Middle AgesA.D. 476 – 1500s

© created by Joanna Baginska

Things Fall Apart

• The Roman Empire grew so weak in A.D. 200s and 300s that it began to attract the attention of various tribes that lived on the fringes of the empire or outside its boundaries.

• Rome had conquered some of these tribes and had sent armies to guard the borders against others.

The Roman Empire at its height:

Keeping Enemies Away

• In A.D. 122 Emperor Hadrian ordered the building of the wall to keep the barbarians out of Roman Britain.

• The wall was built with stone and turf, with forts and turrets along the top as lookout posts.

Hadrian’s Wall (what is left of it)

Among many medieval tribes there were:

Anglo-Saxons Vandals

Among many medieval tribes there were:

Goths Huns

Huns were the most fearsome tribe of all!

• They came from central Asia.

• They were skilled horsemen.

• They would make a cut in the horse’s leg and drink its blood if they ran out of water.

Huns were the most fearsome tribe of all!

Their leader, Attila, killed his own brother in the struggle for

power.

Vandals also had quite a reputation!

• They sacked Rome.• They caused so much destruction

that the word vandalism became a synonym for destruction.

In A.D. 286 Roman Empire was divided into two empires: Western Roman

Empire and Eastern Roman Empire.

The End of the Western Roman Empire:

• In A.D. 476, a German king called Odoacer attacked Rome and killed the emperor. Since no new emperor was named, the date 476 is accepted as the official end of the Western Roman Empire.

• The Eastern Roman Empire, which was not conquered, lasted for almost another thousand years.

The Fall of Rome marked the beginning of new period – the Middle Ages.

Effects of the Fall of Rome:

Over time, things gradually changed:▣ roads and aqueducts began to fall apart▣ trade dried up▣ cities – trade posts – began to shrink▣ artisans forgot their skills▣ there was a decline in learning and

increase in warfare

Middle Ages=Dark Ages?

Because medieval people forgot so many skills known by ancient Greeks and Romans, the Renaissance scholars gave the medieval times the derogatory name: Dark Ages.

Charlemagne

Charlemagne was one of the greatest rulers of all time!Few medieval kings

could compete with him in terms of intelligence, leadership, and a sense of justice.

Charlemagne was the king of the Franks. He created a large Frankish empire.

Charlemagne’s real name was Charles. He was so great, that great became part of his name: Charlemagne means “Charles the Great”.

• He was a head taller than most people of his time

• He was a skilled general, and his army was strong and disciplined

• He was fair to his subjects and brought prosperity to his kingdom.

• He first converted conquered nations to Christianity by force. Later on, he realized it was wrong and let his subjects chose their religion.

• He believed that women should be as educated as men!!!

Charlemagne was crowned the Emperor of the Romans.

Pope Leo III (head of the Roman Catholic Church) enlisted Charlemagne’s help in defeating pope’s enemies.For that, he gave

Charlemagne his blessing and crowned him the Emperor of the Romans.

The Rise of Feudalism:

▣ Charlemagne gave land to his nobles (rich and powerful knights) in exchange for their loyalty and military service.

▣ The Frankish practice of giving land to nobles in exchange for loyalty and military service spread throughout Western Europe.

Feudalism:

Feudalism is a system of government in which land is exchanged for loyalty and services.

Social hierarchy in feudalism:The lord (powerful

knight) would become the king’s vassal. He would receive a large amount of land, called fief, from the king.In exchange, the

vassal would promise his loyalty and services to his king.

Feudalism:The lord would

divide his fief and buy his own vassals (knights). At the bottom of the social ladder were serfs-poor peasants bound to the land. They would become the property of the lord or knight that owned the fief.

“Kiss of Peace”

The ceremony in which a man became a vassal was called an act of homage and it was held in church.The king/lord

would kiss his new vassal on the cheek in a “kiss of peace”.

