The Rise of Europe: The Early Middle Ages

Decline of Roman Empire & Barbarian Migrations

Introduction: Western Europe500-1000 A.D.

• During the Roman Empire, Europe was linked by Roman Roads – spread classical ideas, Latin language & Christianity

• After fall of Roman Empire, invaders swept across Europe

• Trade slowed, towns emptied, learning almost ceased• Western Europe cut off from sophisticated civilizations of

Middle East, China, India• Focus of European history shifts North• New culture emerged-blended Greco-Roman, Germanic,

& Christian traditions• Medieval-Latin for “middle Ages”

Geography: Resources• Frontier-sparsely

populated, underdeveloped

• Dense forests• Fertile soil• Minerals• Seas for fish &

transportation• Rivers for trade• Mountain streams for

water wheels

Germanic Kingdoms

• Germanic tribes migrated across Europe were farmers & herders

• Very different culture from Romans

• No cities, no written laws• Small communities,

governed by unwritten customs

• Elected kings to rule during war

• Warrior nobles swore loyalty to king in exchange for weapons & loot

Germanic Peoples• 5th- 6th centuries,

political unity of Roman Empire ended

• peoples moved southwards, attracted by Rome’s glory

• wanted fertile land/better climate

• organized into tribes • chief made final

decisions• lived in big wooden

houses• moved constantly• Called barbarians

(foreigners) by Romans

5th Century Germanic Kingdoms

• Borders not fixed• Christian Church

provided order & security

• Several kingdoms in Roman territory– Franks– Visigoths– Burgundians– Anglo-Saxon– Vandals

How were Germanic societies organized? • Germans were rural

– Most peasants – animal grazing and working

the land

• Most land in hands of Roman a& Germanic families

– Some small land owners

• Monasteries owned vast territories

– received donations in exchange for prayers said by the monks

• Population of cities decreased

• commercial activity had slowed

• currency had almost disappeared

The New Society:

Germans & Romans • Germans were the

minority• Initially, Romans &

Germans maintained own laws, customs & religion

• societies started to blend-Germans adopted Roman institutions/laws

• Used latin• Converted to

Christianity

Government Changes

Rome• Loyalty to public

governments• written law• citizenship

Germanic Kingdoms• Family & personal ties

– Made it difficult to govern a large area

• Small communities• Unwritten rules &

traditions• Chief leads warriors

who pledge loyalty

Art & culture in Germanic Kingdoms

• Few artistic artifacts remain• Some small churches• Art of gold & silver • Early Monasteries

– Community of monks – Daily life organized

according to rules• Saint Benedict

– Monasteries places of prayer

– cultural centers • school • a scriptorium where

manuscripts were copied

Rise of Christian Monasticism

• Monasteries & Convents were separate religious communities for men & women

• Monks nuns held no private possessions; servants of God

Rules of Benedict

• Strict yet practical• Give up attachment

to world & love of self

• Devotion to God• Balance between

work & study• Scholastica

– Twin sister?

– Devoted life to the church

– Took Benedict’s rules to convents

Germanic Kingdoms: The Franks

• Strongest of the small Germanic kingdoms of Western Europe

• In 486, Clovis, king of the Franks, conquered Gaul, a former Roman province

• Converted to Christianity– earned the support of the

people – Christian Church of Rome

Christianity Spreads

• Germanic peoples converted– missionaries

– fear of Muslim attacks

• New converts settled in Rome’s former lands

Germanic Kingdoms: Europe & Muslim World

• Islam appeared in Arabia in 622

• Christians were stunned when Muslim armies overran Christian lands, building a huge empire from Spain to North Africa to Palestine

• Charles Martel stopped Muslims at Battle of Tours, France in 732

• Muslims advanced no further into Western Europe but continued to rule Spain

• Caused Christians great anxiety and hostility

Age of Charlemagne • Grandson of Charles Martel

• Built empire across France, Germany, part of Italy

• Ruled for 30 years• Spent most of that time

fighting Muslims in Spain, Saxons in the north, Avars & Slavs in east, Lombards in Italy

• United much of Old Roman Empire

Age of Charlemagne: The Carolingian Era • In 800, crushed

rebellious nobles at request of Pope Leo III

• Pope crowned him – gave him title

Emperor of Romans• Joined Germanic

power to Church & heritage of Roman Empire

• Laid path for future power struggles

• Emperor in Constantinople outraged

• Increased division between east & west Christians

Age of Charlemagne: Government

• Worked to create a united Christian Europe• Worked with Church to spread Christianity to conquered peoples• Limited power of nobles-(counts) • Gave land in return for support and soldiers for his armies• Missi dominici were officials sent out to check on roads, listen to

grievances & administer justice

Age of Charlemagne:

