Feudalism

FEUDALISM - OVERVIEW

**THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES **

After the Roman empire fell, Western Europe was cut off from advanced cultures in Asia, overrun by invaders, and divided. The period from 500 to 1000 is sometimes called the D|Dark Ages. However, it was a time when Greco-Roman, Germanic, and Christian traditions slowly blended to create a new, medieval civilization called the Middle Ages. In the early Middle Ages, Germanic tribes, such as the Franks, divided Western Europe. In 486, Clovis, king of the Franks, conquered Gaul, later to become France. Clovis followed his own customs but also kept Roman customs and converted to Christianity. In the 600s, I|Islam began in Arabia. Muslims, or believers in Islam, created a huge and expanding empire. When a Muslim army crossed into France, Charles Martel and his Frankish warriors fought them at the battle of Tours in 732. Muslims ruled in Spain, but did not advance farther into Western Europe. In 768, Charles Martel's grandson, also named Charles, became king of the Franks. He built an empire covering what are now France, Germany, and part of Italy, and he was known as Charlemagne, or Charles the Great. Later, the pope crowned him the new emperor of the Romans. Charlemagne worked, in his 46-year rule, to unite his kingdom by fighting off invaders, conquering peoples, spreading Christianity, and further blending Germanic, Roman, and Christian traditions. He set up an orderly government, naming nobles to rule locally. Charlemagne regarded education as another way to unify his kingdom. He brought back Latin learning across his empire and encouraged the creation of local schools. After Charlemagne's death in 814, his sons battled for power and his grandsons split up the empire. About 900, nomads called Magyars settled in what is present-day Hungary. They overran Eastern Europe and moved into Germany, France, and Italy, but they were eventually pushed back. Also, in the late 700s the Vikings from Scandinavia began to invade towns along coasts and rivers in Europe. The Vikings were skilled sailors and explorers. They settled and mixed with local peoples in England, Ireland, northern France, and parts of Russia, bringing their culture with them.

**FEUDALISM AND THE MANOR ECONOMY **

Medieval society was a network of mutual duties. Even kings and nobles exchanged vows of service and loyalty. These vows were part of a new political and legal system called F|feudalism, which was the basis of European life during the Middle Ages. Feudalism was a structure of lords and lesser lords, called V|vassals. Lords and their vassals exchanged pledges, which was called the feudal contract. In this contract, lords expected military service, payments, and loyalty from vassals. In return, they granted vassals protection and parcels of land, called F|fiefs, or estates. By the 1100s, many nobles lived in castles, which served as fortresses. All A|aristocrats had a place in this structured society. For nobles, war was a way of life. Many trained from boyhood to become K|knights. They learned to ride horseback, fight, and care for weapons. They competed in mock battles called tournaments. Noblewomen, too, participated in the warrior society. They took over estates while their husbands were at war, and might even fight to defend their lands. A few learned to read or write. All were expected to learn S|spinning, W|weaving, and the supervising of servants. Knights were expected to follow a code of ideal conduct, called C|chivalry. It required them to be brave, loyal, and honest, to fight fairly, to treat captured knights well, and to protect the weak. T|Troubadours, or wandering musicians, often sang about knights and ladies. Their songs formed the basis for medieval romances, or E|epic stories and poems. The M|manor, or lord’s estate, was central to the feudal economy. Manors were S|self-sufficient, producing all that their people needed. Most P|peasants on manors were S|serfs, who were bound to the land. Although they were not slaves, serfs could not leave the manor without permission. They had to work the lord’s lands several days a week, pay fees, and get permission to marry. In return, they were allowed to farm several acres for themselves and received protection during war. Their work was harsh, and hunger and disease were common. Yet they found times to celebrate, such as Christmas, Easter, and dozens of Christian festivals each year.


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**THE MEDIEVAL CHURCH **

<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">During the Middle Ages, the Roman Catholic Church controlled the spiritual life of Christians in Western Europe but was also the strongest worldly or secular force. Church officials were closely linked to secular rulers. C|Clergy might even be nobles with lands and armies. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">For most people, village churches were the center of community life. Their parish priest celebrated mass and administered S|sacraments, or sacred rites. Church D|doctrine also taught that men and women were equal before God. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">Some chose to live a religious life in monasteries or convents. About 530, a monk named Benedict created rules governing monastery life. They required vows of obedience, poverty, and chastity, or purity. In time, this Benedictine Rule was used by monasteries and convents across Europe. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">As God’s representatives on Earth, medieval popes eventually claimed papal S|supremacy, or authority over kings and emperors. The Church had its own courts and body of laws, known as C|canon law, and issued punishments. One was E|excommunication, or the withholding of sacraments and Christian burial. This condemned a sinner to hell. In addition, rulers could be punished by the pope with an interdict. This barred entire towns, regions, or kingdoms from receiving sacraments and Christian burial. The Church also used its authority to end warfare among nobles by declaring times of peace known as the Truce of God. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">However, as Church wealth and power grew, so did corruption. Monks and nuns ignored their vows. Throughout the Middle Ages, there were calls for reform. In the early 900s, Abbot Berno of Cluny brought back the Benedictine Rule. Over the next 200 years, monasteries and convents copied these reforms. Other reforms came from friars, or monks who traveled and preached to the poor, and did not live in monasteries. The first order of friars, the Franciscans, was founded by St. Francis of Assisi. The Franciscans preached poverty, humility, and love of God. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">In the Middle Ages, Jewish communities also existed all across Europe. Yet by the late 1000s, prejudice against Jewish people had increased. The Church eventually issued orders forbidding Jews from owning land or having certain jobs.