Feudal agreement:

• In Middle Ages, there were few laws across kingdoms.

• The one law that extended across Europe was the sacred oath of loyalty that a vassal took.

• If a vassal failed to serve his lord/king, or betrayed him, he became an outlaw, shunned and persecuted by other lords.

Each lord lived in a castle or manor house, surrounded by the land on which food was grown and where serfs who worked in the fields lived.

Life on a manor:

• The manor estate was a self-sufficient village. Nearly everything that people needed was grown or made there.

• In addition to their food, people who lived on an estate made their own soap, candles, furniture, leather, tools, clothes etc.

• On a manor, you would also find a church. Sunday worship, baptism, weddings and funerals were conducted there.

Lord’s responsibilities:• The lord allowed serfs to use

his land. The serfs grew food on the land, raised animals that grazed on the land, and used the wood from the forests.

• The lord also provided a mill to grind the grain, large community ovens for baking the grain into bread, costly equipment like plows and wagons etc.

• The lord of the manor provided the serfs with law and order and protection from enemies.

Serf’s responsibilities:▣ The serfs had to spend about

three days a week working in the fields that grew food for the lord.

▣ Serfs also had to give part of everything they grew to the lord of the manor.

▣ In addition, serfs had to provide services to the lord. For instance, they had to keep the walls of the manor repaired. If war broke out, serfs had to help defend the lord’s land.

Serfs did not have easy lives. They had to work hard just to get enough to feed their families.

They mostly lived on bread, vegetables, and beer. They could not afford much meat or sugar.Life was not all bad,

however! Medieval folks, including serfs, celebrated a lot more holidays free from work than people nowadays!

Medieval serfs came up with a solution to soil being infertile from over farming: three – field system.

Each year, one part of cropland was planted in the spring, one part was planted in the fall, and one part was left fallow, or unplanted.The three-field system

allowed the soil to keep renewing itself.

Medieval castles:

Castles were fortresses. Lords build castles to defend themselves and their manor against attacks.

Medieval castles:

• A castle needed to be in a place that would be easy to defend.

• That is why so many of them were built on hilltops.

• A hilltop was easy to defend. Soldiers could see their enemies coming.

• Castles had high watchtowers for spotting approaching enemies.

Most castles were surrounded by tall walls and a water-filled moat.

Drawbridges could be lowered or raised to create or remove a roadway over the moat.

On top of the walls, there would be walkways from which soldiers could fire arrows or dump boulders and hot oil down on the attacking enemy.

Keep

▣ The center of the castle was called the keep.

▣ The keep was built to hold out for a long time against an enemy who surrounded the castle.

▣ In the keep there were stables, workshops, a large oven, and a kitchen.

In the keep there were a well for

water and stalls for farm animals.

There were also storerooms where grains and other

foods were kept as well.

Castles in war:

• Castles were strong forts; but well-armed, patient attackers could take a castle.

• Attackers dug tunnels under the stone walls. Then they stuffed the tunnels with gunpowder and set them on fire, causing the walls to collapse.

Most attackers relied on siege – the blockade of a castle.

In a siege, an attacking army would surround the castle so that no food, weapons, or supplies could reach the people inside.

Weapons used to attack castles:

battering ram siege tower

Weapons used to attack castles:

trebuchet flaming arrows

Becoming a knight:

Step 1 – becoming a page:

When a boy who was to become a knight reached the age of 7, he was sent away from his family to be a page in the castle of a lord, usually a fiend of his father’s or his uncle.

Step 2 - Becoming a squire:

• If the page showed promise, then at the age of fourteen he became a squire. A squire was a knight's personal servant.

• Then he followed another 5 to 7 years of training before he was ready to become a knight.

Squire’s responsibilities:▣ A squire went everywhere with the knight,

cleaned the knight’s armor and weapons, and cared for his horse.

▣ In battle, a squire would bring his knight replacements of lances, swords, horses, or any item lost or damaged in battle.

