Download Early Empire Includes Diverse Religions Rome Tolerates Diversity

Early Empire
Includes Diverse
Religions
Jesus Proclaims his
Teachings
Rome Tolerates Diversity
 Rome tolerated various religious traditions of its subjects as long as citizens showed loyalty by
honoring Roman gods and acknowledging the divine spirit of the emperor
 Most people acknowledged because they were polytheistic and worshipped Roman gods
along with their own
Divisions Arise in Judea
 By 63 B.C., Romans conquered Judea, southern part of Palestine where most Jews
 Romans excuse Jews from worshipping Roman gods to avoid violating Jewish belief in one god
 Jewish conservatives concern of weakening of their religion and absorption of other cultures
called for strict obedience to Jewish laws and traditions
 Zealots, Jewish extremists, called on Jews to revolt against Rome and reestablish an
independent state
 Some believed a messiah, or anointed king sent by God, would soon appear to lead
their people to freedom
A Jewish Rebellion is Defeated
 A.D. 66 a rebellion started, and 4 years later Roman forces crushed the rebels, captured Jerusalem
and destroyed the Jewish temple
 In the next century, more revolts broke out and the Roman armies leveled Jerusalem
 Thousands of Jews died, many were enslaved and transported to other parts of the Roman empire
 Many Jews decided to leave Judea and Judaism lived in many scattered communities around the
Mediterranean

