Download Germanic and Medieval Europe

Germanic and Medieval
Europe
Chris Anderson
Randolph-Henry High School
Germanic Rule
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By AD 500—the
Roman Empire had
been destroyed by
Germanic invasions
Many things
happened after the
Germanic peoples
took power
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Trade decreased
Cities, bridges, and
roads fell into
disrepair
Law & order vanished
Education almost
disappeared
Money was no longer
used
Life did not extend
beyond the village
Germanic Rule

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Western Europe had become a very
backward place
The period when the Germanic tribes first
took over the west is called:
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The Dark Ages
Middle Ages
Medieval Period
The era contained elements of Germanic,
Roman, and Christian cultures
Merovingian Rulers
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AD 400s—the Franks emerged as the
most powerful Germanic group
The Franks settled in Gaul—modern day
France and Western Germany
The early Frankish rulers were called
Merovingian Kings
The Merovingian Kings held power until
the 700s
Merovingian Rulers
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A.) Clovis
481—Clovis became leader of the Franks
496—Clovis converted to Christianity to
please his wife
The conversion identified him with Rome
and his people
He was very strong because of his military
Upon his death, his kingdom was divided
among his sons
Clovis
Merovingian Rulers
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B.) Charles Martel
714—Charles Martel became Mayor of the
Palace—the leading government official
under the king
732—Martel defended France from Muslim
invasion at the Battle of Tours
Charles Martel
Merovingian Rulers
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C.) Pepin the Short
Pepin was Charles Martel’s son
741—Pepin became Mayor of the Palace
Pepin wanted to be king, but he had no
royal blood
He used his influence with the Frankish
bishops and the Pope to bring about
dynastic change
Merovingian Rulers
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The Pope made Pepin
king of the Franks—
King Pepin I
Pepin agreed to
defend the Catholic
Church against its
enemies
754—Pepin helped to
drive the Lombards
out of Rome
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Pepin received a lot of
Lombard land near
Rome
Pepin gave the land
to the Pope
The land became the
Papal States
Merovingian Rulers
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D.) Charlemagne
768—Charlemagne became king of the
Franks
Charlemagne was Pepin’s son
Charlemagne has also been called

Charles the Great

Carolus Magnus
His dynasty has been called the
Carolingian Dynasty
Charlemagne
Merovingian Rulers
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Charlemagne
He increased the size of the empire
The kingdom came to include:
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Germany
France
Northern Spain
Most of Italy
Merovingian Rulers
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Charlemagne
He knew he needed to restore literacy to
his kingdom
He made his royal court into a center of
learning
By 800, Charlemagne’s empire included all
of civilized Western Europe
Merovingian Rulers
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Charlemagne
800—Charlemagne traveled to Rome to defend
the Pope against upset Roman nobles
Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as Emperor
of the Romans on Christmas Day
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Charlemagne wanted the title but was unsure of the
Pope’s crowning of him—would seem like the Pope
had power over him
His crowning helped to better the relationship
between the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor
Merovingian Rulers
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Charlemagne
Charlemagne used counts to help rule his
vast empire
The counts solved the local problems and
helped to get soldiers for Charlemagne’s
army
Merovingian Rulers
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Charlemagne
Charlemagne personally held his empire
together
814—Charlemagne dies leaving his son in
power—Louis the Pius
Louis was very weak
After Louis’ death, he left the kingdom to
his 3 sons
Merovingian Rulers
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Charlemagne
Louis’ 3 sons constantly fought over
control in the kingdom
843—the 3 brothers agreed to divide the
empire in the Treaty of Verdun
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Charles the Bald—Western Part (France)
Louis the German—Eastern Part (Germany)
Lothair—Holy Roman Empire (N. Italy and S.
Germany)
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By the end of the 800s, Charlemagne’s
empire lay in ruins
The nobles had gained lots of power
Feuds occurred between the nobles and
kings
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Muslims took over Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica
Slavs took central Europe
Magyars invaded
Vikings invaded
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Vikings
Traveled in long, deck less ships—usually with
only 1 sail
Known for surprise attacks and quick retreats
Motto: if they could not steal it, they would
burn it
All of Europe was afraid of the Vikings
They were after money and adventure
They showed little or no mercy on their victims
They explored and settled new lands
Early Medieval Europe