▣ One of his most important jobs was helping the knight into his armor!

▣ Squires practiced fighting by staging mock fights and battles using wooden swords and shields.

Learning to joust:

• Squires practiced jousting using a machine called a quintain.

• After striking a shield, they had to avoid being knocked down by a sack on the other end of the arm.

Becoming a knight:• When a squire was judged to have

mastered the required skills, he was made a knight in a ceremony known as dubbing.

• After feasting and praying for a night, the squire kneeled before his lord, who tapped him on the shoulders with his sword and proclaimed him a knight.

• Less often, a squire was dubbed on the battlefield after performing some brave feat.

Dubbing ceremony:

Who could become a knight?• Because a knight’s horses, armor, and

servants cost so much money, only boys from the richest families could become knights.

• However, nobles were usually desperate for good fighting men.

• Therefore, some soldiers who were from poor families but showed bravery in battle would occasionally be made knights as a reward.

Knight’s armor:

• An armored knight on horseback was a great fighting machine. The steel armor protected him from an enemy’s lance, sword, or arrows.

• However, if a knight got knocked off his horse, he was like a sitting duck-virtually defenseless!

Knight’s armor:

• In the early Middle Ages, armor was made of sheets of chain mail – metal rings – reinforced with plates of steel in key areas.

• By 1400s, chain mail was replaced by hinged and fitted steel plates that covered a knight from head to foot.

Knights had to stay in shape to face the challenges of battle. During peacetime, knights held tournaments – staged battles where knights could show how skillful they were.

Code of Chivalry:

To control knights and their sometimes dangerous behavior, lords created a set of rules that knights should follow. These rules were called the Code of Chivalry.

The Code of Chivalry required knights to follow certain rules of fighting. For instance, if a knight surrendered, he could not try to escape. He had to be brave and fight fair.

Code of Chivalry:

Chivalry also required knights to be courteous to women. A part of code called for knights to show courtly love to a lady. A knight would pledge his honor to a lady would perform acts of bravery to win her approval.

In Great Britain, famous people are still awarded knighthood.

• Famous American director, Steven

Spielberg, received an honorary knighthood in

a ceremony at the British Embassy in

Washington.• Spielberg directed such

box office hits as “E.T.” and “Jurassic

Park”.

William the Conqueror

The Battle of Hastings:• In 1066 the king of England died. Several

people claimed that they should be the next king of England.

• One of them was lord Harold, who had himself crowned king.

• Another person with a claim to the throne was William, the duke of Normandy.

• In late September 1066, William and his army of knights and foot soldiers crossed the English Channel.

Normandy, France

The Battle of Hastings:• Harold’s and William’s armies met on

October 14, 1066, near the coastal town of Hastings.

• Williams forces soundly defeated King Harold’s army.

• William marched his army to London, the capital city, and was crowned king.

• From now on William, the duke of Normandy, is better known as William the Conqueror.

The Battle of Hastings and the events leading to the Norman conquest of England were recorded on the Bayeaux (byeYOO) Tapestry.

The tapestry consists of some fifty scenes with Latin captions, embroidered on linen with colored woolen yarns.

A new language:

• Before William arrived, most people in England spoke Anglo-Saxon (Old English).

• The Normans spoke an early form of French as well as Latin.

• At first, the common people spoke Anglo-Saxon, and all the nobles spoke French.

A new language:

Eventually, Latin, the French and the Anglo-Saxon blended. That is why

English includes a mixture of Germanic and French words.

A new language:

Did you know that the word cow comes from Anglo-Saxon, but

the word beef comes from French?!

The Domesday Book:

• William wanted to know more about his new country. He ordered that a list be made of all the people and valuable items in the kingdom.

• The king’s agents went all over England, visiting even the smallest villages and most distant settlements.

The Domesday Book:

▣ This survey of William’s kingdom was called the Domesday Book.

▣ It took several years and a lot of money to finish.

