🛡️ High Middle Ages/Rise of Nations (Units 3 & 4)

Feudalism

The collapse of governments and the constant threat of invasion (especially from Vikings) in the early Middle Ages led to the development of feudalism, a new political and social order.

The Viking impact on Western Europe:

• Viking raids and settlements destabilized existing political structures, forcing local communities to seek protection from powerful lords, which accelerated the growth of feudalism.

Feudal Society

European feudal society was structured around a hierarchy of reciprocal obligations.

Lord & vassals:

A lord granted land (a fief) to a vassal in exchange for military service and loyalty.

Chivalry:

A code of conduct for knights, emphasizing courage, honor, loyalty, and courtesy.

Manorialism

describes the economic system of the Middle Ages, centered on the manor.

Life on a manor:

Manors were largely self-sufficient agricultural estates, comprising a lord's castle or manor house, a village, and surrounding farmland.

Free peasants vs. Serfs:

Free peasants owned their land and had more rights, while serfs were legally tied to the land, working for the lord in exchange for protection and a plot of land to cultivate.

Revival of Trade and Cities

significantly altered the culture of the Middle Ages.

Religion in the Middle Ages

(specifically Christianity) profoundly influenced the lives of people in the Middle Ages.

Importance of cathedrals:

Cathedrals were not just places of worship but also centers of community life, education, and artistic expression, symbolizing the power and wealth of the Church.

Romanesque:

• Early medieval architectural style characterized by thick walls, round arches, large towers, and small windows.

Gothic:

Later medieval architectural style featuring pointed arches, ribbed vaults, flying buttresses, and large stained-glass windows, allowing for taller, lighter structures.

Excommunication:

The ultimate ecclesiastical penalty, cutting an individual off from the sacraments and membership in the Church.

Simony

The buying or selling of Church offices or spiritual goods.

Interdict

A papal decree withholding sacraments and Christian burial from a specified region or group, used to pressure rulers.

Religious and Secular Power Conflicts

Pope Gregory VII vs. King Henry IV:

A major conflict over the right of secular rulers to appoint bishops and other Church officials. Pope Gregory VII asserted papal supremacy, leading to Henry IV's excommunication and eventual submission.

Crusade Motivations

series of religious wars, primarily aimed at recovering the Holy Land from Muslim rule.

Crusade Religious reasons:

Desire to reclaim Jerusalem, protect pilgrims, and earn spiritual rewards (indulgences).

Crusade Political reasons

The Pope's desire to assert his authority, divert internal conflicts, and expand papal influence.

Crusade Economic reasons

Opportunities for trade, land, and wealth for participants.

Pope Urban II

Called for the First Crusade at the Council of Clermont in 1095.

Decline of Church Authority

Several factors contributed to the decline in the authority of the Church by the late Middle Ages.

Decline in church authority Black Death

The devastating plague (mid-14th century) led to a crisis of faith, as many questioned divine justice and the Church's inability to prevent or cure the disease.

decline in church authority The Crusades

Their ultimate failure and moral compromises diminished the Church's prestige and power.

decline in church authority Avignon Papacy/Great Schism (Pope Boniface v. Philip IV):

The period (1309-1376) when the papacy resided in Avignon, France, under French influence, diminishing its perceived independence.

decline in church authority Great Schism

• A split in the Western Church (1378-1417) with rival popes in Rome and Avignon, severely undermining papal authority and leading to widespread confusion and criticism. This was partly triggered by the conflict between Pope Boniface VIII and King Philip IV of France over royal authority over the clergy.

 Holy Roman Empire

differed significantly from the emerging nation-states of England and France. While England and France moved towards centralized monarchies, the Holy Roman Empire remained a decentralized collection of semi-independent states, duchies, and free cities, with an elected emperor who often struggled to assert control over powerful local rulers.