Feudalism dominated early Medieval
Europe
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Feudalism was a highly decentralized form of
government stressing mutual alliances
between monarchs and nobles in which land
is given away in exchange for loyalty and
military service
Feudalism started in France and moved to
other parts of Europe in the 1000s
In Feudalism, land was given to warriors
as payment
 Everything on the land was also given to
the warriors
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The peasants that lived on the land
 Any animals--domesticated and wild
 Any buildings on the land
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Feudalism was developed by Charles Martel
while he was fighting the Muslims
Martel noticed the Muslims had an improved
saddle—the Muslim saddle had stirrups,
European saddles did not
Martel wanted to add the new saddle to his
military and create a true cavalry
He had no money to pay the new soldiers, so he
gave them land instead
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The soldiers then could use the products from the
land to get a weapon, a horse, and a saddle with
stirrups
Trade farm products—food—for the materials they
needed
They could trade animals or hunting privileges for the
things they needed
Early Medieval Europe

Feudalism involved 2 people
The Lord gave the land away
 The Vassal received the land
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The land that is given away is called a fief
 The vassal had to provide certain services
to the lord in exchange for the land
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Early Medieval Europe
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1.) Provide a certain number of knights
Most important duty
 The vassal would give away his land as
payment to knights
 Thus the vassal could become a lord
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2.) Serve on the lord’s court
 3.) Provide food and housing if the lord
ever visited
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Early Medieval Europe
4.) Give $ to the lord if his son became a
knight or his eldest daughter became
married
 5.) Pay the lord’s ransom if he were ever
captured
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Early Medieval Europe
Most of the obligations were never carried
out
 Most vassals would raised knights not to
give to the lord, but to fight the lord to get
more land
 Feudalism lack of centralization led to lots
of war between the lords and vassals
 The Catholic Church—unsuccessfully—
tried to limit the number of wars with many
laws
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The Catholic Church tried to limit the number of
wars by passing laws
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1.) Peace of God: made it illegal for anyone to fight
in Churches
2.) Truce of God: outlawed battles on holidays and
weekends
3.) Other Laws: other laws only allowed fighting to
occur on 80 days of the year
The Church could not enforce these laws;
thus, the battles and warfare continued
At the top of the Feudal system was the
King
 At the bottom was the Knight
 Peasant were not part of the Feudal
system because they owned nothing
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Early Medieval Europe
Castles
 Lords were only powerful if they could
protect themselves
 They built castle for defense
 Castles were a complex of different
buildings
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Inside the walls was a main building that
was used for storage and housing troops,
the lord, and his family
 Castles had their own wells
 Castles had their own Churches, stables,
and storage buildings
 Some had water filled moats to protect the
castles from attack
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Early Medieval Europe
The Nobility
 The nobility included:
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Kings
 Lords
 Knights
 ladies
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Nobles had easy lives when compared to
the peasants
 Their castles were cold, dark, damp, and
dreary places
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Early Medieval Europe
The Nobility
 Nobles had lots of power in their lands
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Collect taxes and rent
 Administer justice
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Female nobles had very few rights
Forced into fixed marriages
 Could marry at age 12
 Main duty—to have and raise kids
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Early Medieval Europe
The Nobility
 Noblemen participated in tournaments to
keep their skills sharp
 Noblemen also enjoyed hunting, falconry,
and archery
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Early Medieval Europe
The Knight
 Knights came from the noble classes
 1.) @ age 7, training began
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2.) @ 15 the boy became a squire
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The boy was a page and learned skills
Assists a knight in battle
3.) @ 21 the boy became a knight
Early Medieval Europe
The Knight
 Knights followed a code called chivalry
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Had to be brave
 Fight fairly
 Keep promises
 Defend the Church
 Treat noblewomen with respect
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Early Medieval Europe
The Manorial System
 The nobles were wealthy because of the
work the peasants were doing
 The peasants lived on and worked the
nobles’ lands
 Manorial System—an agricultural system
that provided both the lord and peasant
with food, shelter, and protection
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Early Medieval Europe
The Manorial System
 Manors were the lands and buildings that
were farmed and used by both the lord
and the peasants
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Lord’s house
 Pastures and fields
 Forests
 Peasant village
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Early Medieval Europe
The Manorial System
 The manor’s peasants agreed to provide
services to the lord in return for the lord’s
protection
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The peasants farmed the land to produce
food for themselves and the lord
 The peasants served as the tool producers—
blacksmiths, carpenters, millers, etc.
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Early Medieval Europe
The Manorial System
 The manors had to be self-sufficient—
making everything the manor needed
 Most peasants never left the manor
 Some peasants were serfs—similar to
slaves, but they could not be bought or
sold
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Early Medieval Europe
Agricultural Advances
 2 new agricultural improvements occurred
in the Middle Ages that led to more food
production
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1.) New Plow
 Heavier
 Made
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deeper cuts in the soil
2.) Three Field System
 Crop
rotation
Early Medieval Europe
Peasant Life
 Peasants lived very hard lives
 Life expectancy—40
 Disease and hunger were rampant
 Housing was small—1 room with a dirt
floor
 Rarely at meat
 Enjoyed holidays—lots of entertainment
and food