▣ But it was worth the expense, for the book let William know exactly who lived where.

▣ It allowed him to keep track of all the rent and taxes that were due to him.

The Domesday Book:

• Domesday is an old-fashioned spelling of the word doomsday.

• The survey was probably called the Domesday Book because doomsday was the biblical day of judgment and accounting.

The Tower of London:

▣ William ordered the famous (or rather infamous) Tower of London to be built.

▣ Over the years, it has been used as a fortress, a prison, a royal residence, and a place for storing treasure.

Inside the Tower of London:

Inside the Tower of London:

Inside the Tower of London:

Who’s next in line?

• William died in 1087. • Several kings followed, all of then

ruling England and parts of France. • None of these kings were as strong as

William the Conqueror, though, and that caused trouble in England.

Henry II

Henry II

• Henry II was the great-grandson of William the Conqueror,.

• Just like his great-grandfather, he arrived from Normandy and claimed the English throne.

• He was crowned King Henry II in London, in December of 1154.

Henry II▣ Bright and educated, Henry II spoke

French and Latin, but he did not speak much English.

▣ Usually, he was good-natured and gentle, but he had a terrible temper.

▣ It is said that once, when he was enraged with jealousy because someone flattered one of his rivals, he ripped the covers from his bed and began to chew on his straw mattress!

Henry II

▣ Henry loved to hunt, and he loved to go hawking.

▣ Hawking was a sport that used trained falcons and birds of prey to capture other birds.

▣ These hunting birds were treated with care, like expensive hunting dogs.

Trials by ordeal:• Henry realized he needed to

improve the court system in England., which was very confusing at the time.

• People were found either innocent or guilty through trials by ordeal. In those trials people accused of crimes might be forced to “prove” their innocence through a series of impossible tasks such as picking up a red-hot piece of iron in their bare hand. If the hand didn’t heal quickly, he/she was guilty.

Trial by jury:▣ Henry ordered a fairer legal

system and the right to trial by jury.

▣ The job of the people on a jury is to hear evidence in a trial and then to vote in secret whether they think the person accused of a crime is guilty or innocent.

▣ The jury system Henry began is still in use in England and the United States 900 years later.

Shield tax:

• Henry made many other changes to make the king more powerful.

• He started the shield tax. This meant that the lords had to send him money instead of soldiers in times of war.

• Henry could then use the money to start hire his own soldiers, who would be ready to fight and loyal to the king.

Plantagenet dynasty:

• Henry and the kings who came after him were known as the Plantagenet dynasty.

• All of them were known for their intelligence, energy, creative drive, quick anger, and strong sense of justice.

Thomas Becket

• Henry II depended on a group of trusted advisors to help him run his large kingdom.

• The one he relied on most was named Thomas Becket.

Thomas Becket

▣ Becket was the son of merchant. He became a priest, and through hard work and intelligence he began to rise through the ranks of the Church.

▣ At the same time, he also began to work his way up in the world of politics.

Thomas Becket• In 1154, Henry II appointed

Thomas Becket to the job of chancellor. The chancellor was the king’s highest advisor.

• Becket worked hard, but he also enjoyed his hard-earned position.

• His household soon became known as the place to be.

• Everyone, including the king and queen, went to Becket’s for a good time.

• Becket hosted the fanciest parties and feasts in the kingdom.

Thomas Becket

The platters in Becket’s

household carried starlings, seagulls, herons,

swans, storks, and even peacocks.

Thomas Becket

• Becket loved fun, but in his personal life, he remained a serious, devout priest.

• Working closely, Becket and Henry became good friends. Becket gave the king lots of advice that helped him run his kingdom well.

• Henry decided to appoint Becket the archbishop of Canterbury – which was a great honor and promotion.

• There was one problem: Becket did not want the job. He saw the trouble that would lie ahead if he accepted it.

