Ch. 10 The Crusades

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the eastern portion of the Roman Empire which continued Roman rule.

Byzantium

The capital of the Byzantine Empire was originally in Byzantium, but it was later renamed Constantinople.

Christianity in the Byzantine Empire

Emperor Constantine legalized and promoted Christianity. However, due to Muslim conquests, many Christians of the Byzantine Empire converted to Islam.

Great Schism

In 1054, a break within Christianity → Eastern Orthodox Church & Western Roman Catholic Church. The Great Schism happened due to arguments over hierarchy and jurisdiction.

• Government: Patriarch (ruler) V.S Pope / State V.S Religious

• In 1054, the ruler of Constantinople and Pope of Rome excommunicate each other.

Society in the Byzantine Empire

• The bubonic plague led to a decline in urbanization, population, and wealth.

• Women became more confined and had to wear veils in they went outside.

• Byzantine emperors tried to intervene with trade: set prices, organize grain shipments, and monopolize trade on luxury goods.

• Emperor was the political leader AND head of church.

Cultural Achievements of the Byzantine

• Justinian’s Hagia Sophia influenced the design of other churches and monasteries.

• The Body of Civil Law became the basis of Western European law.

• Domed building techniques were adopted during the Renaissance period.

Decline of Byzantine

• The Roman Empire broke down because of peasant uprisings.

• New Germanic kings changed the legal and political landscape → Germanic traditions replaced Roman’s.

• Muslims continued to conquer more land.

Carolingian Family

Charles Martel (Charlemagne’s grandpa) stopped the Arab Muslims from invading more land thus their family ruled Western Europe.

Charlemagne: AKA First Holy Roman Empire & king of the Franks. He expanded his empire to much of Western and Central Europe. He was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III.

Louis the Pious: Charlemagne’s son who succeeded his father. His reign was marked as an internal strife when his sons fought over the division of the empire → Treaty of Verdun. The Treaty of Verdun split the empire into three parts.

Serf Economy in Europe

Labor system in which peasants were bound to the land they were born and subject to the control of their feudal lords. Serfdom was closely tied with the dominant economic system: manorial system (self-sufficient estate that included the lord's residence, agricultural land, and the homes of peasants).

• Serfs were at the bottom of the hierarchy but were not slaves since they could not be sold or bought independently w/o land.

• Required to work lord’s land, maintain roads, contribute to construction.

• Were able to cultivate a portion of lord’s land to survive.

Status of Knights

The status of knights increased because mounted knights became the central force of military. Knights acquired land as a reward for their service.

• Military security → tech advancements like armor, stirrups

• Kings granted fiefs (land grants) to lords who then gave a portion of the land to knights in exchange for military service

Politics & Church in the Holy Roman Empire

Popes held the power and not emperors which led to disputes between the Holy Roman Emperor and the pope known as investiture controversy.

• The Pope had exclusive legal order over all clergy and church property but rulers argued that they should have power to appoint the bishops.

• The investiture controversy was resolved by Henry V and Pope Calixtus II which stated rulers were allowed to invest bishops and other clergy, but bishops and abbots were elected by the clergy.

Monasticism

Living in a religious community apart from secular society and adhering to chastity, obedience, and poverty rules.

• Benedict of Nursia founded several monasteries and promoted practice of groups of monks/nuns living in organized communities together

• Monasteries preserved literacy and learning

• Monasteries serviced to the needs of travelers, organized agricultural production, provided refuge for women

Kievan Russia

A medieval East Slavic state centered around the city of Kiev.

• Varangians (Swedish Vikings) traded with Kievan Russia & overtook Rus in 880 CE

• Vladimir I made Orthodox Christianity the primary religion

• Traded with Byzantine; Kievan Russia’s power came more from trading than landholding

• Church acted as tax collectors because Christianity was powerful

The Crusades

The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated by Western Christians during the medieval period. These campaigns were aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and other holy sites in the Eastern Mediterranean from Muslim control.

• First Crusade: European Christian forces captured Jerusalem in 1099

• Second Crusade: Considered a failure because Crusaders did not achieve their goal of securing Christian control at the Holy Land → strengthened Muslim states

• Third Crusade: Muslim forces led by Saladin recaptured Jerusalem

• Fourth Crusade: Crusaders sacked Constantinople instead of advancing on Muslim land → fall of Constantinople & division of Byzantine

Impact of Crusades

• The Crusades intensified the religious divide between Christianity and Islam.

• facilitated cultural exchanges between the East and West. Europeans encountered new ideas, technologies, and goods during their interactions with the Muslim world, contributing to the Renaissance and the transmission of knowledge

• stimulated trade and commerce by creating new routes between the East and West

• weakened the feudal system → power in monarchs

• papacy gained increased authority and power during the Crusades, as popes took a central role in mobilizing support and sanctioning the expeditions