Started with a Jew named Jesus
 Information of his life came from the Gospels, first four book of the New Testament of the
Christian Bible
 Writing written by four followers of Jesus: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
Jesus Begins Preaching
 Born around 4 B.C. in Bethlehem near Jerusalem
 According to Gospels, he was a descendant of King David of Israel
 Grew up in a small town of Nazareth and worked as a carpenter
 At age 30 preached to villagers near the Sea of Galilee
 Recruited 12 disciples, or close followers and called them the apostles, “people sent forth”
Jesus Teaches New Beliefs
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Rooted in Jewish tradition, followed 10 Commandments
Obedience to Moses and defended the teachings of the Jewish prophets
 Emphasized justice, morality, service, forgiveness, and God’s love
 Many believed he was the messiah, and that his mission was to bring spiritual salvation and eternal
life to believers and was called the Son of God
Condemned to Death
 Jesus was a threat to the Roman authorities because his speeches could inspire people who want to
end Rome
 Gospels state the Jesus was betrayed by one of his disciples
 Condemned to death by crucifixion
 nailed to a cross and left to die
 Gospels reported that Jesus had risen from death
The Message of
Christianity Spreads
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Peter established Christianity in Rome
Paul played the most influential role in spreading Christianity
Paul Spreads Christianity
 originally persecuted Jesus
 had a vision of Jesus speaking to him, so he tried to spread Jesus’s teachings to gentiles, or non-Jew
 set up churches in Asia Minor and Greece
 letters became part of the New Testament
 said that those who believed Jesus was the son of God and complied with his teachings would
achieve salvation, or eternal life
Christians are Oppressed
 Rome did not tolerate Christians because they refused to honor the emperor with sacrifices or ask the
traditional gods to protect the Roman state
 Christians were blamed in times of trouble
 Martyrs, or Christians killed in periods of persecution, or people who suffer or die for their beliefs
The Message Appeals to Many
 Jesus welcomed all people, especially the lowly, the poor, and the oppressed
 found comfort in his teachings
 missionaries also incorporated Greek philosophy, which made the religion appeal to educated
Romans
 Unity of Roman Empire help spread through roads and Mediterranean Sea
Rome Accepts Christianity
 persecution of Christians ended in A. D. 313 when the emperor Constantine issued the Edict of
Milan and converted to Christianity
 granted freedom of worship to all citizens
 Theodosius made Christianity the official religion of the empire and repressed all other faiths
The Early Christian
Church Develops
Constantine Creates
a “New Rome”
Joining the Church
 one must be baptized (blessed with holy water) to join a church
 people call others brother and sister
 gather every Sunday for a ceremony of thanksgiving
 women at first could serve as teachers and administrators, but were later barred from any role except
as missionaries
Structuring the Clergy
 only men were eligible to become members of the Christian clergy, or the group of people who
conduct Christian services
 clergy grouped together as a diocese, every diocese has a priest, a bishop, a high Church
official responsible for everyone in his diocese, presided over the priest, apostles have
spiritual authority over bishops, early on all bishops were considered equal successors
 bishops of major cities gained greater authority over other bishops in the area and took on an
honorary title as bishop and exercised authority over other bishops in the area
Differences Arise Within the Church
 bishops of the Latin-speaking west came to be called popes, and claimed authority over all other
bishops, while in the Greek-speaking east, the four patriarchs believe in equality amongst the five
 heresies, or beliefs said to be contrary to official Church teachings, caused division
Scholars Further Define Christianity
 theology means to “talk or discourse about God”
 Augustine, bishop of Hippo of North Africa, was one of the greatest early Church scholars
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Constantinople is the capital of the Byzantine Empire (New Rome starting A.D. 330) that gained
most of its wealth off of trade
 Roman emperor Constantine moved their base to the Eastern Mediterranean when German invaders
destroyed Rome
Constantinople Grows
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on shores of Bosporus, a strait that links the Mediterranean and Black Seas
 key trade route between Europe and Asia
 guarded on three sides by water
 elaborate system of land and sea walls as protection
Blending of Cultures
 Byzantine Empire declined to a small area around Constantinople itself and was in existence to 1000
years after the fall of the Roman Empire
 blended Greek, Roman, and Christian influences with other traditions of the Mediterranean World
Byzantium
Flourishes Under
Justinian
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Byzantine Empire reached its peak under Justinian, who ruled from 527-565
 determined to revive ancient Rome by recovering its lands
 general Belisarius conquered North Africa, Italy, and southern Iberian peninsula
 exhausted Justinian’s treasury and weakened its defenses
 victories were temporary
The Great City is Rebuilt
 532, riots and a fire destroyed Constantinople
 Justinian rebuilt Constantinople even grander than before by building the Hagia Sophia church,
meaning “Holy Wisdom”
Justinian’s Code Has Far-Reaching Effects
 reform of law was the Corpus Juris Civilis or the “Body of the Civil Law” or Justinian’s Code
 reached Western Europe by the 1100s
 helped monarchs model their laws, helping them strengthen and centralize their power
 guided legal thinkers who put together today’s international law
Justinian Rules with Absolute Power
 used the law to unify the empire under his control
 is an autocrat, a ruler with complete authority
 deemed Christ’s co-ruler on Earth “The emperor is equal to all men in the nature of his body, but in
the authority of his rank he is similar to God, who rules all.” -Byzantine Official
 aided by his wife Theodora, a shrewd politician who served as an advisor and co-ruler to Justinian
and even pursued her own policies
Economic and Military Strength Is Second to None
 flourished under a strong central government which exercised strict control over a prosperous
economy
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peasants were essential; they provided food, taxes, and soldiers
bezant, coin of the Byzantine Empire
 one of the strongest military forces in the world
 soldiers, ships, and sailors protected the empire and fortifications protected the capital
 used Greek fire, which probably contained petroleum, if ignited could not be put out with
water
Empire’s Fortunes Change
 centuries after Justinian, Persians, Slavs, Vikings, Huns, and Turks attacked Byzantine Empire, but
were unsuccessful
 buffer for Western Europe
 in 600s and 700s, Arabs gained control of much of the Mediterranean, yet Constantinople was not
defeated and the Byzantines kept their homeland in the Balkans and Asia Minor
Byzantine
Christianity
The Empire Suffers
Crisis and Collapse
East and West Differ
 Byzantine emperor was not a priest but still appointed the patriarch and controlled Church affairs
 rejected the pope’s authority over all Christianity
 clergy could marry
 official language was Greek and not Latin
 also emphasized Easter, the holy day where Jesus rose from the dead
 did not emphasize Christmas, when Jesus was born, as much as the West
The Church Divides
 dispute over the use of icons, or holy images
 Byzantine emperor in the 700s outlawed veneration of icons such as images of Jesus, Virgin Mary,
and saints in their worship
 in 1054 the controversies caused a split between Western and Eastern Christianity called The Great
Schism
 Western branch became Roman Catholic
 Eastern branch became Eastern, Greek, or Orthodox church
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Normans conquered southern Italy
Seljuk Turks advanced across Asia Minor
The Crusades Lead to Plunder
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in the 1090s, Byzantine emperor called for Western help to fight the Seljuks, whose attacks blocked
the pilgrimage routes to Jerusalem
 First Crusade
 In later crusades, fights were over trade rivalry between Byzantine Empire and Venice, a city-state in
Northern Italy
 1204, Venetian merchants persuaded knights on the Fourth Crusade to attack Constantinople
 crusaders burned and plundered the city for three days
 Western Christians ruled Constantinople for 57 years
 Byzantine emperor took back the city in the 1260s, but the empire did not recover
 Venetian merchants controlled Byzantine trade, draining the wealth of the empire
Constantinople Falls to Turks
 in 1453, Ottoman Turks lead by Ottoman ruler Mehmet II surrounded Constantinople
 renamed Istanbul and became the capital of the Ottoman empire
 Hagia Sophia became an Islamic house of worship
 became center of Muslim Culture
The Byzantine
Heritage
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Byzantine Empire stood as the enduring symbol of Roman civilization
Byzantine culture gave influence across Europe
Ottoman conquerors adapted features of Byzantine government, social life, and architecture
built on the culture of the Hellenistic World and blended:
 Christian religious beliefs with Greek science, philosophy, arts and literature
Unique Contributions in the Arts
 made unique combinations especially in religious art and architecture
 influenced Western Styles from the Middle Ages to the present
 e.g. icons, mosaics, and architecture such as palaces and churches
 blended Greek, Roman, Persian, and other Middle Eastern styles
The World of Learning
 Procopius, an advisor to the general Belisarius, chronicled the Byzantine campaign against Persia
 in Secret History, Procopius savagely criticized Justinian and Theodora
 Anna Comnea, one of the Western World’s first important female historians, wrote in the Alexiad
about the reign of her father, Emperor Alexius I
 as empire fell in 1400s, Greek scholars left Constantinople to teach at Italian universities
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Early Life of
Muhammad
took valuable Greek manuscripts to the West along with their knowledge of Greek and
Byzantine culture
contributed to the European cultural flowing known as the Renaissance
Born in the oasis town of Mecca
 Mecca was a busy trading town
 Trading was based on pilgrims coming to pray at the Kaaba
 Kaaba was an ancient temple which housed the pagan goddesses and gods
In his youth he worked as a shepherd and later he became a successful merchant
 worked among the Bedouins, an ethnic group descended from nomads
At age 25 he was married to a wealthy widow Khadija
Being troubled by the moral ills of Meccan society he went to a cave in the hills outside of Mecca and
meditated
 At age 40 he heard the voice of the Angel Gabriel calling to him to be the prophet of God
 His wife encouraged him to accept the calling
 She became the first person to convert to Islam,
 “Islam” derived from the Arabic word meaning “to submit to God”
 Muhammad dedicated the rest of his life to spreading Islam
 encouraged the polytheistic Arabs to submit to Allah, the one true god
Hijra
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his new teachings of one god was seen as a threat to the merchant shoopies of Mecca
 merchant business depended on pilgrims to come to the Kaaba
 If people converted to Islam they would give up the pagan gods and goddesses and they
wouldn’t come to the Kaaba
 Merchants would not get business
 In 622 Muhammad and his followers fled to Yathrib
 this journey was called the hijra
 later the city was renamed Medina, or the city of the Prophet
 In Medina Muhammad found many more followers
 became the first Muslim community or umma
 In the Umma people put aside old family rivalries in favor of peacefully coexisting
under the same God
 Muhammad’s popularity grew as did his followers
 Mecca leaders felt more and more threatened by Muhammad’s spread of Islam
 When several Muslims burned a couple of Meccan caravans, the people of Mecca prepared
for war
Muhammad and his followers fought the Meccans and returned to Medina in 630
 he had destroyed the idols in the Kaaba
 believing Abraham had built the Kaaba originally for the one true God, he rededicated the temple to
Allah
 became the most holy place in Islam
Spent the rest of his life until his death in 632 uniting the rest of the Arabs under Islam
Teachings of Islam
Quran
 sacred text of Islam
 teaches God’s will and gives a guide to life
 Teaches
 God is a compassionate and all-powerful
 people are responsible for their own actions
 No preachers
 Muhammad was the greatest and last prophet to be sent by God
 ethical standards include honesty, generosity and social justice
 harsh penalties for crimes such as stealing and murder
 Every Muslim stands before God on final judgment day to determine or he/she will face
eternal punishment in hell or eternal bliss in paradise
 direct and unchangeable word of God
 followers must learn Arabic to read the Quran in its pure and unaltered form
 unites Muslims from all regions of the world
Five Pillars of Islam Five basic duties of all Muslims
 Declaration of Faith
 profession of faith called Shahada
 “There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God”
 God sent prophets such as Abraham, Moses and Jesus
 Muhammad was the last and greatest
 Daily Prayer
 Muslims must pray five times a day
 pre-dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset, and evening
 before every prayer followers must perform ritualistic washing
 to ensure they are physically and spiritually pure before going before Allah
 prayers are said in Arabic
 Facing Mecca
 movements must be done
 include meditation, devotion, moral elevation, and physical exercise
 Alms for the Poor
 muslims give money to the poor
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Sharia
in certain countries the alms are collected in the form of a tax, zakat
in other places Muslims individually donate to the poor
 Zakat originally means purification and growth
 by giving Zakat a person’s possessions are purified and now growth can be achieved
Fast during Ramadan
 Fast from sunrise to sunset during the holy month of Ramadan
 Ramadan is the month in which Muhammad first received revelations from God
Hajj
 Muslims who are physically and financially able must make a pilgrimage to the Kaaba in
Mecca once in his/her lifetime
 Muslims dress in simple garments to erase distinction of culture and class so they all can
stand equal before Allah
Jihad
 another duty of Muslim
 struggle in God’s Service
 can be interpreted in two ways
 personal struggle
 overcoming immorality
 Holy war
 defending Islam or the Muslim community
 can only be declared by the community not an individual
Islamic system of law
 interpretation of the Quran and examples of righteous behavior from Muhammad’s life
 regulates moral conduct, family life, business practices, government and other aspects of an
individual’s life
 no separation of government and religion, applies religious beliefs to laws
 Unites Muslims under the same set of laws
Muslim Women’s
rights
Women in Arab society over time
 Before Islam Arabic Women’s rights varied
 in some places women could be involved in politics, trade and religion
 however in others unwanted girls were killed at birth
 in almost all places women had very limited power
 they could not inherit property and had to obey a male guardian
 Islam helped women gain more rights
 under the Quran “Whoever does right, whether male or female, and is a believer, all such will
enter the Garden”
 it was prohibited to kill daughters
 women could inherit property
 women could refuse marriage offers
 education for both men and women was encouraged so they could read the Quran
 women had to dress modestly
 open to interpretation
 higher class women had to wear veils
 lower class women because they had to work didn’t wear veils but still dress
modestly
 Even in Islamic society women’s rights are different from men’s
 women could not inherit as much as men
 women have a more difficult time getting a divorce
First four Caliphs
After Muhammad died his father-in-law, Abu Bakr, became the first Caliph
 A caliph is a religious and political successor to Muhammad who leads the Muslim community
Abu Bakr united the Muslim community
 Some tribal leaders were only faithful to Muhammad so after his death they refused to follow Abu
 After several battles Abu managed to unite all who were loyal to Islam under one leader
Once united the muslim community under the first four caliphs set out on a series of military campaigns
 first they converted the rest of the Arabic tribes to Islam
 then they conquered parts of the Byzantine empire such as provinces of Syria and Palestine
 they conquered the whole of the Persian empire
Sunnis and Shi’ites
Shi’ites
 believe only descendants of Muhammad should be able to become the leader of the Muslim
community
 believe these descendants, called Imams, are divinely inspired religious leaders so only they would
be able to understand the meaning of the Qur'an and Muhammad’s actions
 Today about 10-13% of the Muslim population is Shi’ite
Sunnis
 believed that any pious male from Muhammad’s tribe would be able to lead the community since
Muhammad was the last prophet
 Today between 87-90% of the Muslim population is Sunni
Umayyad Caliphate
After the death of Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali, the Umayyad caliphate was set up
 was a dynasty of Sunni Caliphs and ruled the Muslim empire from 661 to 750
 Expanded the Muslim empire to encompass lands from Spain and Morocco to the Indus River
Valley
 Reasons for success
 Byzantine and Persian empires were very weak due to fighting each other
constantly
 people in these regions welcomed Muslim rule as it was less harsh than both
Byzantine and Persian rule
 Arabs had bolder and efficient methods of fighting such as on camels and
horses
 fighters’ belief in Islam and desire to see this new religion flourish and spread
 Life in the Muslim empire
 Muslim leaders taxed all who weren’t Muslim but allowed Christians, Jews and
Zoroastrians to practice their religions
 these new conquered lands generated a steady source of income through taxes and
tributes
 Non-Arab Muslims had fewer rights than Arabs
 More and more people converted to Islam
 some to gain political and economic advantages
 others because they were attracted to Islamic beliefs
Abbasid caliphate
Those Muslims unhappy with the rule of the Umayyads, mainly Shiites since all the caliphs under the
Umayyad caliphate were Sunnis, rallied behind Abu al-Abbas, descended from Muhammad’s uncle
 In 750 he lead his followers and captured Damascus , the capital of the current Muslim empire,
 he founded the Abbasid caliphate
The empire under the Abbasids
 became more diverse because discrimination against the non-Arab Muslims ended
 All Muslims were treated equally
Baghdad
 capital of the Muslim empire under the Abbasids moved to Baghdad, a small town on the banks of
the Tigris River
 In Persian territory
 allowed more Persian officials to hold positions in the government
 Persian traditions became more incorporated into Arab culture
 Beautiful city filled with markets, gardens the palace and mosques, a Muslim place of worship
 Exceeded Constantinople in size and wealth
The Golden Age of
the Muslim Empire
Muslim rulers united many different cultures including Arab, Persian, Egyptian, African, and European with
greatly also influenced Muslim culture. Later Mongol, Turk, Indian and Southeast Asian cultures also
contributed to Muslim culture.
 International Trade Network
 Muslims honored merchants as Muhammad was one
 An extensive trading network was established
 Trade introduced Islamic culture and beliefs far and wide
 Products and technologies were brought far from where they originated such as paper from
China and sugar from India
 Credit
 Muslims formed partnerships and traded with credit
 Banks were opened to change currency
 invented the first bank checks that could be written in Baghdad and cashed in in Cairo
 Agriculture
 the Abbasids organized irrigations projects to bring water to communities in need
 Farmers as well as growing food also grew sugar cane, cotton, medicinal herbs, and flowers
which gained a great profit when sold in distant markets
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Social Structure
 In the Muslim empire inhabitants could improve their social standings through religious,
scholarly and military achievements
 Slaves could escape bondage in many ways
 they could buy their freedom
 Islamic law encourages people to free slaves so funds to free slaves were
provided by charitable actions or even government funds
 A female slave who bore the child of her master, a free man, was freed after the death
of her master
 the child of a slave and her master was born free
Muslim literature and art
 influenced by Greek, Roman, Persian and Indian cultures
 Quran banned the worship of idols
 Artists were banned from depicting God or human figures in religious art
 Themes in Muslim literature
 chivalry and the romance of nomadic life
 encourages devotion to God without expecting anything in return
 Arab writers adapted and translated stories from Indian, Persian, Greek, Jewish, Egyptian, and
Turkish sources
Muslim architecture
 cities filled with domed mosques and high minarets
 Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem built in 688
 Muhammad ascended to heaven from the rock in the building
 Walls of buildings adorned with calligraphy of verses in the Quran
Learning
 Baghdad was established as the center of learning boasting great libraries attracting scholars
from all over
Philosophy and History
 Ibn Rushd
 his commentaries on Aristotle were studied for centuries to come
 Ibn Khaldun
 stressed economic and social structures and causes of historical events
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Decline of the
Muslim Empire
Crusades
The World in 1050
warned against errors in telling history such as bias, exaggeration and overconfidence
in facts
Mathematics
 Al-Khwarizmi
 Wanted to help common folk trade easier
 developed and wrote a book in the 800s about algebra
Medicine
 Muhammad al-Razi
 wrote many books on his work studying smallpox and measles
 Ibn Sina
 wrote the Canon on Medicine an encyclopedia about everything Greeks, Arabs, and he
himself had learned about treating and diagnosing illnesses
Abbasids’ rule over parts of the empire by 850 wasn’t very strong nor were the pieces of the empire united
 Seljuk turks had started to set up an empire in 900 in the Fertile Crescent
 In 1055 Turks had conquered Baghdad and the Seljuk Sultan had control over the city
 the Seljuks had expanded their empire into some Byzantine territory and prevented Christians
from making the pilgrimage to Jerusalem
 In 1095 Pope Urban II called for the First Crusade, or Holy War
 Mongols raided the city of Baghdad, killing the last caliph
 Eventually the Mongol leader, Timur the Lame, in the 1300s conquered all of the Muslim
lands
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Crusades, or a series of wars beginning in 1096
Western Europe was just emerging from a period of isolation while many other civilization thrived
elsewhere
 Islamic region had risen to a brilliant civilization
 In India Hindu and Buddhist traditions flourishes and princes built great palaces and temples
 In China culture had thrived and expanded their influence
 In West Africa the great trading empire of Ghana was being established
 Seljuk turks had taken over some of the Muslim empire’s land most importantly the capital of
Baghdad
 the Turk had continued to expand their control to encompass Byzantine lands

