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Medieval Europe 600-1200. A Time of Insecurity. In the fifth century, the Roman Empire broke down. Europe was politically fragmented Western Europe suffered invasions In the eighth century, the Carolingians united various Frankish kingdoms into a larger empire
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A Time of Insecurity • In the fifth century, the Roman Empire broke down. • Europe was politically fragmented • Western Europe suffered invasions • In the eighth century, the Carolingians united various Frankish kingdoms into a larger empire • At its height under Charlemagne, the empire included Gaul and parts of Germany and Italy • The empire was divided by his grandsons and never united again • Vikings attacked England, France, and Spain in the late 8th and 9th centuries • William the Conqueror, from Normandy invaded England in 1066
A Self-Sufficient Economy • The fall of the Roman Empire was accompanied by an economic transformation that included de-urbanization and a decline in trade. Regional elites became more self-sufficient. • Farming estates called manors were the primary centers of agriculture production. Manors grew from the need for self-sufficiency and self defense. • The lord of the manor had almost unlimited power over his agricultural workers – the serfs.
Early Medieval Society in the West • During the early medieval period a class of nobles developed into knights. Landholding and military service became almost inseparable. • New military technology developed, including the stirrup, larger weapons, and armor and weapons of the knight. This equipment was expensive and therefore knights needed land to support themselves. • Fiefs (lands) were granted to a man in promise for military service. By the 10th century fiefs became hereditary • Kings were weak because they depended on their vassals – who may hold fiefs to more than one lord. • Kings were limited in taxation and could not tax the large landholdings of the Church • Noble women were pawns in marriage politics. Women could own land and non-noble women worked alongside men.
Western Europe Revives, 1000-1200 • Population and agricultural production increased, resurgence of trade • New technologies played a significant role, like the heavy moldboard plow, the horse collar, and the breast strap harness. • European farmers began to use teams of horses. • Independent, self-governing cities emerge in Italy and Flanders • Venice emerged as a dominate sea power – trading in Muslim ports • Increase in the use of gold and silver coings
The Crusades, 1095 - 1204 • The Crusades were a series of Christian military campaigns against the Muslims in the eastern Mediterranean between 1100-1200. • Factors for the Crusades: religious zeal, knights’ willingness to engage in Church sanctioned warfare, desire to gain land on the part of younger sons of European nobility, interest in trade • Concern over Muslim control of Christian religious sites and the Byzantine Empires request for help against the Muslims combined to make the Holy Land the focus of the Crusades. • In 1095, Pope Urban II called for the First Crusade when he called on Europeans to stop fighting each other and fight the Muslims instead.
Impact of the crusades • The Crusades had a limited impact on the Muslim world. • More significant was that the Crusaders ended Europe’s intellectual isolation when Arabic and Greek manuscripts gave Europeans their first access to the work of ancient Greek philosophers. • The Crusades had a significant impact on the lifestyle of European elites. With increase trade they had access to more luxury goods.
