Pre-colonization European society

Plague and repopulation

The fall of the Roman Empire and the beginning of the European Renaissance bookend the period of the Middle Ages. Without a dominant centralized power or overarching cultural hub, Europe experienced political and military discord. The bubonic plague was the biggest devastation in the 1340s. In a few short years, it had killed about one-third of Europe’s population. The effects of the devastating disease are known as the Black Death

By the next century, the population had grown significantly. In 1450, a newly reinvigorated European society, smaller and more prosperous than before, was on the brink of renaissance

Feudalism

Most Europeans lived in small villages that consisted of a manorial house or castle for the lord, a church, and simple homes for the peasants or serfs, who made up about 60 percent of Western Europe’s population

Europe’s feudal society was a mutually supportive system, at least in theory. Feudal society was first based on communal farming, but as lords became more powerful, they privatized their ownership and rented land to their subjects. Serfs, who were free, weren’t allowed to leave the area where they worked, which supported them and their families, as well as the lord and all who depended on him. Serfdom was more slavery than employment

Women often died in childbirth, and 1/3 children died before the age of 5. Without sanitation or medicine, many people perished from diseases we consider inconsequential today. Most people died before the age of 45. They usually owned no more than two sets of clothing, and bathed only when the waters melted the spring. Bad weather, crop disease, or insect infestation could cause an entire village to starve or force the survivors to relocate

The role of religion in early Europe

The Christian Church was the only organized institution in medieval Europe. Christianity had one dominant sect: Catholicism. Village and family life revolved around the Church. As Christianity spread throughout Europe, it replaced pagan and animistic views, explaining supernatural events and forces of nature in its own terms

All events had a spiritual connotation. Penitents confessed to the priest, who absolved them and assigned them penance to atone for their acts and save themselves from eternal damnation

The pope decided all matters of theology, interpreting the will of God to the people, but he also had authority over temporal matters. The Church had the ability to excommunicate people, and even monarchs feared to challenge its power. It was also the seat of all knowledge. The feudal system, therefore, relied on the sanctity and fervor of religion to keep serfs tied to their lord