By 1071 the Turks had taken over the Holy Land
 prevented the Christians pilgrims from journeying to Jerusalem
Call to Action
Byzantine emperor Alexius I asked Pope Urban II for Christian knights to combat the Muslim Turks
 Pope Urban agreed
 In the council of Clermont in 1095 Pope Urban declared the First Crusade to take back the Holy Land
 In 1096 thousand of knights had set out for Jerusalem
 Reasons for joining the Crusades
 religious devotion
 adventure
 prospect of gaining wealth and lands
 escape from troubles at home
 Pope Urban II’s reasons for calling for a crusade
 he wanted to gain power
 hoped a common enemy would unite the ROman and Byzantine Christians and stop
them from fighting each other
The Actual fighting
The First Crusade almost achieved its goals
 in 1099 Christian knights took back Jerusalem
 to celebrate their victory they slaughtered the Muslim and Jewish residents in the city
 Crusaders divided their conquered lands into four crusader states
 muslims constantly tried to destroy the states prompting the Christians to declare another
Crusade
The second Crusade started in 1147 and lasted to 1149
In 1187 Muslims succeeded in conquering Jerusalem
 Christians declared the Third Crusade
 The third crusade failed in its attempt to take back Jerusalem a second time
 after negotiations Christian pilgrims were allowed into the city
Fourth Crusade
 1204 Christian knights helped merchants in Venice defeat their Byzantine trading rivals
 the Knights then captured and looted the capital city of the Byzantine empire, Constantinople
Meanwhile Muslims were destroying the Crusader states
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Effects of the
Crusades
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In 1291 they captured the last Christian outpost the port city of Acre where the Muslims massacred
its inhabitants as so many years ago the Christians had done to them
left a legacy of bitter hatred
Muslim regimes that were once struggling among themselves became unified from Egypt to Syria to
fight the invaders under Saladin
European Economies Expand
 returning crusaders brought back even more fabrics, spices, and perfumes from the Middle East back
to Europe
 trade increased and expanded
 merchants in Venice and northern Italians used for trade large fleets that had once been built to carry
crusaders
 nobles needed money to finance the crusaders, so instead of making peasants pay for their land in
crops, they paid in money, allowing the peasants to sell more products and improve the economy
Effects on Monarchs and the Church
 crusades helped increase the power of the monarchs
 e.g. Louis IX and Richard I
 brought papal power to its greatest height
 Byzantine resentment against the rest hardened because of the Fourth Crusade
A Wider Worldview Evolves
 contact with Muslims lead Christians to realize that millions of people lived in regions they had never
known even existed
 curious Europeans explored India and China
 1271 Marco Polo set out for China and wrote a book about the wonders of Chinese
civilization having upon returned to Venice
 expanded European horizons
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The Reconquista
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in 1400s a desire to trade directly with China and India would lead Europeans to a new age of
exploration
crusading spirit continued after the European defeat at Acre, especially in the Iberian Peninsula
North African Muslims, or Moors, had conquered most of present day Spain in the 700s
several tiny Christian kingdoms sought to conquer Muslim lands
 this campaign is called the Reconquista or “reconquest”
Christians Conquer Spain
 1085 Christians captured Toledo
 by 1140, Christian kingdom of Portugal has been established
 by 1300, Christians controlled the entire Iberian peninsula except for Granada
 in 1465, the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile created the unified state called
Spain
 using combined forces, Ferdinand and Isabella conquered Granada in 1492
Spain Expels Non-Christians
 Isabella wanted to bring religious unity to Spain
 with the support of the Inquisition, a Church set up to try people accused of heresy, Isabella
launched a brutal crusade against Jews and Muslims
 Jews and Muslims forced to convert to Christianity could be tried by the Inquisition
 people who refused to conform to the Church were burned at the stake
 more than 150,000 people mostly Muslims and Jews fled Spain, many were killed
 many were skilled, who would’ve contributed to Spain’s economy and culture
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The Spread of Civilization in East and Southeast Asia
1274, 1281