Becket became the archbishop of Canterbury:

• Since the king and the Church were often in conflict, he knew that Church officials would see him as on the king’s side instead of theirs.

• He also knew that if he were going to do his job well, he would have to take positions that opposed the king.

Problems arise:

▣ King Henry proposed a new law that took a great deal of power away from the Church’s courts and gave it to the king.

▣ Henry let Becket know that he expected him to support the new law. Instead, the archbishop opposed the king.

▣ Hot-tempered King Henry was enraged at the actions of his former friend. This was the beginning of a feud that, thanks to Henry’s bad temper, was just getting worse.

▣ Eventually, the pope ordered the king to end his quarrel with the archbishop of face excommunication (removal from Catholic Church).

Problems arise:

• Becket excommunicated some powerful nobles who were friends of the king.

• This caused Henry to explode again. In a fit of anger he cried out, “Will no one rid me of this upstart priest?”

• It so happened that four young knights, hotheaded and eager for the king’s favor, heard the king speak. And they took his words as a serious call for action.

Problems arise:

At the cathedral in Canterbury, they found Becket conducting a religious service.

They hacked him to death right there!

Reaction▣ The murder shocked all of

Europe, but few were more upset by the crime than Henry himself.

▣ Henry removed his fine clothing and dressed in sackcloth, a rough, uncomfortable cloth made of the hair of animals and other coarse fibers.

▣ He poured ashes over his head. He refused to sleep or eat.

▣ He exiled himself for six months and then asked to be whipped.

Finally, he made a pilgrimage to Canterbury, where Becket was buried.

Beatification of Becket:

• Three years after his murder, Becket was made a saint by the Church.

• His tomb in Canterbury Cathedral became the most popular shrine in England.

Eleanor of Aquitaine

Eleanor of Aquitaine

• Eleanor of Aquitaine was a woman who had everything. She was beautiful, charming, intelligent, and came from a powerful family. She could read and write, play the harp, and ride a horse as well as a boy.

• But the most important thing Eleanor had was land.

• As French duchess, she was a vassal of the king of France; but she controlled more land than he did.

Eleanor of Aquitaine

• At the age of 15 she married the French king’s son, Louis.

• Shortly after her marriage, the old king died and Louis VII became king of France. Eleanor became the queen.

Her marriage to Louis turned out to be a disappointment.

• These two could not be more different- Eleanor was energetic, intelligent, and interested in arts and politics.

• Louis was withdrawn and mostly interested in religion.

• Moreover, Eleanor gave birth to two girls, but no son, which was a serious issue for Louis, who wanted a male heir.

A new contender to Eleanor’s heart arrives:

• When Eleanor met Henry II (who was not the king at the time), she was immediately attracted to him.

• Shortly after, Eleanor asked for an annulment, or a cancellation of her marriage.

Queen of England:

• Two months after the annulment of her marriage, Eleanor and Henry were married.

• These two were a far better match!

• They had 8 children, including 5 sons.

• Together, they were the most powerful couple in Europe. They owned a lot of land (see map).

Eleanor of Aquitaine

• For 14 years Eleanor and Henry II ruled together over their large kingdom.

• Eventually, however, this marriage, too, began to fall apart.

• Eleanor returned to Aquitaine with her children.• Her young sons were impatient for power.• Eleanor encouraged them to think about the day

when they could oppose their father.

Revolt against Henry II:• After the murder of Thomas

Becket, Eleanor saw an opportunity to overthrow Henry, who was the most hated person at the time.

• She had her sons start a rebellion against their father.

• Henry, however, put down the rebellion and placed Eleanor under house arrest, making her a prisoner in one of his castle.

• There she stayed until his death some 15 years later.

King Richard the Lionhearted

• At Henry’s death, his and Eleanor’s eldest son, Richard, became king.

• He did not have his father’s gift for governing.

• Henry may have been quick to anger, but he was a gifted ruler who knew how to solve problems.

