Download PART TWO: THE LATE MIDDLE AGES (1050

PART TWO: THE LATE MIDDLE AGES (1050-1450)
By the late Middle Ages, the Western Europe that we see now, was taking shape. The political
and military system of Feudalism, in place since the Fall of the Roman Empire to help maintain
peace and security in a chaotic world, had outlived its purpose. The Church was the unifying
force throughout Western Europe, and prosperity and peace had returned to the area.
A. Islam and the Crusades
Some historians claim that the life and teachings of Muhammad,(c.570-632) the founder of the
Islamic religion, was the single most important event of the Middle Ages. Before Muhammad,
the Arabs were worshiping many different deities. One night, while in prayer, Muhammad
believed he saw the angel Gabriel who told him that God had chosen him to be a prophet. Thus
Muhammad believed he had a mission to be God’s prophet to the Arabs who were polytheistic
and to the Jews and Christians as well. With this, a new religion ISLAM, was born.
Converts to the new religion of Islam grew steadily in the Arab world. Muslims conquered the
Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, North Africa and Spain. The Turks, a nomadic tribe, began to
convert to Islam in the 10th century, and their treatment of European Christian pilgrims to
Jerusalem was to become a major cause of the Crusades.
The Crusades against the Muslims in the Holy Lands:
Christianity unified Western Europe during the Middle Ages. The Church was very powerful
and nothing demonstrates this power more than the Crusades. The Crusades were a series of
Holy wars against the SARACENS (Arabs, Turks a.k.a Muslims). Eight major expeditions took
place between A.D. 1096 and 1270.Since the 2nd century Christians from Europe had been
making pilgrimages to the Holy Lands, specifically Jerusalem and other areas where Jesus
taught. However, this area, called Palestine had been conquered by the Muslims in the 7th
century. The Muslims allowed the Christian pilgrimages to continue, but in the year 1071 a
group of hard-line Muslims-the Turks-closed off Palestine to the Christians and even threatened
to invade the Christian Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Emperor appealed to the Pope for
help. Even though the Byzantine Church and the Catholic Churches had split earlier in 1054 over
some details in doctrine, Pope Urban II called upon the West to prepare for a Holy War.
Urban held a meeting of church leaders in Clermont, France. At this Council of Clermont,
Urban called for a crusade. He gave a stirring sermon. The crowd enthusiastically responded
with shouts of "God wills it!" An intense desire to fight for Christianity gripped Western
Europe, and thousands of people joined the cause. The soldiers were called Crusaders and their
uniforms were emblazoned with large crosses. Christian Soldiers were promised forgiveness of
their sins if they fought for the Holy Land.
Kings, nobles, and thousands of knights, peasants, and townspeople took part in the Crusades.
They had two stated goals:
(1) to gain permanent control of the Holy Land and
(2) to protect the Byzantine Empire, a Greek Christian empire centered in southeastern
Europe, from the Muslims
The First Crusade 1096-99: about 34 000 soldiers, most poor peasants were able to capture
Jerusalem in 1099. This would be the only victory for the Crusaders.
Second Crusade 1147-1149: an attempt to regain previously won land. It failed
Third Crusade 1189-1192: launched after Jerusalem was lost again in 1187. This is the best
known of the crusades because it involved Richard the Lionheart, the English King who
appears in the Robin Hood Legend. Neither side could defeat the other, so they called a truce in
1192 which allowed Christian pilgrims to visit Jerusalem without persecution.
Fourth Crusade 1202-1209: The Crusaders didn’t even REACH the Holy Land, instead they
marched on and conquered Constantinople, the Byzantine capital. The church had gained
prestige from the success of the 1st and 3rd crusades, but was heavily criticized for the misguided
4th Crusade.
The Crusades Come to an End
Europeans eventually lost interest in the Holy Land. Several weak attempts to organize crusades
during the 1300's and 1400's failed. Europe was turning its attention westward to the Atlantic
Ocean and beyond. In 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed to the New World. The European
countries looked toward America to satisfy their ambitions to expand. They left the Holy Land
to the Muslims.
Effects of the Crusades:
1. Trade flourishes. The Crusades increased already existing contacts between the West and
the East. Eastern luxury goods-spices, perfume, sugar, silk, velvet, and glass mirrors were now
brought to the West. These contacts led to additional trade and commerce, an increase in money
and the emergence of a wealthy merchant middle class. This will challenge manorialism and the
agricultural relationship between Lord and serf, as many will leave the land to make their living
in trade.
2. Greed ran rampant. Not all the crusaders joined the expeditions for religious reasons. The
French knights wanted more land. Italian merchants hoped to expand trade in Middle Eastern
ports. Many priests and monks wanted valuable religious relics. Large numbers of poor people
joined the expeditions simply to escape the hardships of their normal lives.
3. The death toll. Because these crusaders often stole what they wanted on their way (food
etc), many of them were killed by angry Europeans. The Turks slaughtered most of the rest in
Asia Minor.
4. Geographic knowledge. Westerners acquired first hand geographical information about the
East. They were able to make more accurate maps during the Crusades. They began to use
magnetic compasses to tell directions.
5. Taxation. In order to finance the Crusades, the Church and the State increased taxation, thus
becoming accustomed to increased taxing power
6. Criticism of the Church. The greed associated with the Crusades as well as the huge tax
burden imposed by the Church created resentment toward the Church.