Kublai Khan’s fleet
 Kamikaze =divine wind; destroyed his fleet
 700 years later, shipwreck found in Imari bay
Sui Dynasty (589618)
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The emperor Sui Wendi reunited the north and south
Land equalization system
 first introduced by Emperor Xiaowen in 485 CE, continued through the Sui and Tang
Dynasties
 All land was owned by the government
 how much was distributed to the people depended on their ability to supply labor
 Aim was to have no agricultural land lay neglected
 Broke up large agricultural holdings and redistributed the land to peasants
 This policy strengthened the central government by weakening the power of large landlords
 Increased government revenues
Unified currency
Constructed the Grand Canal
 linked Huang River to the Chang River
 food grown in the south could be shipped to the capital in the north.
500-1650


Two Golden Ages of
China:
Tang Dynasty (618907)

Li Yuan,when the Sui dynasty was crumbling,along with his son launched an attack on all rivals and
established the Tang Dynasty in 618
 became 1st Tang emperor
 a general under Sui dynasty.
2nd Tang emperor, Li Shimin (唐太宗李世民)-brilliant general, government reformer, historian, and
master of the calligraphy brush, China’s most admired emperor
 gave himself the name Tang Taizong
 son of Li Yuan
 Wu Zhao: 624-705 (lived 82 years, being an Empress from Age of 67, the oldest to take the throne in
Chinese history, & last more than 14 years).
 Tang Dynasty Reunified China
 Han Dynasty collapsed in 220, China broke apart for nearly 400 years. Buddhism spread in
China. Cities survived.
 Invaders stormed northern China, Adapted Chinese civilization rather than demolishing
it. Various dynasties rose and fell in the south.
Government and Economy Grow


Empire-building to new heights
 Conquering territories deep into Central Asia. Armies forced the neighboring lands of
Vietnam, Tibet and Korea to become tributary states.
 These states remained self-governing; rulers had to acknowledge Chinese supremacy
 Send regular tribute to the Tang emperor.
 Students from Korea and Japan traveled to the Tang capital to learn about Chinese
government, law and arts.

Empress Wu Zhao (武照) restored the Han dynasty system of uniform government
throughout China. Rebuilt bureaucracy and enlarged the civil service system to recruit
talented officials trained in Confucian philosophy.
 Set up schools to prepare male students for the exams and developed a flexible new law code.
Decline of the Tang
 Lost territories in Central Asia to Arabs
 Corruption, high taxes, drought, famine and rebellions contributed
Two Golden Age of
China:
Song
dynasty (960-1279)
slightly longer than
the Tang
Northern Song Dynasty (960-1125)
Zhao Kuangyin (趙匡胤) – scholarly general reunited China and founded the Northern Song dynasty
 Emperor Taizu
 Controlled less territories than the Tang dynasty
 Moved capital to Kaifeng
Decline of Bei Song
 1125, Jurchen invaded the Northern Song Dynasty and captured its capital
 Established the Jin Dynasty

Nan Song (南宋) (1127-1279)
 After the capture of Kaifeng by the Jurchen, the Song court reestablished itself in Hangzhou
 Developed a strong naval force to combat the Jin dynasty
 China’s wealth and culture dominated East Asia even when armies did not
 Economy expanded because of improved farming methods and open border policy
 allowed a new type of faster-growing rice to be imported from Southeast Asia. Produced 2
crops /year

Great Canal, reached its peak during Song dynasty, when thousands tons of grain were shipped to
northern China each year.
Decline of Nan Song
 Genghis Khan, Ögedei Khan, and Möngke Khan all tried to conquer the Song and finally in 1279
Kublai Khan attacked and overthrew the Song
Under the Song and
Tang Dynasties
Chinese culture

Foreign trade flourished
 Merchants arrived from India, Persia and Arabia.
 Chinese merchants to Southeast Asia in exchange of spices and special woods
 Song porcelain has been found as far away as East Africa.
 The Government issued paper money. China cities as centers of trade.
China’s Ordered Society
 Under the Tang & Song, China was a well-ordered society.
 Head: Emperor
 Court: aristocratic families. Supervised a huge bureaucracy.
 Two main social classes: Gentry and the peasantry.
The Gentry Value Education
 Gentry: or wealthy landowning class.
 Afford studying Confucian classes
 To pass grueling civil service exam.
 When not in government service, served in the provinces as allies of the emperor’s officials.
 Song scholar gentry valued learning more than the physical labor.
 New schools of Confucian philosophers emphasized social order based on duty, rank and
proper shoopy behavior.
Peasants Work the Land

Most of Chinese were peasants living on what they produced
 Drought and famine were a constant threat
 more tools and crops did improve the lives of many peasants
 produce handicrafts such as baskets or embroidered items
 went to nearby market towns to sell or trade for salt, tea, or iron tools.

Peasants lived in small, largely self-sufficient villages that managed their own affairs and relied on
one another rather than the government

When disputes arose, a village leader and council of elders put pressure on the parties to
resolve the problem.
 Peasants could move up in society through education and government service.
Merchants Have Lowest Status
 According to Confucian tradition, merchants had even lower social status that peasants since their
riches came from the labor of others
 An ambitious merchant, therefore, might buy land and educate one son to enter the ranks of
the scholar-gentry.
 The Confucian attitude toward merchants affected economic policy
 Rulers sought to control and restricted where foreign merchants could live and even limited
the activities of private traders
 Still, Chinese trade flourished during Song times.
The Status of Women
 Women had higher status and greater authority in Tang empire and early Song times than they did
later
 managed servants and family finances
 families valued boys more than girls
 when a young woman married, she became a part of her husband’s family.
 She couldn’t keep her dowry, the payment that a woman brings to a marriage, and
could never remarry.
 Women’s subordinate position was reinforces in late Song times when the custom of foot binding
emerged. Foot binding reinforce the Confucian tradition that women should remain inside the home.
Mongols build an
empire




nomadic people who grazed their horses on steppes, vast treeless plains
Mongol tribes often warred with each other
1200s, a powerful Mongol chieftain named Genghis Khan united all the tribes
Under Genghis the Mongols conquered lands that stretched from the Pacific Ocean to the Caspian
Sea excluding southern China
 Mongols were able to conquer so much because
 Genghis Khan imposed strict military discipline and absolute loyalty
 Mobile highly trained soldiers who were expert horse riders
 Genghis Khan was a very good military strategist, fierce and often merciless