Medieval Church
During the Medieval period, the
Catholic Church proved to be very
powerful
 The Catholic Church became the
center of life for nearly all Western
Europeans
 The primary job of the Church was
spiritual
 The Church became involved in
politics and social issues

Medieval Church
The Pope became the most powerful
figure in Europe
 Nearly all of Europe fell under the
Pope’s control
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• All the people were Catholic, giving the
Pope control over peasants, nobles, and
kings
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The Church taught that all people
were sinners
Medieval Church
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The only way to
reach salvation
was by gaining the
Grace of God
To gain God’s
grace, one had to
participate in the
sacraments
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Sacraments
Baptism
Penance
Eucharist
Confirmation
Matrimony
Anointing of the
sick
Holy Orders
Medieval Church
Most Europeans were very religious
even though they truly did not
understand Christianity
 The Mass was said in Latin—a
language that only the clergy
understood
 Many of the priests were uneducated
 Most people learned about
Christianity by looking at religious
paintings, statues, and stained glass
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Church Organization
 Pope
 Archbishop
 Bishop
 Parish Priest
Medieval Church
There were 2 types of Catholic
Clergy
 1.) Secular Clergy
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• Pope, Bishops, Priests
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2.) Regular Clergy
• Monks and nuns
Medieval Church
520—St. Benedict created a
monastery in Italy
 He issued very strict rules for monks
to follow
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• Monks could never marry
• Monks could not own property
• Monks had to be obedient
St. Benedict
Medieval Church
Monastic Life
 Monks were very simple people
 Clothing was simple—a long, loose
robe made from dark, coarse
material
 Ate 1 to 2 meals a day
 Most monks had to take vows of
silence
 Lived in monasteries
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Medieval Church
Monastic Life
 Women also participated in a life
devoted to religion
 These women were nuns
 Nuns lived in convents
 Nuns are known for their gown and
veil
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Medieval Church
Monastic Life
 Monks and nuns lived isolated from
the rest of the people
 Yet, they played a large part in the
peoples’ lives
 The monks preserved classical
Roman and Greek texts by hand
copying the works
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Medieval Church
Monastic Life
 Monasteries and convents provided
schools for the young
 They were hospitals for the sick
 They were hotels for the travelers
 Monks and nuns taught the people
new skills in carpentry, farming, and
weaving
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Medieval Church
Power of the Church
 The Catholic Church was powerful
both spiritually and politically
 The rich gave $ to the Church
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• Most bishops and abbots came from the
wealthy families
The Church was becoming very
corrupt from the $ and power it had
 Church leader cared less about
salvation and more about $
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Medieval Church
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Church Reform
People began to call for reform because
the Church was becoming too secular
Monasteries led the reform
A College of Cardinals would choose the
popes
1073—the Pope (Pope Gregory VII)
outlawed the Practice of Lay Investiture—
when secular rulers appointed Church
officials
Medieval Church
Church Reform
 1215: Pope Innocent III tried to
reform the clergy
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• He condemned drunkenness, feasting,
hawking, and dancing among the clergy
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Innocent III issued Church laws to
stop heresy—the denial of the
Church’s teachings
• Heretics could be killed or
excommunicated
Medieval Church
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Church Reform
Innocent also
started the
Inquisition—a
Church court
designed to find,
arrest, judge, and
sentence heretics
The Inquisition
punished heretics
in several ways
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1.)imprisonment
2.)excommunication
3.)taking of
property
4.)execution
Medieval Church
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Church Reform
Friars—wandering preachers—also
attempted to make reforms in the Church
There were two groups of friars
• 1.) Franciscans
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Founded by Francis of Assisi in 1210
Followed the simple life of Jesus
Had a respect for nature
• 2.) Dominicans
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Founded by the Spanish priest Dominic in 1215
Lived a life of poverty and service
Rise of European
Monarchies
During the early medieval period,
kings were rulers only in name--they
had very little power
 in the 1100’s, many monarchs in
Europe began building powerful
states with powerful governments