King Richard the Lionhearted

• Richard hardly ever set foot in England. He spent most of his life fighting crusades against Muslims in far East.

• He would waste a lot of England’s money on the crusades. In fact, he was once captured by Muslims and held for ransom. Eleanor had to raise the money for the ransom by imposing an additional tax on English folks.

Since Richard was away most of the time, Eleanor got to rule England during his absence.

• She died at the age of 82.

• The statue of queen Eleanor on her tomb is holding a book which shows just how unusual a woman of her times she was.

The Hundred Years’ War:

Most medieval kings from every part of Europe were related.

That is because if you were royalty or a nobleman, you could only marry another monarch or high-ranking noble.This caused some

serious confusion when a king died. If he did not have a son, many nobleman related to the king would immediately start fighting over the throne!

In the 1300s the king of France died, leaving no son. His nephew – the English king, Edward III, claimed the French throne.

• The problem was – no one in France accepted his claim!

• This conflict started the Hundred Years’ War between England and France.

Edward III

The Hundred Years’ War did NOT last 100 years.

• It consisted of several smaller wars that span over 116 years.

• There were truces (an agreement to stop fighting) in between those wars.

• Some truces lasted up to 25 years!

In the Hundred Years’ War, the French underestimated the power of England.

• For one, the English invented a new kind of bow called the longbow.

• It could cut right through the French soldiers’ armor!

The French thought they could win the war easily. They misjudged their enemy, however, and the war dragged on for years.

• Not to be outdone, the French invented cannons.

• They gave the French military a big advantage over t he English.

• Finally, the French won the Hundred Year’s War!

France may have won in a military sense, but both countries suffered tremendous losses!

• Most fighting took place on French soil, and France was left in a terrible shape!

• The war left a feeling of hatred between England and France that lasted for many years to come.

The animosity between those two countries perseveres to this day!

The real winners of the Hundred Years’ War were the kings of France and England.

• The deaths of many knights and noblemen (powerful knights) weakened the strength of nobility.

The kings grew in power!Feudal ties were wakened as well.

Towns and cities began to grow instead.

Black Death

Black Death• In mid 1400’s a terrible plague swept

through Europe, killing 1/3 of people!

• The plague was called the Black Death.• It was brought by trading ships from Asia

(or rather by rats dwelling on those ships).

The plague hit Europe in several outbreaks.

How did the plague spread?

Flea drinks the blood of an infected

rat

Flea carries disease

Flea bites human

Human gets

infectedHuman

coughs/sneezes on others

passing the disease

Symptoms of the Black Death:

Effects of the Black Death:

• Music: “Ring Around The Rosies”“Ring Around The Rosies”A red rash in the shape of a ring on your skin“A Pocket Full Of Posies”Pockets and pouches were filled with herbs and Posies (flowers) to make them smell good“Ashes, Ashes”Refers to the dead bodies being burned, English version is “ A-tissue, A-tissue”“We All Fall Down”Dead bodies fall to the ground as they’re being burned

Effects of the Black Death:

• Art: Artists became obsessed with death because of so many people dying.

Black Death brought many positive changes!

The sudden labor shortage – serfs could now bargain for better working conditions. In fact, most serfs were able to buy their land and freedom. Within a hundred years, serfdom disappeared from Europe.

Many labor-saving devices were invented.

new types of water millsprinting press

People became more interested in medicine and science so they could prevent a similar disease from ever happening again!

The End of Middle Ages• By 1500, Europe was

changing.• Black Death and the

Hundred Years’ War weakened the feudal ties.

• Cannons and cannon balls were invented. They put an end to castles and knights in a shiny armor!

• The movement called Renaissance begun.• People began to study the works of ancient

Romans and Greeks.• They became more educated and interested

in learning.• Trade was revived.• Middle Ages started• to fade into the past!

created by Joanna Baginska

©Joanna Baginska 2013 all rights reserved

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