Middle Ages and Political Systems Vocabulary

Patriarch

The head of the Eastern Orthodox Church, originally appointed by the Byzantine emperor

Idolatry

The worship of religious images

Feudalism

Political and social order developed during the Middle Ages when royal governments could not defend subjects

Vassal

Under feudalism, a man who served a lord in a military capacity

Knight

Under feudalism, a member of the heavily armored cavalry

Fief

Under feudalism, a grant of land made to a vassal

Feudal contract

Unwritten rules that determined the relationship between a lord and his vassal

Chivalry

A code of ethics and ideal of civilized behavior among the nobility

Manor

In medieval Europe, an agricultural estate that a lord ran and peasants worked

Serf

A peasant legally bound to the land who provided labor and paid rents

Bourgeoisie

The middle class, including merchants, industrialists, and professional people

Common law

Uniform system of law based on court decisions rather than written codes

Magna Carta

The "Great Charter" of rights King John signed in 1215

Parliament

Representative government in England composed of knights, townspeople, nobles, and bishops

Sacrament

Christian rite

Heresy

The denial of basic Church doctrines

Relics

Bones or objects connected with saints; considered worthy of worship

Crusades

Military expeditions to regain the Holy Land from the Muslims

Infidel

An unbeliever; a term applied to Muslims during the Crusades

Theology

The study of religion and God

Scholasticism

Medieval system that tried to reconcile faith and reason

Vernacular

The language of everyday speech in a particular region

Secular

Attitudes, activities, or anything that has no religious basis

Schism

A split or separation

Pope

The head of the Roman Catholic Church

Centralized Government

Political power moves from smaller areas to one main person or group

Decentralized Government

Political power resides in smaller areas (feudal estates) instead of one person

Natural Rights

Rights inherent to humans; fundamental, universal, and inalienable

Divine Right

The idea that a monarch's right to rule comes from God

Absolute Monarch

A monarch who rules by divine right with no limits to their power