Revival of Learning • Wanted to make his court at Aachen a “second Rome”

• Promoted education for all social classes

• Founded a school

• Curriculum was grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy

• Ordered monasteries to open schools - train monks & priests

After Charlemagne

• His son Louis, took over 814 AD

• ineffective• He had 3 sons• They battled for 30

years• In 843, Treaty of

Verdun-split empire into 3 regions

• Central authority broke down

• Led to feudalism

After Charlemagne: Legacy

• Extended Christian civilization into northern Europe

• Increased blending of German, Roman, & Christian traditions

• Set up a strong, efficient government

• Set an example for later medieval rulers

After Charlemagne: New Invasions

• 800’s, Muslims conquered Sicily which became a thriving center of Islamic culture

• In 896, the Magyars, nomads overran eastern Europe and plundered Germany, parts of France, and Italy

• After about 50 years, pushed back into Hungary

After Charlemagne: The Vikings

• Expert sailors from Scandinavia • burned & looted along the coasts

and rivers of Europe• Traders & explorers who sailed

around the Mediterranean Sea and across the Atlantic Ocean

• Opened trade routes that linked northern Europe to Mediterranean lands

• Settled in England, Ireland, northern France and parts of Russia

• Around 1000, Leif Erikson set up a short-lived colony on North America

The Vikings

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/launch_gms_viking_quest.shtml

Big Question

• What changes altered the economy, government, and culture of Western Europe?– Disruption of trade– Downfall of cities– Population shifts– Decline in learning– Loss of common language

After the fall of Rome, what institution provided security and stability?

• The Roman Catholic Church

Who was Clovis?

• Frankish king in region of Gaul

• Brought Christianity to the region

• Won the support of the Church against others

• United the Franks into one kingdom

• Mark the beginning of the alliance between political and religious powers

Who was Benedict?

• Monk who develop a set of strict yet practical rules for monasteries.

• Became a model for religious communities

• Monasteries became centers of learning

• Venerable Bede wrote a history of England

• Illuminated manuscripts

What were the most important events in the unification of the Germanic kingdoms?

• 400’s Roman Empire invaded• 511-Clovis unites Franks in Christian kingdom• 590-Gergor the Great becomes Pope• 732-Charles Martel defeats Muslims at Battle of Tours• 751-Carolingian Dynasty begins• 800-Pope crowns Charlemagne Emperor • 800’s-French, Spanish, other languages evolved from Latin

What happened to Charlemagne’s empire after he died?

• Grandsons fought for control• Treaty of Verdun• Empire broken up into three kingdoms• Carolingian kings lost power• Central authority broke down• Lack of strong leadership created a new

system of governing and landholding• Feudalism is born!!!!

Feudalism in Europe: The Impact of Vikings

• Climate Change• Sailed up rivers• Traders, farmers,

explorers• Russia• Constantinople• North Atlantic• Gradually accepted

Christianity• Warming trend in N.

Europe• Settled down

Longship

Magyar Invasions-late 800’s AD

• Nomads from Hungary

• Horsemen• Took captives as

slaves

Muslims

• Came from south

• Strongholds in N. Africa

• wanted to spread Islam into Europe and plunder wealth

New Political System: Feudalism

• Based on rights & obligations

• Loyalty & Military Service exchanged for Land & Privilege

• Loyalty & Labor exchanged for protection

Social Classes

• Social status determined prestige & power

• Those who fought• Those who prayed• Those who worked• Inherited• Most people were

peasants & most peasants were serfs

Manors: The Economic Side

• Manor was lord’s estate

• Provided serfs with housing, farmland, protection

• Serfs tended lord’s land, cared for animals, other tasks to maintain the estate

• Peasant women worked along their husbands

• All owed duties to the lord

• Grain, labor, etc.

Life on a Manor

• Self-sufficient• Peasant taxes

– grinding their grain– Marriage– Church

Age of Chivalry

• Nobles constantly fought• Conflict kept Europe

fragmented• Violent society valued

combat skills• High ideals guided

warriors actions- glorified their roles

Age of Chivalry: Education

• At age 7, trained as a page in castle of another lord;

• at age 14, trained as squire, acted as servant to knight;

• at 21, became a knight

Age of Chivalry: Weapons & Equipment

• Saddles & stirrups from Asia• Armor• Long bow• Cross bow and missiles

Caltrops

Age of Chivalry: War Games

• Fought in local wars or tournaments

• Combined recreation with combat training

Code of Chivalry

• Be loyal• Brave• Courteous• Defend three masters:

– Feudal lord – God– chosen lady

• Protect the weak & poor

Castle Life• Lived in & protected

home of feudal lords• castles designed as

fortresses, massive walls & guard towers

Romantic Love

• “courtly love”• Ideal form of

spiritual love• Knight or courtier

completely devoted himself to a noblewoman

• Expected to defend his chosen lady & keep her entertained with love poems & songs

The Art of Courtly Love by

Andreas Cappellanus

• Marriage is no real excuse for not loving. • He who is not jealous cannot love. • No one should be deprived of love without the very best of reasons. • It is not proper to love any woman whom one should be ashamed to seek to

marry. • A true lover does not desire to embrace in love anyone except his beloved. • When made public love rarely endures. • The easy attainment of love makes it of little value; difficulty of attainment

makes it prized. • Every lover regularly turns pale in the presence of his beloved. • When a lover suddenly catches sight of his beloved his heart palpitates. • A new love puts to flight an old one. • Good character alone makes any man worthy of love. • Love can deny nothing to love. • A lover can never have enough of the solaces of his beloved. • A man who is vexed by too much passion usually does not love. • A true lover is constantly and without intermission possessed by the thought

of his beloved.

How did feudal lords in Western Europe in the 11th century defend their

territories?• Private armies

• Rewarded knights with fiefs from their estates

• Allowed knights to use their wealth to purchase supplies; weapons, armor, horses for battle

How were the lives of a noblewoman and a peasant woman different?

• Peasant woman– Worked as hard as a

man in order to survive– General work duties

• look after children & organize food for family and animals

• Noblewoman– Centered around

Church and home– Inherit husband’s

estate, title of military commander and warrior when husband was away in battle

How did invading armies go about attacking a castle?

• To capture a castle, first engineers would check the walls to find any weak points

• Attacking soldiers would ram the walls with weapons such as the battering ram and then walls would collapse

• Attacking soldiers could infiltrate the walls of the castle

How did some of the troubadours’ songs promote a false image noblewomen &

knights?

• portrayed noblewomen as always beautiful, constantly pure

• Reality Check: Knighthood was a particularly brutal office

Power of the Church

• In 936,Otto I, crowned Holy Roman Emperor for protecting the Church

• Began Holy Roman Empire

• Close relationship between Church & State

• Tensions over who would appoint Church officials-investiture

Conflict Between Popes & Emperors: Gregory VII

• Reform corrupt church leaders

• Make the Church independent of secular rulers

• 1075, Banned practice of “lay investiture”-(church official chosen by kings)

Conflict Between Popes & Emperors: Henry IV

• Holy Roman Emperor• Angered by Pope

Gregory’s actions• Needed church

leaders to support him against powerful German lords

Conflict Between Henry and Gregory• Henry IV demanded

that Gregory VII resign as Pope

• Gregory excommunicated Henry

• Henry realized he could not win so begged forgiveness

• Henry was forgiven

Why was the Church so important in the lives of the people?

• Church was a unifying force in a time of political turmoil & warfare

• Church provided a sense of security

How did popes in the 11th century use excommunication & interdicts as political

tools?

• Popes threatened excommunication to have power over them & the decisions they made

• The pope could threaten a king with an interdict to frighten the kings’ subjects in order to force him to submit

What was the Concordant of Worms?

• Compromise between Church & emperor in 1122

• Church officials appointed church leaders

• King could veto appointments

• Kings could give titles& land grant to church officials

• 1st document outlining separate areas of responsibility for Church and State

What happened at the Battle of Legnano?

• 1176,Frederick I’s army of mounted knights fought against foot soldiers of the Lombard League

• Lombard League was a group of Italian merchants who stood up to Frederick’s plundering of Italy

• The Italians, with the support of the pope, defeated Frederick’s army

The Scriptorium: Remember Your Vow of Silence!!!!

• You are a monk in the scriptorium.

• Create an illuminated manuscript of the Latin proverb “Moderatio in omnibus rebus”

The Dormitory: Remember Your Vow of Silence

• Pretend you are a monk in the dormitory at 9:00 pm.

• Put your head down on your desk, close your eyes

The Workhouse: Remember Your Vow of Silence

• You are a monk in a workhouse. Today, you and your fellow monks are in charge of cleaning.

• Get paper towels, use Windex to clean all parts of your workspace.

• Work diligently and quietly with a cheerful spirit.

The Chancel: Maintain total silence

• You are a monk in the chancel

• Sit and listen to the Gregorian chant.

• Think about how the Gregorian chant helped bring monks closer to God.