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**<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 150%;">THE CRUSADES AND THE WIDER WORLD **

<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">The **Crusades** were a series of wars in which Christians fought Muslims for control of Middle Eastern lands. The Crusades were destructive, but ultimately opened a wider world to Europeans and increased the pace of change. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">In 1071, Seljuk Turks conquered Byzantine lands in Asia Minor and then moved into the **Holy Land**. The Byzantine emperor asked **Pope Urban II** for help, and Urban launched the Crusades to free the Holy Land. Only the First Crusade was a success for Christians, who captured Jerusalem in 1099. In the Second Crusade, Jerusalem fell to the great Muslim leader Saladin. He agreed to reopen the city to Christian pilgrims after crusaders failed to take Jerusalem in the Third Crusade. By the Fourth Crusade in 1202, knights were fighting other Christians to help Venice against its Byzantine trade rivals. Crusaders captured and looted the Byzantine capital, Constantinople. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">Why did Pope Urban II agree to organize a war against the Muslim Turks? Mainly, as it is said above, he wanted the Holy Land to be under the control of Christians. He wanted Christian pilgrims to be able to visit Jerusalem and other religious sites. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">But he also had other reasons. The pope thought a crusade would unite Europeans against a common enemy –the Muslim Turks- and they would stop fighting among themselves. He also hoped to gain power and prestige for himself and the Church. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">Some Europeans had other reasons for encouraging the Crusades. They wanted to control not only the Holy Land but also key trade routes between Africa, Asia, and Europe. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">The Crusades left a legacy of hatred in the Middle East and Europe. They also produced vast changes in society. In the Middle East, Muslims began to reunify. In Europe, trade increased. The Crusades encouraged the growth of a money economy. Monarchs gained the right to collect taxes to support the Crusades. The experiences of crusaders in the Muslim world introduced Europeans to new places.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">The Crusades (source work)

**<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 150%;">ECONOMIC RECOVERY SPARKS CHANGE **

<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">New farming methods started a series of changes in medieval Europe. By the 800s, farmers were using iron plows instead of wooden ones, and horses rather than slower oxen. Also, a new crop R|rotation system improved soil fertility. These changes helped farmers produce more food, and Europe’s population nearly tripled between 1000 and 1300. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">In the 1100s, trade improved, too, as warfare declined. Demand for goods increased and trade routes expanded. Trade centers arose along the routes and slowly grew into the first medieval cities. Merchants in such towns would ask the local lord or king for a charter. This was a document establishing rights and privileges for the town in exchange for a large sum of money, a yearly fee, or both. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">As trade expanded, new business practices arose. The need for capital, or money for investment, stimulated the growth of banks. In addition, merchants sometimes joined together in partnerships, pooling their money to finance large-scale ventures. Other business changes included development of insurance and use of credit rather than cash, allowing merchants to travel without having to carry gold. Overall, however, the use of money increased. Peasants began selling their goods to townspeople for cash. Also, by 1300, most peasants were hired laborers or tenant farmers, paying rent for their land. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">By 1000, merchants, traders, and artisans had become a powerful social class between nobles and peasants, called the middle class. Members of this class formed G|guilds, associations which controlled and protected specific trades or businesses. To become a guild member, people often began in early childhood as A|apprentices. After seven years, an apprentice became a journeyman, or S|salaried worker. Few became guild M|masters. Unlike in other areas of medieval life, women dominated some trades and even had their own guilds. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 140%;">Towns and cities expanded rapidly during medieval times. Typical cities were overcrowded, with narrow streets, multistory houses, and no garbage or S|sewage systems. They were a fire hazard and breeding ground for disease.

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Life in medieval cities

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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 110%;">Note: The above information provided in this "Feudalism-Overview" section is the reproduction of the text found at: http://www.phschool.com/atschool/worldhistory/pdfs/HSWH_SU_NTSG_nad_0707.pdf