Medieval Europe PP

Early Medieval Europe

Collapse of Western Roman Empire



Empire Divided (300’s AD)  Byzantine Empire (Greek & Autonomous) Latifundias replace centralized rule  Decentralized, self-sufficient (E,S,P)  Isolated Kingdoms of Landlords/Serfs Constant Barbarian Invasions



Empire collapses (476): Isolated, Primitive =





Barbarian w/ Roman (Latin) influence

Rise of Christianity (Unifying Force) 

 

 

First Phase: (Roman) conversion through original disciples (church fathers) Bishop of Rome (Pope) replaces emperor 2nd Phase: ‘Papal Primacy’ – divine authority of (rock) = Pontifex Maximus over Church  Hierarchal Order - Church = key to salvation & protection Viceroys (bishops) – oversee church & state Monastic Culture – converts/scholars

The New Economy   

Early Middle Ages = Manor & Serfdom Trade = Bartering/Exchange of Services Agricultural Developments 



Heavy Plow, Padded Horse Collar, and Three Field System Gradually Transform Economy & Challenge ‘System’

Impact of Agricultural Improvements 

  



Communal - Manorial Population Growth Surplus /Diversity Crops Markets - $ exchange Rise of Towns (Burgs) 



Merchant (Middle Class) 

 

Feudal Order?

Protection to Guilds

Banking & Investments Church & Profit



Trade Routes 



Mediterranean, Baltic, Overland

Feudal Strains  



Lord, Serf, Communes Kings support M.C. – offset power of nobles Towns = Independence – coin $, laws & juries, taxes, militias, foreign goods

Feudalism 

Political & Social Order 





Feuda – land holding bearing obligation (Vassal) Franks – first centralized political power of Europe 



Hierarchal – mutual obligations

Stirrup – mounted warrior ($)

System becomes increasingly complex– loyalty / succession

The Frankish Empire 



How were the Franks able to unify much of the Western Roman Empire? Why is Charlemagne’s reign viewed as the model for European feudal monarchies?

Treaty of Verdun

Eastern Empire (Byzantine)  

Division – linguistic, cultural, political Eastern Influence (Asia/Islam)  



Mediterranean Trade and Exchange Russian and Southern, Eastern Europe

Greek influence  Greater reliance on Bible (not Pope)  Filioque - Western belief that Christ & God the Father one essence – not lesser  Religion under Political Authority of Emperor

England: Development of Common Law 

1066: Norman Conquest (William of Normandy) 





Feudal Monarchy: Norman vassals, Fiefdoms, Loyalty Oaths, Sheriffs War, Gov’t, & Legal System   



Holding W. France & England

Permanent Royal Bureaucracy (Barons) Representative (lower) bodies emerge “Common Law” – judicial reviews

English Monarch unmatched, but challenged by Church (courts) & Barons (taxation)

Magna Carta (1215) 



Which groups benefited most from the signing of the document? What will be the implications and lasting effects of the document?

Royal vs. Papal Power 

Unam Sanctum (1302)

Challenges to Feudalism (cont.)   



Dynastic Succession Liege Lords – Loyalty Taxation – Rents replace serfdom & heavier reliance on towns (MC) Rise of Trade & Guilds 



Autonomy & Power

Lords – Advisors (Growing Influence) 

Use of Mercenary Warriors/Bastard Feudalism

 



Continual Warfare ($) Introduction of Firearms: psychological to tactical Royal Monopolies & Centralized Authority 



Profit & Competition

Church – Wealth, land, Motives (Crusades, Indulgences, simony) 

Demands for Reform/Questioning Authority/Nationalism

14th Century European Monarchs 

Political Power Struggles  



Monarchs vs. Nobility – Magna Carta (1215) Papal vs. Monarchs – “Unam Sanctum” (1302)

Fiscal Pressures 

Introduction of Firearms & modern warfare 



Bastard Feudalism – Emerging Professional Armies

Taxes and Monopolies Navigation – expand trade & “national” prestige  Church Tithes vs. State Revenues  Monarchial support for Middle Class (Profit Driven)  Monarch’s Monopolize Products 

The Black Death and its Impact

Population Growth and Crisis 



Over Population & Marginal Farming Lands 1347 Plague Strikes – Without Discrimination  



Disruption of Growing European Identity Psychological Strain – Value of Survivors

Impact on Agriculture / Trade  

 

Supply & Demand – Production < Prices Profits < Labor (Natural cycle, but profit driven) New Techniques, Scale Back Lands, Labor Supply Enclosure: England’s Wool Industry

Protectionism & Upheaval 

Statute of Laborers (1350) – wages/jobs 



Guild Restrictions – limit losses & competition  

 

Rural Unrest: Feudal ties & dues, taxes, tithes Urban: Wages, taxes, guild power Shift: Free men vs. return to feudal ties

Hanseatic League – protect Northern trade Upheavals = Resentment/Uncertainty  

Value of Labor: Supply & Demand Devotion: Church response (mixed) = heavier reliance on faith

Crisis in the Church 1309-1377 Avignon Exile  Unam Sanctum & Royal Authority  Fiscal & Moral Crisis  1378-1417 Great Schism 

100 Years War (1337 – 1453)   

HW – Take Notes on . . . The Causes of the Conflict Its Impact on European States & Gov’ts 

Holy Roman Empire, England, France

AP World History – Middle Ages    

Restructuring of Europe Decentralization - Medieval society Division of Christianity Revival of Cities

Early Medieval Europe 

Unique cultural and political outlook  Romanized

w/ barbarian customs  Religion = salvation (Active Life?)  Cut off from Eastern Empire  Growing

threat of Islam (survival)  Trade, science, philosophy, math, etc.  Political Decentralization  Mutual Obligations / Stability

Brain Tickler 



How did the rise of the middle class and free towns impact Medieval European order? How did the emergence of nations challenge Papal authority (Church) and the traditional roles of the lords/nobility?