Medieval England
England was repeatedly invaded
by Germanic tribes from the 400’s
until the 1000’s
• Angles, Saxons, and Jutes
• Danes, Vikings
 one king was able to help England
defend itself from Viking invasion
in the 800’s--King Alfred the
Great (871-899)

Alfred was an active learner,
founding schools and hiring
translators to translate books
 Alfred also commissioned a
history of England to be created-Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

King Alfred
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle was
continuously updated for 250
years
 England did not fare so well after
Alfred’s death--his successors were
very weak
 1066: England will be invaded and
change hands after King Edward
dies

• after Edward’s death, three (3)
persons in Europe lay claim to the
English throne
Norman Invasion

William, Duke of Normandy was one
man who claimed to be the next king of
England
• he was a cousin to King Edward and a
vassal to the king of France
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William assembled a large force of men
(6,000) and set sail for England
Harold Godwinson was another
claiming the throne
Norman Invasion

Harold and William fought over the
throne at the Battle of Hastings in
1066
• William wins the battle and the throne
• he becomes King William I of England
• he will also be called William the
Conqueror
*Although king of England, William
still wants to keep the loyalty of
his Norman vassals back in France
 to keep their loyalty, he gives
them land that once belong to
Anglo-Saxon churches and nobles
 William also sets up a new system
of tax collection
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to get an accurate estimate of how
much tax he could collect, he
commissioned a census to count
every person, farm, town, farm
animal, etc. in England--a 1st for
Europe--Doomsday Book
*1066: The Year of Conquest & Making of England: 6th Edition
William the Conqueror
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William will start a new dynasty of
rulers in England
Henry I (1100-1135): William’s
grandson
• Henry I greatly increases the power of the
monarch
• he created a system of royal courts--he
was known as the “Lion of Justice”

Henry II (1154-1189): he was the
grandson of Henry I
• he will continue to improve on the judicial
system
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Henry II establishes common law--law
that applied to everyone
he set up a grand jury to meet with
judges
• this grand jury gave names to judges of
suspected criminals
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he also created a petit jury used to find
the guilt or innocence of a person who
was on trial
he will restructure England’s military
he will improve England’s tax system
Henry ran into problems with the
Catholic Church in England
 Henry had appointed one of his
friends-Thomas Beckett--as
archbishop of Canterbury

• Henry does this as a way to get a
powerful friend into the Church

Eventually, Henry II will order his
friend to be murdered
• Beckett does not back Henry when
Henry tries to keep others from
taking the throne--thus Beckett is
murdered
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The rulers that followed Henry were not
as strong as he
his sons--Richard I and John
• John looses English land to the French
• John does many things that anger the
people--raising taxes
• 1215--the angry English force John to sign
the Magna Carta
• the Magna Carta was a charter that placed
limits on the king’s power
What the Magna Carta did:
1.) the king could not raise taxes
without the consent of the Great
Council
2.) outlawed imprisonment without a
fair trial by one’s peers
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Another important facet of English
government will arise in the late 1100
and early 1200’s--Parliament
the rise of Parliament was hinged on
the rising middle class in England
• this middle class made their money from
business, not farming
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the king of England--Henry III--added
knights and townspeople to the Great
Council, eventually called Parliament
Parliament soon included members
from the clergy, nobles, and
townspeople--making Parliament almost
a direct representation of the English
people