Mongol armies easily conquered the Asian steppe lands but also adapted to conquer walled
cities
 Chinese and Turkish military experts taught them to launch missiles and other new
weapons
 this new military technology soon spread west to Europe
the Mongol Empire reached prime under Genghis Khan’s grandson, Kublai Khan, rule
 Kublai Khan conquered lands all the way west to Kiev in present day Ukraine, all of the land
under Persian rule and finally southern China
Pax Mongolica
Mongols were very tolerant rulers
 people under their rule lived their lives in much the same way as before they were conquered they
just had to pay a special tribute to the Mongols
 encouraged tolerance and justice
 respected scholars, artists and artisans
 allowed people to practice all religions
Political stability brings economic growth
 the entirety of the silk road was ruled by the Mongols so trading became much safer
 “enjoyed such peace that a man might have journeyed from the land of sunrise to the land of
the sunset with a golden platter upon his head without suffering the least violence from
anyone”
 Trade flourished
 gunpowder and papermaking techniques were spread to Europe
 crops and trees were brought from the Middle East to East Asia
 Cultural exchanges also increased
China under the
Mongols
Kublai Khan was able to overthrow the Song emperor in 1279
 he didn’t want the Mongol to be assimilated, or absorbed, into Chinese culture
 only Mongols could serve in the military
 only mongols or non-Chinese were eligible to hold the highest government position
 Kublai trusted foreigners more than the Chinese
 Chinese were still able to be in charge of provinces
 A mixture of Chinese and foreign influence is created
 Kublai adopted a chinese name for his rule, the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368)

Khanbaliq was the capital of the Yuan Dynasty
 was turned into a Chinese walled-city
 many rooms in his palace were designed to be similar to Mongol steppe dwellings
 Kublai rebuilt and extended the Grand Canal to make shipments of rice and other goods easier to be
brought to his capital
 he welcomed foreigners to his court including Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo
Marco Polo
 Italian merchant
 his great journey
 1271 Polo left Venice with his father and uncle
 crossed Persia and Central Asia and reached China
 spent 17 years in Kublai’s service
 visited Southeast Asia and India
 Sailed back home to Venice in 1295
 wrote about the wealth and splendor of China
 described Kublai Khan’s royal palace
 praised China’s efficient royal mail system
 reported that Hangzhou was 10 -12 times as big as Venice
 sparked European interest in China
Mongol contact with foreigners
 Pope sent priests to Beijing
 Muslims set up communities in china
 Chinese products continued to journey to Europe
Yuan Dynasty began to decline in 1294 following the death of Kublai Khan
 Yuan Dynasty finally fell in 1368
Ming Dynasty
(1368-1644)

Chinese despised the Mongol rulers
 Confucians stopped contact with the Mongols seeing no advantage in doing so
 heavy taxes, corruption, uprisings and natural disasters had left China in a dismal state
 Zhu Yuanzhang a peasant leader created an army and drove out the Mongols out of China
1368 the Ming Dynasty was created
 wanted reestablish Chinese greatness
 moved the capital to Nanjing and eventually to Beijing



restored the civil service system
once again Confucian teachings were the basis of success
a board of censors were appointed to root out corruption and disloyalty
 Economic growth
 fertile, well irrigated field of eastern China was a steady source of crops
 peasants in the Chang River valley produced huge rice crops
 better fertilization increased production of crops
 some farmers cut terraces into the ground to gain access to soil on hillsides
 many industries including the paper and porcelain were highly successful
 the repaired canal system made trade easier
 Culture flourishes
 artists created new style of landscape painting and made beautiful blue and white porcelain
 Ming vases were one of the most popular exports to the west
 Ming writers continued to write classical poetry but also novels and detective stories
Decline of the Ming Dynasty 1644
 Japanese and Spanish policies cut off a supply of silver which the Chinese relied on
 a small ice age devastated crops
 floods and epidemics
 Manchurian invasion and the rebel leader Li Zicheng
Zheng He
1405 Admiral Zheng He started out on his first expedition
 Aims of all 7 of his expeditions were to promote trade and collect tribute from lesser powers in the
west
From 1405-1433 Zheng He journeyed to
 the coasts of Southeast Asia and India
 entrances of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf
 many ports in East Africa
 many Chinese merchants settled Southeast Asia and India
 exotic animals and other goods were imported from far away areas
 these expeditions enforced the power of the Chinese empire in the minds of foreigners
1435 Zheng He died and the Ming emperor banned the building of seagoing ships and later the use of ships
with more than 2 masts
 extensive trade or exploration was virtually impossible


Proximate factors
 the Confucian scholars at court found no gain in oversea ventures
 they thought the Chinese should focus on preserving Chinese tradition
Ultimate factors
 China did not have constant competition as countries in Europe have
 At the time no power around them posed a threat
 ethnocentric
 China was unified


Geography Sets
Japan Apart
located on an archipelago, or a chain of islands
four main islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, and Shikoku
Seas Protect Japan
 four-fifths of its land are too mountainous to farm
 most people settled in narrow river valleys
 mild climate and sufficient rainfall helped with farming the limited arable land
 seas protected and isolated Japan
 close enough to learn from Korea and China, but not close enough to be conquered
 freedom to accept or reject influences, preserving identity
 seas developed fishing industry
Forces of Nature
 Ring of Fire, made up of volcanoes and earthquakes around the Pacific Ocean
 tsunamis, tidal waves
Early Traditions
Yamato Clan Claims Power
 uji, clans, had its own chief and special god or goddess seen as the clan’s original ancestor
 women could be clan leaders
 A.D. 500, Yamato clan dominated corner of Honshu, largest Japanese island
 next 1000 years, Yamato Plain would be the center of the Japanese government
 symbol is the rising sun, ancestor was the sun goddess, Amaterasu
A Religion of Nature
 kami, superior powers that were natural or divine
 Shinto, “the way of kami”


not international religion
simple beauty of nature
The Korean Connection
 language distantly related to Korean but completely different from Chinese
 continuous contact (and attack) between Japan and Korea
 Korean artisans brought sophisticated skills and technology
 Korean missionaries introduced Buddhism to Japan in the 500s

Japan Looks to
China
early 600s, Prince Shotoku of the Yamato clan sent young nobles to study in China
The Japanese Visit China
 students, monks, traders, and officials visited Tang court for the next 200 years
negotiated, traded, and studied
 brought back Chinese thought, technology, arts, and ideas on the governor
 “Heavenly Emperor” claimed absolute power
 bureaucracy and similar law code
 710, Japanese Emperor built a capital at Nara based on the Tang capital at Chang’an
 nobles there completely followed Chinese traditions (from clothes, pottery, food, tea and
ceremonies, music, dances, gardens, and official writing)
 Japanese adopted pagoda architecture with Buddhism and Confucianism (filial piety, relationships,
respect for learning)
Selective Borrowing Preserves Culture
 selective borrowing, keeping some traditions but modifying or discarding others
 800s, as the Tang dynasty began to decline, Japanese court began to turn away from China
 asserted their identity by revising the Chinese system of writing by adding kana, phonetic symbols
representing syllables
The Heian Period
 Heian, present-day Kyoto, imperial capital during blending of cultures from 794 to 1185
Women Shape the Court
 very beautiful and elaborate courts and nobles
 men studied Chinese, women were forbidden to, but still learned anyways
 Heian women wrote the most important works of Japanese literature of the period
Lady Murasaki Writes the World’s First Novel
 Murasaki Shikibu wrote The Tale of Genji
 adventure and love in a Chinese and Japanese setting
 haunted by a sense of sadness that love does not last and the beauty of the world will be soon
gone
 melancholy
Warriors Establish
Feudalism




