The Later Middle Ages: Crisis and Disintegration in the Fourteenth Century
Major Concepts
The fourteenth century crisis disintegrated feudalism, the manor system, and the Roman Catholic Church in western Europe.
Key drivers: the Black Death, the Hundred Years' War, the Great Schism, new technologies and trade, and social/economic upheaval.
In the West, Renaissance thought began to flourish; in Eastern Europe and Russia, older medieval structures remained longer.
The period produced widespread urban and rural revolts, shifts in military and political power, and profound cultural changes.
The Time of Troubles: Black Death and Social Crisis
The Black Death (mid-14th c.) caused massive mortality, social upheaval, and economic disruption.
Famine and climate stress preceded the plague, contributing to malnutrition and vulnerability.
Population collapse: European population declined by between and from to ; recurrences continued into the 15th century.
The plague spread along Eurasian trade routes, entering Europe via Sicily in and spreading rapidly.
In many regions, entire towns and villages disappeared; mortality was especially high in urban areas.
The Mongol-led network of trade helped spread plague; long-distance trade and movement of people facilitated transmission.
The Black Death in Europe: Mortality and Consequences
Mortality varied by region: Italian cities saw 50–60% losses; some French villages and northern cities faced heavy tolls; entire communities vanished in some areas.
Economic impacts included falling prices, rising wages for labor, and labor shortages that disrupted production and agriculture.
Social consequences included fear, anxiety about the end of the world, and drastic behavioral changes.
Cultural effects: intensified preoccupation with death; art and literature explored mortality and ars moriendi; increased patronage of burial and charitable works.
Reactions and Beliefs
Contemporary explanations ranged from heavenly punishment or cosmic exhalations to conspiracies (e.g., well-poisoning by Jews).
Flagellants sought atonement through public penance; many were condemned and suppressed by the Church.
Anti-Semitic violence: Jews were scapegoated and persecuted; many communities burned; large-scale pogroms occurred in parts of Germany and France.
Post-plague religious life saw a rise in indulgences, purgatory devotion, pilgrimages, and lay religious movements; mysticism and lay piety grew.
Life and Death: Social and Cultural Upheaval
The plague contributed to a weakened Church hierarchy and challenged universal religious authority.
Art reflected morbidity; literature and philosophy shifted toward human experience and skepticism.
Post-plague society experienced a collapse of the old order and a shift toward money-based contracts (scutage) and mercenary armies.
Economic Dislocation and Social Upheaval
Labor shortages raised wages and altered landholding patterns; landlords cut costs, sometimes through wage controls.
Peasant revolts arose as a response to wage pressures and noble resistance to new labor arrangements:
Jacquerie in France (1358) and dispersal after royal repression.
English Peasants' Revolt (1381) led by Wat Tyler and John Ball, sparked by a poll tax; initial gains were short-lived.
Urban revolts included the ciompi in Florence (1378); widespread urban economic tension followed the downturn.
The upheavals contributed to the erosion of serfdom and the decline of manorialism, though real reform varied by region.
War and Political Instability
The Hundred Years' War (1337–1453) between England and France became the century’s defining conflict and accelerated political changes.
Causes: disputes over Gascony, succession rights to the French throne, and rival monarchies seeking prestige and plunder.
Military evolution: the longbow and peasant foot soldiers transformed warfare; cavalry remained important but less decisive than in earlier eras.
Key phases and turning points:
Crécy (1346): English longbow victory over French cavalry; Calais captured to serve as a base.
Poitiers (1356): English victory; King John II captured; Treaty of Brétigny (1359) granted English gains but claimed peace was fragile.
French recovery under Charles V (1364–1380); rise of “free companies” of mercenaries.
Renewal under Henry V; Agincourt (1415) devastating French defeat; leading to the Treaty of Troyes (1420) recognizing Henry V as heir to the French throne.
Joan of Arc (c. 1429–1431) inspired French revival, lifting the siege of Orléans and helping crown Charles VII; eventual French victory by 1453, with Calais remaining English.
The long war contributed to fiscal strains, political instability, and the rise of national identities and centralized monarchies.
The Growth of English Political Institutions
Edward III’s long reign () solidified the English Parliament and its procedures; rising political influence and taxation through parliaments increased crown accountability.
The period saw tension between centralized royal financings and the needs of a growing state, foreshadowing later constitutional developments.
The Decline of the Church
Papal power peaked in the 13th century but declined in the 14th century due to conflicts with monarchies and internal corruption.
Boniface VIII vs. Philip IV of France: clash over taxation of clergy; Unam Sanctam asserted papal supremacy over temporal rulers, leading to a clash and his eventual capture and demise.