In the 15th century (1400’s)
Parliament will have been divided
into two houses or chambers:
1.) House of Lords:
-constructed of nobles and
clergy
2.) House of Commons:
-constructed of knights and
townspeople
Henry II
John
Richard I
France
France will also develop a very strong
monarchy during the Medieval Period
France’s government, however, will not
be like the representative government
that had been created in England
French lands will break up during
the time period before the 1000’s
each of these lands was ruled by
different lords who were independent
of each other
987: Hugh Capet will seize the
throne of France
the dynasty created by Capet would
last for 300 years—Capetian Dynasty
this dynasty greatly strengthened the
French monarchy by slowly making the
French lords come under the kings’
control
Hugh Capet
1100’s: As the French monarchs became
more power, the number of French towns
increase
1108: King Louis VI becomes king
– he will use the French townspeople to help
strengthen the royal government
– he gave townspeople and members of the
clergy high positions in his court
Louis VI also gave towns the right to
govern themselves--making the towns no
longer under feudal obligations
the townspeople were now loyal to the
king, not the feudal lords
1180: Phillip II (1180-1223) becomes
king of France
he doubles the size of France
– he does this through marriage and by
retaking land from England
he will also take land away from feudal
lords
he appoints local officials who are loyal
to the king
– both of the above greatly weaken the
power of the feudal lords
Philip II
1226: Louis IX becomes king of France
he will pass certain laws that further
weaken the feudal lords
– royal courts had power over the feudal
courts
– only the king had the right to mint coins
– he banned private wars and certain
weapons
Louis IX was also very religious
– he was made a saint in 1297
– he was a very moral and chivalrous king
Phillip IV (aka. Phillip the Fair) also
strengthened the power of the French
king
– he gained even more territory for France
by defeating both Flanders and England
– he began taxing the clergy
– he created the Estates-General--composed
of nobles, clergy, and townspeople
French kings will have almost absolute
power in France
Holy Roman Empire
France and England were
becoming very strong states during
the Middle Ages
the HRE (modern day Germany),
however, still stayed very weak
the HRE was heavily entangled in
the politics of the Pope and Italy
In the 1000 and 1100, German kings
posed real threats to the Pope’s power
King Otto I will try to take over parts of
Italy
961: Otto is able to take over
Lombardy, a province in Italy
962: Pope John XII will ask Otto for
help in fighting the Romans who were
against the pope
in return for Otto’s help, Pope Johan
made Otto Emperor of the Romans-Holy Roman Emperor
With this new title, Otto and his followers
had certain powers

they could approve of disapprove the election
of popes
the problem with this new power was that
the HRE could depose popes while the
pope had the right to depose kings--a
struggle over who had real power will
develop between the HRE and popes
Holy Roman Emperors had troubles
developing a strong German state
because the powerful German princes
would not relinquish their power
many civil wars break out in the HRE
these wars weaken the power of the
Emperors in the HRE
1073: a major dispute occurred between the
HRE and the pope
Henry IV was HRE and the pope was Pope
Gregory VII
Pope Gregory outlaws lay investiture--the
process of lay kings appointing the clergy

Gregory wanted to free the Church from secular
control
Henry IV refused to follow the pope because
he needed to have power over the bishops to
keep power over the feudal lords
upon this, Pope Gregory excommunicated
and deposed Henry
Gregory also tries to get the German nobles
to select another ruler
Henry will give in to the Pope and
traveled to Rome to repent (1077)
the struggle between the HRE and the
pope will continue until the early 1100’s
1122: the HRE and pope reach a
compromise in the city of Worms,
Germany
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this meeting stated that the HRE was
allowed to name bishops and give bishops
land
the pope, however, had the power to
refuse to approve unworthy candidates for
bishop ship