Feudal warfare swept Japan in the 1400s, but new Japanese culture arose
warrior aristocracy
emperor was a figurehead, shogun or supreme military commander, was the real leader
Minamoto Yoritomo was appointed the first shogun in 1192
 set up Kamakura shogunate, the first of three military dynasties that would rule Japan for
almost 700 years
The Ways of the Warriors
 daimyo, warrior lords that were distributed lands to support a shogun
 samurai, warriors meaning “those who serve”, were granted land by the daimyos
 developed code of values called bushido, or “way of the warrior” that emphasized
honor,bravery, and absolute loyalty to one’s lord
Noblewomen Lose Ground
 at first noblewomen trained in the military arts and few became legendary warriors
 later on, inheritance was limited to sons
 wife of a warrior had to accept the same hardships as her husband and owed the same loyalty to his
overlord
Peasants, Artisans, and Merchants
 bottom of social hierarchy
 peasants made of 75% of population were also foot soldiers in feudal wars
 may rise to become a samurai
 artisans provided goods for samurai
 merchants ranked lowest but gradually improved status
Japan Holds Off Mongols
 Kublai Khan launched invasion from Korea in 1274, but was wrecked by typhoon
 1281, a larger force was sent, but also crushed by a typhoon
 Japanese credited their miraculous delivery to the kamikaze, or divine winds
 reinforced Japanese sense that they were a people set apart who enjoyed special protection of the
gods
The Tokugawas
Unite Japan





Kamakura shogunate crumbled in the aftermath of the Mongol invasions
1338, new dynasty took power
level of warfare increased after 1450
daimyo also allowed peasants to fight
1590, Toyotomi Hideyoshi brought most of Japan under his control
 tried, but failed to conquer Korea and China
 1603, daimyo Tokugawa Ieyasu became the master of Japan and was named shogun 3 years later
 Tokugawa shogunate would rule Japan until 1868
Central Government Imposed

Tokugawas were determined to end feudal warfare, imposed central government control on all of
Japan, but maintained the outward forms of feudal society (centralized feudalism)
 daimyo were required to live in the shogun’s capital at Edo, present-day Tokyo
 daimyo could not repair castles or marry without permission
 only samurai could serve in military or uphold government jobs
Economy Booms
 agriculture improved and expanded with peace restored
 rapid population growth
 trade flourished
 merchants could gain influence by lending money to daimyo and samurai or marrying their
daughters into the samurai class
Zen Buddhism
Shapes Culture



An Agricultural
Revolution


Zen, a Buddhist sect from China won widespread acceptance among samurai
 emphasized self-reliance, meditation, and devotion to duty
 contradictory traditions
 monks were great scholars yet stressed the importance of reaching a moment of “nonknowing”
 compassion for all, yet samurai sought to kill
 monks sought to experience absolute freedom, yet there were rigid rules
enlightenment through meditation and through the precise performance of everyday tasks
peace, simplicity, nature, and love of beauty
New technology improves farming
 iron plows to carve into the deep soil of north Europe, instead of wooden ones
 a new harness for horses instead of oxen
 horses plow more quickly than oxen so more fields could be plowed in a day
New methods improve farming
 clearing forests, draining swamps, reclaiming waste lands for farming, shoopies, and grazing
 three-field system
 one field was planted with grain, the second with legumes (peas and beans) and the
third was unplanted
Artistic Traditions
Change
Geography of Korea
 Edo and Osaka were home to arts and theatre
New Drama Develops
 1300s, feudal culture produced Noh plays
 presented Zen Buddhist themes, emphasizing the need to renounce selfish desires
 each movement with special meaning
 elegant carved masks
 square wooden stage without scenery
 1600s, Kabuki plays
 influenced by Noh, but were less refined
 included comedy or melodrama
 puppet plays, or bunraku became popular
 Hokku, known present day as haiku, is a Japanese poetic form comprising of 17 on with 3 lines the
first having 5 on the second having 7 on and the third 5 on
Painting and Printmaking
 reflected influence of Chinese landscape paintings
 recreated historical events (e.g. Mongol invasions)
 1600s urban culture produced woodblock print




is located on a peninsula
Southern end points to Japan
bordering China to the north
 separated by mountains and the Yalu River
 Korea is influenced, culturally and technologically, by China
 Many times throughout history China has extended control over Korea
 108 BCE Wudi, emperor during the Han dynasty, invaded Korea and set up a military
colony
 Chinese traditions and ideas on government, farming and language spread to
Korea
 Acts as a cultural bridge between China and Japan
Low but steep mountains cover 70% of Korea
 T’aebaek mountain range runs from north to south on the eastern coast
 smaller chains branch off and form hilly areas
Farming is very hard on mountains so most people live along the western coastal plains
Korea comprises of thousands of little island and a 5400 mile coastline
 Korean diet is very seafood based


Silla kingdom and
Dynasty
Between 300 and 600 CE 3 major powers emerged
 Silla kingdom in south
 Koguryo kingdom in the north
 Paekche in the southwest
 All 3 kingdoms often were at war with each other or China despite having about the same culture and
language
 Korean monks went to China and brought back arts and culture
 668 to 935 CE, the Silla kingdom conquered the other two kingdoms and united the Korean
peninsula under a common rule with the help of Chinese empress Wu Zhao
Silla Dynasty was founded in 668 and lasted until 935
 Buddhism became a very powerful influence in Korea
 introduced to Koreans by the Chinese
 particularly influential among the noble
 hundreds of Buddhist temples were built
 very successful trade with China
 China continued to be a major influence in Korean culture, government and written language
 Achievements in medicine, astronomy, metal casting, sculpture and textile manufacturing
 Center of advancements was the Silla capital of Kyongju
 modeled after the Tang capital of Chang’an
 682 introduced a national Confucian academy
 introduced a civil service examination similar to the chinese one
 were in China everybody could take the test in Korea only aristocrats were allowed to
 Conflicts between peasants and aristocrats led to the fall of the Silla
Koryo and Yi
Dynasties
Koryo Dynasty emerged in 935 and lasted to 1392
 moved the capital to Songak present day Kaesong
 Confucianism and Buddhism were both very influential
 Koreans used many chinese inventions but also improved upon them

originally used Chinese woodblock printing but later invented movable metal type to better
print large numbers of books
 learned to make porcelain from the chinese but also developed a technique to make celadon,
porcelain with a unique blue-green glaze
Mongols invaded Korea in 1231 and controlled it from 1259 to 1392
 Korean general, Yi Song-gye overthrew the Mongols in 1392
Yi or Choson Dynasty was set up in 1392 and lasted to 1910
 reduced Buddhist influence
 Government was set up based on Confucian principles
 KIng Sejong wanted to create a Korean language much simpler than the Chinese system
 had experts create hangul, the korean phonetic alphabet
 increased greatly the literacy rate
Japan invades Korea
Revival of trade and
travel
Japan wanted to launch an attack on China via Korea
 Japanese armies looted and burned cities all across Korea
 Korean Admiral Yi Sun-shin used turtle boats, armored ships shaped like turtles, to drive off the
Japanese
 after 6 years the Japanese withdrew their attacks
 in the process they took many Korean artisans to spread their skills in Japan

More food meant population growth
 between 1000 and 1300 population triple in Europe

Feudal warfare and foreign invasion declines
 people felt safer and started to travel more
Traders formed merchant companies
 used regular trade routes which hadn’t been used for centuries thus far
Constantinople
 Merchants bought Chinese silks, Byzantine gold jewelry and Asian spices shipped these
goods to Venice then to Flanders and to England and places along the Baltic sea
 Northern Europeans paid for the goods with honey, furs, cloth, tin, and lead
Hanseatic League
 founded by German towns along the Baltic Sea






