Early Middle Ages - Mid Unit Study Guide

The Mid-Unit study guide for the Early Middle Ages in AWH

Sourcing

When you identify the who, what, where and when of the source you are examining.

Contextualizing

When you identify the context/setting of when the source was created. (Is this a primary, secondary, or tertiary source?)

Close Reading

Where you figure out the true content of the source (i.e. the main idea or claim). 

• How does the source phrase what it is saying?

Corroboration

Not one source tells a whole story; no single source is completely reliable. Compare multiple sources to learn the whole story.

Middle Ages

• AKA the Dark Ages - was only dark for a bit in the beginning (9th and 10th century), then got better

• The time after the Fall of Rome and before the European Renaissance

• About 400s - 1400s

The Franks

• The Germanic tribe that held power in Gaul. 

• Clovis was their leader

  • Clovis wife wanted him to convert to Christianity

• In 496 Clovis led his Frankish soldiers into battle - they were losing but then he prayed to God and they ended up winning the battle

  • After he and 3000 of his soldiers got baptized

• In 511 all the Franks were loosely united by Christianity and became the Merovingian Dynasty

Clovis

• Clovis (466-511)

• Leader of the Franks

• 496 led his soldiers into a battle - came out victorious after he prayed to God

  • Converted to Christianity after

• By 511 had loosely united the Franks into one kingdom which was partnered with the Church

  • Created the Merovingian dynasty

Monasteries

Religious communities built by the Church for Monks and Nuns

Secular

• Worldly power involved in politics

  • (ex. Charlemagne is crowned Holy Roman Emperor and is Secular because he has ‘worldly power’ and is king.)

Merovingian Dynasty

• 481-751

• The Merovingians were war lords  - followed Germanic tradition

• Their Rule was based on expansion through conquering

• Loyalty was secured by buying support of local strongmen to enforce rule while gone through payment

  • Funds for the payment were secured by conquering more land

• Founded by Clovis

Major Domo

• Part of the Merovingian dynasty

  • The Merovingian problem: Ruler→ expands →gets major domo → pays them to make an army and watch over the people (loyalty to Christianity) →runs out of money → major domo has the most power → cycle starts again

Charles Martel

• Was a major domo in 719, and became the most powerful person under the Frankish kingdom 

• Extended the Franks region and defeated the Muslim raiders in 732 - first person to do so

Carolingian Dynasty

• Charles Martel passed rule to son Pepin

• Pepin created the Carolingian dynasty in 751-888

  • During his rule Pepin stopped the Lombards invasion of Italy (italy=rome=church)

    • Pope names Pepin “King by the Grace of God”

• Problem: How to unify the territory when it is vast, decentralized and rowdy?

• After Charlemagne died in 814 CE his sons can’t decide who rules; they split the territory up

• Treaty of Verdun divided the kingdom into thirds to the surviving sons

Charlemagne

• Charlemagne (748-814)

• Standardized the learning; monks created common writing system - “Black Letter”/ Gothic Script (it was easier to read and took up less space)

  • Collected multiple Biblical texts and created a single one

  • Used educational system to standardize Christian teachings

  • Made laws to clarify and elevate Christianity

  • Built new churches 

• Made the mutually beneficial relationship between the franks and the pope better

• Was crowned Holy Roman Emperor on 12/25/800

  • This cemented the relationship between the franks and the Church

    • Pope crowns King

    • King protects Pope

    • King is given secular power and religiously appointed

Battle of Tours

• Battle of Tours (732)

• Won by Charles Martel - a major domo

  • Stopped Muslims from invading Spain (first to do so)

  • Becomes “Defender of Christianity"

Missi Dominici

• “Messengers of God” - made of church and secular scholars

• Were used as a show to enforce the rule of Charlemagne and the Church

• Were followed by the army - the army were the ones who did the punishing and killing

“Counts” and “Counties”

Like administrators → like major domos but not bribed. They were paid to watch over and keep records, “count” taxes, deeds, etc. Written power instead of military power. The regions they watch over were their counties.

“Germanic” Tradition - Medieval Synthesis

• Led by Warriors

• Military Skill

• Loyalty and honor

• Tribal

• Seeks to Conquer

• Very ‘bro’ coded

“Roman” Tradition - Medieval Synthesis

• Led by political leader

• Law and order based on reason and logic

• Literate: based on written laws

  • Academic/scholarly

• Seeks to convince (through reason

“Christian” Tradition - Medieval Synthesis

• Led by religious leader

• Hierarchical 

• Faith-based

• Inspired by the story of Christ

• Seeks to convert