was the representative of Christ on earth. – As the representative of Christ on Earth, the later popes

would claim papal supremacy or authority over all secular rulers (kings, emperors, etc).

– Bishops, archbishops came from noble families. Often the only educated people, they often assumed governmental positions. Many had territories and armies.

Religious AuthorityCanon law covered: morals, religious teachings,

& marriages. Absolute power because of the administering the

sacraments.Could be excommunicated: denial of sacraments.

Would spend eternity in hell.Nobles who opposed the church could be issued

an interdict which denied the sacraments to a village, region or kingdom. Commoners often revolted.

Truce of God: no warfare between nobles on Weekends and Holidays.

Church in Medieval Europe

Reform Movements

Wealth that church attracted caused problems. (lived in luxury, ignored vows, etc.)

Cluniac Reforms: Abbot Berny of Cluny said that nobles could not interfere with monastery affairs.

In 1073, Pope Gregory VII applied the Cluniac reforms to the entire church

Priests could not marry.

Prohibited simony: the selling of church offices.

Insisted the church choose officials, not nobles.

Preaching Orders

St. Francis of Assisi (taught Gospels) and Dominic created friars who preached to the poor instead of living in a monastery.Poverty, humility, and love of God

Jews in Europe

Jewish communities blended with Muslims & Christians and even served on courts.

Christians blamed Jews for famines, diseases, etc.

Church forbade Jews from owning land or being in certain professions. However, still employed Jews as financial advisors and physicians.

Anti-Semitism: prejudice against the Jews, caused migration to Eastern Europe.

Economic Recovery Sparks Change

7.4

Economic Expansion and Change

New Technologies:– 800’s: iron plows and use of horses

• Oxen were slow.

– Reclaimed land: cleared forests & drained swamps

– Windmill used for grinding grain into flour.– 3 field system – left 1 field unplanted.

Allowed for the fields to be more “productive”. Reduced soil exhaustion.

New Trade Routes

Middle East: Traded with Constantinople

Medieval Trade Routes

Trade & Travel

• Warfare declines and people begin to feel safer.

• Travel increases• As trade routes expand, goods from remote

markets become common– In Constantinople – could buy Chinese silks,

Byzantine gold jewelry, and Asian spices.– Goods shipped via ships – many traders bought

items at trade fairs along rivers and where routes crossed.

– Traded animals and farm goods– Nobles could buy swords, sugar and silks.

New Cities

Cities developed due to demand for trade fairs.

• Located in Northern Italy and Flanders• Charter granted by king or lord spelled out

the rights and privileges of the town.– Granted right to choose own leaders and control

own affairs.

• Paid lord or king a yearly fee.• Year and a day = freedom.

New Business PracticesGrowth of Banking was created by the

need for capital: money for investmentPartnerships were created with various

merchants for large ventures. - Safer investment. Didn’t lose

everything if a business didn’t work.Insurance: for the creation of safeguardsBill of exchange: paid for services

- didn’t have to carry coins with you (often stolen)

Social ChangesUse of money undermines the feudal

system- Tenant farmers or hired farm laborers

- Peasants selling goods to townspeople and paying rent to the lord in cash rather than labor.

Rise of the middle class: merchants, traders and artisans

Usury: lending money with interest was considered immoral

Jews became money lenders

Role of the GuildMerchant guilds dominated town life

Passed lawsLevied taxes

Craft guilds (represented workers in 1 occupation)

WeaversBakersBrewersGoldsmiths

Limited membership, provided protection for widows and children, watchdog for quality

Becoming a Guild Member

– Apprentice

– Journeyman

– Master

– Women did well in guilds-even dominating the silk and wool trade.

Towns were contained within walls. Walls were built where the town developed