Avignon Papacy (1305–1377): popes resided in Avignon, seen as captive to the French crown; Petrarch dubbed this the Babylonian Captivity of the Church. The Avignon papacy centralized administration but damaged papal prestige.
The Great Schism (1378–1417): rival popes in Rome and Avignon divided Christendom; political loyalties deepened and church finances were strained.
Conciliarism rising from dissatisfaction argued that a general church council should govern to end the schism; Council of Pisa (1409) failed; Council of Constance (1414–1418) ended the schism and elected Martin V.
Catherine of Siena and other reform-minded figures urged papal reform and return to Rome.
Popular Religion in an Age of Adversity
The crisis produced diverse religious responses: heightened concern with salvation, indulgences, and purgatory; charity and hospital bequests increased; pilgrimages gained popularity.
Mysticism and lay piety flourished, with movements like the Modern Devotion influencing devotional practices and lay life.
The Development of vernacular Literature (Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio)
Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) wrote the Divine Comedy (1313–1321) in the Italian vernacular, signaling a shift toward vernacular literature and a new religious-poetic vision.
Petrarch (1304–1374) pioneered humanist Renaissance thought and wrote lyric poetry in the vernacular, influencing later European literature.
Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375) used prose to portray secular life; the Decameron (written after 1348) reflects post-plague society with a secular human focus.
Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1340–1400) enriched Middle English, notably with The Canterbury Tales, which portrayed a wide spectrum of English society and offered social critique, including church corruption.
Christine de Pisan (ca. 1364–1430) argued for women’s capabilities and education, notably in The Book of the City of Ladies (1404).
Giotto and the New Art: Realism in Painting
Giotto (1266–1337) moved Italian art toward realism and three-dimensionality, setting the stage for the Renaissance in Florence and beyond.
The Arena Chapel frescoes (Padua) exemplify a shift from Byzantine stylization to human-centered, emotionally expressive depictions.
Changes in Urban Life
Cities regulated public health and urban life; bathhouses were closed; regulation of prostitution increased for social order and taxation.
Urban life became more bureaucratic and regulated as cities sought to manage public health and social issues arising from the plague.
Family Life and Gender Roles in Late Medieval Cities
The nuclear family remained central; post-plague economic opportunities enabled some women to enter trades and crafts (e.g., weaving, metalwork, brewing).
The period saw changing gender roles due to labor shortages and new economic realities, yet traditional views on gender persisted in law and custom.
Notable examples include Grazida Lizier, whose testimony reveals tensions in sexual and religious norms and inquisitorial scrutiny.
Medical Practice and Public Health
Medicine relied on humoral theory and university training; surgeons gained prominence for practical know-how and were increasingly integrated into medical education.
Public health measures and hospitals expanded; cities established boards of health to regulate sanitation and limit epidemics.
The plague exposed the limits of medieval medicine and spurred the growth of practical medical texts and a more empirical approach in some areas.
Inventions and New Patterns
The Clock: mechanical clocks advanced timekeeping in towers and urban life, enabling more precise scheduling for commerce and daily routines.
Eyeglasses and Paper: eyeglasses improved reading; paper from cotton pulp became common, contributing to literacy and record-keeping.
Gunpowder and Cannons: gunpowder transformed warfare; cannons weakened castle walls and altered military strategy.
The Chapter Summary
The 11th–13th centuries saw the rise of territorial states, parliaments, capitalism, cities, banks, and vernacular literature, with the papacy at its height.
The fourteenth century brought crises: the Black Death, political and military upheaval, economic dislocation, and a weakened church.
The period generated cultural and intellectual shifts that prepared the ground for the Renaissance, including new literature in vernacular languages and innovations in art and science.
Despite unrelenting adversity, Europe showed resilience and a capacity for transformation that would accelerate in the following century.
Key Terms
Black Death
pogroms
scutage
Third Estate
condottieri
Quick Chronology (select highlights)
: Giotto’s era; rise of vernacular literature begins to take hold.
–: Hundred Years' War; key turning points at Crécy, Poitiers, Agincourt, Joan of Arc.
–: Black Death devastates Europe; major demographic and economic consequences.
–: Avignon Papacy and the decline of the papal prestige.
–: Great Schism and eventual end at Constance; Martin V.
: Ciompi revolt; laterFlorence politics shift to merchant oligarchy.
–: Council of Pisa; Council of Constance ends Schism.
Visual Aids (suggested study aids)
Map: Spread of the Black Death from Sicily (1347) to Europe by 1349; mortality by region.
Timeline: Key battles and turning points in the Hundred Years' War.
Portraits and artworks: Giotto’s Lamentation; Traini’s Triumph of Death; Chaucers' Canterbury Tales portraits.