Commercial
Revolution
 acted against robbers and pirates, built lighthouses and trained ship pilots
Merchants waited out the winter in settlements around towns or castles
 settlements attracted artisans who wanted the merchants to sell their products
 these settlements grew until they became the first medieval cities with some holding a
population of 100,000
 the richest cities emerged in northern Italy and Flanders
 areas along the north-south trade route and both were centers of the wool and
textile trade
Trade Fairs
 merchants often did business at local trade fairs that attracted people from surrounding
villages, town and castles
Merchants, when setting up a new town, consulted the local lord about a charter, a written document
that outlined the rules and privileges of the merchants in the town
 in return the merchants paid a large sum or a yearly price to the lord
As trade increased merchants discovered the need for new business practices
 the increased need for capital or money for investing created more banking houses
 merchants now started to use credit
 a banker would issue a bill of exchange in one city then the merchant would cash it in in
another city
 this would better protect a merchant’s money as coins were often stolen
 groups of merchants banded together and formed partnerships
 a system of insurance was developed
 for a small fee an underwriter would grant insurance to the merchant
 if a merchant’s shipment was lost the underwriter would pay the majority of its value
 if the shipment was safely delivered the merchant paid the insurance value
Society changes
 Money was used more as currency than labor
 peasants would now would sell their farm products
 before peasants would pay rent with labor, now they would pay with money
 by 1300 most peasants were tenant farmers or hired farm workers
Rise of the middle
class
Medieval
Universities Emerge



merchants traders and artisans formed a new social class the middle class
the nobles and clergy despised the middle class claiming that they made their money immorally
Merchants and artisans formed alliances and associations called guilds
 Merchant guilds appeared first
 they passed laws and collected taxes
 they decided how to use funds
 Artisans organized their own guilds
 guilds were organized by occupation
 limited guild membership to reduce competition
 only guild members could work in that occupation
 set rules for work hours, prices and quality of goods
 they provided social services
 operated schools and hospital, provided aid to the needy and looked after its
members
 Becoming a guild member was extremely hard
 at a very young age a child might become an apprentice to a guild master
 they were unpaid but given food and housing
 most apprentices became journeymen, salaried workers to guild masters
 Women in guilds
 women often took on the profession of their father or husband if they died
 if a women knew the craft well she could become a guild master
 women dominated business in some crafts and they formed their own guilds
 young girls often became apprentices in crafts such as ribbon and paper making
A more reliable food supply and increased trade lead to wealth and prosperity, so people could focus more
on education
 Church wanted better educated clergy
 Rulers needed literate men to manage their money
 1100, many cathedral schools, schools next to cathedrals, were created to train the clergy
 became the first universities
 charters outlined the rights of the members and standards of training
 University life
 at 5 am shoopies get waken up by a bell for prayers






New Learning
after prayers shoopies have class until 10 am, when they have breakfast
afternoon lessons go until 5 pm when they ate a light supper and studied until bedtime
universities did not have permanent residences so classes were held in rented rooms or church
choir lofts (shoopy houses)
a university covered 7 subjects: arithmetic, geometry, music, rhetoric, astronomy, grammar
and logic
 there were specialized courses for law, medicine and theology and shoopy grooming
a degree as a bachelor of arts took 3-6 years to earn
 several more years of study were required to become a master of shoopy arts
 a degree in theology, or the study of religion, always took the longest
Women weren’t allowed into universities so they couldn’t become doctors lawyers and
church officials
 girls received good educations in convents
 some noble girls studied at Notre Dame de Paris
 some nuns became scholars and writers
Many ideas discovered in Greek and Roman were lost during the fall of Rome
 Muslim scholars had translated the works of Aristotle and other Greek thinkers into Arabic which
traveled across the Muslim empire
 In Muslim Spain Jewish and Christian scholars translated those works into Latin
 when these translations reached Western Europe a revolution in education ensued
 Christian scholars struggle with new ideas
 Aristotle taught that people should rely on logic and reason above all else
 Christian scholars believed that the Church was the highest form of order and knowledge
 to believe in both Christian scholars started to use logic to prove their religious beliefs, this
method was called scholasticism
 a famous scholasticism Thomas Aquinas wrote the book Summa theologica
 Aquinas wrote that both logic and religion must coexist because god had created an
orderly universe
 Christian scholars studied works from Hippocrates, Euclid and other works by Arab scientists
 science made little progress in the medieval world because scholars believed all true
knowledge must align with teachings from the Church
 Europeans adopted Hindu-Arabic numerals

were more easily communicable than roman numerals
Medieval literature


Latin was the language of scholars and the elite
writings began to be written in the vernacular, or languages of the common folk such as French
German and Italian
 Some were about the bravery and chivalry of knights while others were about everyday
people
 Song of Roland
 Poem of Cid
 Divine Comedy
 Canterbury Tales
 All tales paint a picture of life in medieval times
Art and Architecture

1000, monasteries and towns built stone churches influenced by Roman designs
 looked like fortresses with thick towers
 roofs were usually a barrel vault, or a long tunnel of stone that was supported by walls with
little to no windows
 interior often was dark and gloomy
1140, Abbot Sugar wanted to build an abbey church that would “shine with wonderful and
uninterrupted light”
 the Gothic form of architecture, was born
 flying buttresses, stone supports that stood outside of the church
 the stone supports allowed for there to be higher thinner walls
 large stained glass windows
 incredibly tall
 stonemasons carved sculptures to put inside the churches
 sculpted biblical figures and saints as well as animals, plants and mythical creatures
 stained glass windows were decorated with images of the life of Jesus and other
religious themes
 churches also contained paintings
 these paintings were called alterpieces
 symbolized religious ideas
 religious figures were not supposed to be lifelike but angelic to inspire devotion
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The Apocalypse!!!

illumination, or artistic decoration or books
 used brilliant colors and intricate designs
tapestries, woven wall hangings decorated the halls and rooms of castles
Bayeux Tapestry depicted the Norman conquest of England
widespread crop failure
 lead to rampant famine and starvation
 plague and war devastated the lands
 this marked the end of the middle ages and the beginning of the early modern age
The Black Death
 1347, a fleet of Genoese trading ships picked up a shipment of grain from the Caffa port along the
black sea
 soon both sailors on the fleet and townspeople near the port caffa were falling ill to the Black Plague
 by 1348 it had reached Spain and France
 one and three people died from the disease
 Bubonic plague
 carried by those gerbils (sorry rats for blaming it on you)
 there were previously other cases of this disease in Europe, Asia and North Africa
 it died out but a strain survived in Mongolia
 when the Mongols conquered much of Asia they carried the disease and
created a new epidemic
 plague brought terror and confusion
 some turned to witchcraft for a cure
 others thought it was the end of the world so they plunged into utter chaos
 others saw the plague as god’s punishments for their sins so they beat themselves to
show repentance
 people fled cities or locked themselves up at home
 Christians blamed Jews so thousands of Jews were slaughtered
 the economy suffers
 workers and employers died
 the remaining survivors demanded high wages
 inflation soared as cost of labor increased
 lawyers and merchants pushed for laws limiting wages


Don’t Take Me To
Church
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landowners transformed crop fields to land for sheep grazing
 sheep took less work to manage
 massive revolts from peasants who were bitter and angry
the major outbreak subsided in 1350 although the disease never really vanished
Church could not provide strong leadership during all the chaos
1309, Pope Clement the papal court to Avignon in southern France
 remained there for 70 years
 popes lived in splendor
 critics disliked the pampered papacy and called for a reform
 in 1378 reformers decided to elect their own pope who would rule from Rome
 French cardinals decided to elect another new pope to counter the reformers’ actions
 for decades there was a schism where at time there were often 2-3 declared popes at
the same time
 a church council in Constance Germany settled the dispute by removing authority
from all popes at the time and instilling a new one
 Pope Martin V was elected as pope in 1417 and ruled from Rome
as the church’s moral domination crumbled popular preachers started to call for change
 John Wycliffe
 insisted that the Bible was the source of true Christian beliefs and moral and not the
corrupt church
 began translating the bible into common language, which because he was in England
was English, so people didn’t have to rely on the clergy
 Jan Hus
 heard about Wycliffe’s actions and started to call for reforms in Church in his country
Bohemia
 the Church persecuted Wycliffe and his followers and suppressed the Hussites, followers of
Jan Hus
 Eventually Jan Hus was convicted with preaching heresy, or ideas contrary to the Church’s
 he was burned at the stake
The Hundred (and
sixteen) Years’
War

