Post-Classical Europe Study Guide

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the chronological development of Post-Classical Europe, including the Dark Ages, the High Middle Ages, and the transition into the Renaissance.

The Franks

A Germanic tribe that settled throughout the Western Roman Empire during the Early Medieval Period.

Charlemagne

A Frankish leader whose empire covered a vast geographical extent and whose death led to the collapse of the empire.

Treaty of Verdun

The agreement that divided the empire after the death of Charlemagne.

Feudalism

A social and political hierarchy based on the relationship between a lord, vassal, and a fief.

Fief

A piece of land granted by a lord to a vassal within the feudal hierarchy.

Manor System

The economic system associated with feudalism involving self-sufficient estates reliant on serf labor.

Serfs

Peasants who provided most of the labor on a manor and whose lives were tied to the land.

Sacraments

Sacred rites of the Christian Church required for spiritual salvation.

Tithe

A tax paid to the church, typically one-tenth of a person's income.

Canon Law

The body of laws governing the religious practices of the Christian Church.

Excommunication

A penalty that involves being kicked out of the Roman Catholic Church.

Interdict

A church order excluding an entire town or kingdom from receiving sacraments.

Justinian’s Code (Corpus Juris Civilis)

A comprehensive collection of laws organized under the Byzantine Emperor Justinian.

Hagia Sophia

A major Byzantine architectural achievement known for its large dome.

Greek Fire

A flammable weapon used by the Byzantine Empire to defend Constantinople against Arab armies.

1st Crusade

A military expedition from 1096-1099 that captured the Holy Land and established four Crusader states.

3rd Crusade

A conflict from 1189-1192 where Richard the Lionheart and Saladin agreed to a truce allowing Christians access to the Holy Land.

4th Crusade

A 1204 expedition where Catholics attacked Orthodox Christians and sacked Constantinople.

Bubonic Plague

A disease spread by fleas on rats that killed one in three people in Europe and caused massive social and economic breakdown.

Anti-Semitism

Hostility and violence toward Jewish people, which rose in Europe as they were blamed for the Bubonic Plague.

Three-field system

A new agricultural technique involving rotating crops to revive trade and production in the High Middle Ages.

Guilds

Associations of merchants or artisans that cooperated to protect their economic interests.

Hanseatic League

A group of early trading cities in Northern Europe that helped growth in trade.

Western Schism

A period of debate in Church leadership where there was more than one pope at a time.

William the Conqueror

The leader who won the Battle of 1066 and brought French influences to England.

Domesday Book

A census taken by William the Conqueror to record all the land and assets in England.

Magna Carta

A document signed in 1215 that limited the power of the English king.

Estates General

The representative assembly of France that grew as the nation-state became more powerful.

Reconquista

The centuries-long drive to push Muslims out of Spain, completed in 1492.

Inquisition

A church court set up to determine heresy that used torture against Jews and Muslims.

Scholasticism

An academic movement using reason and logic to support Christian teaching and beliefs.

Thomas Aquinas

The greatest scholastic thinker who integrated Aristotle's philosophy with Christian teachings.

Hundred Years War

A conflict between France and England over the French crown and control of English lands in France.

Longbow

A new military technology used by England to win early victories at the Battle of Agincourt.

Joan of Arc

A figure who turned the tide of the Hundred Years War in favor of the French.

Secularism

A Renaissance idea focusing on worldly rather than spiritual or religious concerns.

Humanism

A Renaissance intellectual movement focusing on human potential and achievements.