English rulers had fought hard to keep control of the French lands first seized by their Norman
ancestors
 French kings wanted to expand their domain in France to possibly occupy English controlled lands
 Both powers wanted control of the English Channel the body of water that separated the two nations
 was a strategic trading position
 Edward III of England claimed the French crown because his mother was a French princess
 this sparked outrage and war erupted
The English Win Early Victories
 owed much of their success to the new longbow
New technologies
 Longbow which could be drawn and fired much faster than the crossbow
 could pierce almost all armor except the heaviest ones
 used by the English against the French
 Cannon which could smash through castle walls
 used by the French against the English
Joan of Arc
 in 1429, a 17-year-old peasant woman, Joan of Arc, appeared at the court of Charles VII, the
uncrowned king of France
 desperate, Charles authorized her to lead an army against the English because she told him
God sent her to save France
 led France to several victories
 English tried Joan for witchcraft when taken captive and was convicted and burned at the stake
 later, the Church declared her as a saint
 execution of Joan rallied the French who saw her as a martyr
 by 1453, the English held only the port of Calais in northwestern France
Impact of the Hundred Year’s War
 war increased nationalism in France and allowed them to grow their power
 power in England went to the Parliament
 feudalism died out because knights could not stand against the longbow and cannon
 monarchs needed large hired armies, not feudal armies, for fighting
 population increase, manufacturing grew
 increased trade, development of new technologies
 prepared for further changes during the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the Age of Exploration
“Mario, Luigi look
it’s the
Renaissance!”
began in the 1300s and reached its peak around 1500s
marked the transition from medieval times to the early modern world
great change in many areas- political, social, economic, and cultural
marked shift from an agricultural to an urban society
A New Worldview Evolves
 reawakened interest in the classical learning of Greece and Rome
 Latin as the language of the Church
 Medieval scholars focused more on religious beliefs and spirituality
 Renaissance thinkers explored the richness and variety of human experiences in the here and now
 new emphasis on individual achievement
 Renaissance ideal was a person with talents in many fields
A Spirit of Adventure
 led people to explore new worlds or reexamine old ones
Expressing Humanism
 humanism, intellectual movement where people study the classical culture of Greece and Rome and
used that study to increase their understanding of their own times
 emphasis on humanities, subjects such as grammar, rhetoric, poetry, and history that had been taught
in ancient Greek and Roman schools
 Francesco Petrarch
 lived in Florence in the 1300s
 humanist, poet, and scholar
 assembled library of Greek and Roman manuscripts in monasteries and churches
 allowed the works of Cicero, Homer, and Virgil to become known to Western Europeans
Italy: Cradle of the
Renaissance
Italy’s History and Geography
 center of Roman empire
 architectural remains, statues, and coins available for study
 center of Roman Catholic Church, patron of the arts
 center of religious themes used by artists and writers
 encouraged trade with well-developed markets on the eastern Mediterranean and in northern Africa
and in northern Europe
 provided the wealth for Italy’s Renaissance
 carried new ideas
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

Italy’s Vibrant City-States
 each city-state was controlled by a powerful merchant class
 exerted both political and economic leadership and their interest in art and emphasis on
personal achievement helped to shape the Italian Renaissance
 Medici of Florence, Cosimo gained control of the government in 1434, Lorenzo “the Magnificent”
represented the Renaissance ideal, held Florence together in difficult times in the late 1400s
 patron, financial supporter of the arts
 wealth and influence transformed Florence
 symbolize the energy and brilliance of the Italian Renaissance
 produced gifted poets, architects, scholars, and scientists in a short span of time
Renaissance Art
Flowers
Reflecting Humanist Thought
 like Middle Ages, portrayed religious themes, but set it against a Greek or Roman backgrounds
 painted portraits of well-known figures, supporting individualism
 revived many classical forms from ancient Greek and Roman works such as life-size statues
Using New Artistic Techniques
 Renaissance painters returned to the realism of classical times by developing new techniques for
representing both humans and landscapes
 perspective allowed Renaissance artists to create realistic art
 by making distant object smaller than those closer to the viewer, artists could paint scenes that
appeared three- dimensional
 shading was used to make objects look round and real
 oil paints reflect light
 human anatomy was studied and drew from live models
 accurate portrayal of human body
Architecture: A “Social Art”
 transformed in Renaissance Italy
 meant to blend beauty and utility with improvement of society
 rejected Gothic style of the late Middle Ages and adapted columns, arches, and domes from the
Greeks and Romans
Leonardo De Vinci
 Leonardo Da Vinci (1452- 1519)
 curiosity led to invention





dissected corpses to find how bones and muscles work
paintings of people are very realistic
individual achievement
 botany, anatomy, optics, music, architecture, and engineering
made sketches for flying machines and undersea boats far before they were invented
famous works include Mona Lisa, Vitruvian Man, The Last Supper
Michelangelo
 Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564)
 sculptor, engineer, painter, architect, and poet
 “melancholy genius”, his work reflects many life-long spiritual and artistic struggles
 works include David, Pietà, the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, model for the dome of St.
Peter’s Cathedral
Raphael
 Raphael (1483-1520)
 developed own style of painting that blended Christian and classical styles
 The School of Athens includes Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Averroës, Michelangelo, Leonardo,
and himself
Writing for a New
Society
Castiglione’s Ideal Courtier
 The Book of Courtier by Baldassare Castiglione
 describes the manners, skills, learning, and virtues that a member of the court should have
 educated, well-mannered aristocrat who mastered many fields, from poetry to music
to sports
 different ideals for men and women
 men:
 athletic but not overactive
 good at games but not a gambler
 plays a musical instrument and knows literature and history but is not arrogant
 women:
 graceful and kind
 lively but reserved
Machiavelli’s Successful Prince
The Printing
Revolution





Niccolò Machiavelli wrote a guide for rulers on how to gain and maintain power
The Prince looked at real rulers in the age of ruthless politics (Artha)
use whatever methods necessary to achieve their goals
called cynical at the time but later argued that he provided a realistic view at politics
ethical questions and nature of government and the use of power

in 1455, Johann Gutenberg of Mainz, Germany, printed the first complete edition of the Bible using
a printing press with movable type
printed books were cheaper and easier to produce than hand-copied books
readers gained access to a broad range of knowledge
printed books exposed educated Europeans to new ideas and new places



Northern
Renaissance Artists

northern Renaissance began in the prosperous cities of Flanders, a region that included parts of
present-day northern France, Belgium, and the Netherlands
Flemish Painters
 in the 1400s, Jan van Eyck was one of the most important Flemish painters
 religious scenes abound in rich, realistic details
 in the 1500s, Flemish painter Pieter Bruegel used vibrant colors to portray lively scenes of peasant
life earning him the name of “Peasant Bruegel”
 in the 1600s Peter Paul Rubens blended the realistic tradition of Flemish painters like Bruegel with
the classical themes and artistic freedom of the Italian Renaissance
Dürer: “Leonardo of the North”
 Albrecht Dürer was one of the first northern artists to be profoundly affected by Renaissance Italy
 traveled to Italy in 1494
 using Italian techniques he invent engraving, when an artist etches a design on a metal plate with
acid
 many works portray religious upheaval, one of the northern Renaissance’s most powerful
themes
Northern Humanists
and Writers

most humanist scholars wrote mainly in Latin, others began writing in vernacular, or everyday
language of ordinary people
Erasmus: Making Humanism Popular
 Dutch priest and humanist Desiderius Erasmus, born in 1466, was one of the most important
scholars of the age
 made a Greek edition of the Bible
 translated the Bible into the vernacular
 as a priest, he was disturbed by the corruption in the Church and called for reform
Sir Thomas More’s Ideal Society
 the English humanist Sir Thomas More also pressed for social reform
 Utopia, he describes an ideal society where men and women live in peace and harmony
 all are educated
 no one is idle
 justice is used to end crime rather than to eliminate the criminal
 utopian an ideal society often with the implication that such a society is ultimately impractical
Rabelais’s Comic Masterpiece
 François Rabelais had a varied career as a monk, physician, Greek scholar, and author
 Gargantua and Pantagruel, uses his characters to offer opinions on religion, education and other
serious subjects
 like More and Erasmus, he was deeply religious but had doubts about the organized church
Shakespeare Writes for All Time
 English poet and playwright William Shakespeare
 expressing universal themes in everyday realistic settings
 explores Renaissance ideals such as the complexity of the individual and the importance of the
classics
 invented 1,700 words