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Running head: THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE The Worlds of Medieval Europe Student's Name Institution Affiliation 1 THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 2 The Worlds of Medieval Europe Question 1 The conversion of Constantine to Christianity meant that the whole of the Roman emperor adopted the religion in effect. The pagan practices that Romans enjoyed before became taboo and Christians started persecuting those that did not convert. Because Constantine was the highest authority, his decrees for others to convert to Christianity affected the culture of the people in the areas they controlled. The previous persecutions directed at Christians ended, and the tradition advocated by the new religion became the norm. Marriage practises changed due to the growth of Christianity in the emperor. The new religion did not accept polygamy as practiced by Romans. The pagan culture did not factor the people’s morals something the new religion took seriously. Misogynistic ideas started spreading with women prohibited from engaging in activities that portrayed them as being morally loose. Therefore, the marriage rules changed after the adoption of Christianity as it got changed to go in line with the new religions teachings. Due to the spread of Christianity, pagan festivals became illegal. The only allowed festivals were those that went in line with Christianity. As a result, the eating and drinking habits changed as all people wanted to align their practices with their new beliefs. The calendar changed with the adoption of the Jewish calendar. Social structures also changed with the priests taking a higher position. Leadership revolved around the elite and the persons deemed more religious enjoyed higher positions of power. This was a radical change from what Christians experienced before Constantine converted. THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 3 Question 2 The battle of Adrianople is recognized because it introduced new changes in military fighting. The war also had an impact on how the Romans would interact with the barbarians in the future. Before the war, Romans imposed their authority as well as their religion on their subjects in Western Europe. The Roman leaders led by Theodosius I intervened and stopped forced conversions saying that only a sincere and willing change would embody Christian teachings. Theodosius I offered the Goths living in the Balkan region an alliance with the Roman Emperor, granting them semi-autonomy to determine their destiny. Prior to the war, the emperor would violently crush any opposition to his rule. Although suspicion between the two groups remained, the enemies became allies and started taking part in attacks together. Chieftains in the Balkans gained more stature by leading their warriors into war alongside the Romans rather than against them. Theodosius I gave them ranks in the army and paid them better than Roman soldiers solidifying his support in their society. It is only through that diplomatic intervention that they remained loyal to the Roman Emperor. The war also signified to the Eastern empires military that they needed to adopt the use of efficient cavalries. New military practises and formations helped the Romans together with the Goths vanquish many of Theodosius’ rivals at the time. The change in dealings between the Romans and the Anglo-Saxons yielded results because the people embraced Christianity willingly unlike in the previous period. The Catholic Church grew as a result because many of the chieftains accepted Christianity as their new religion. Because they had the alliance to defend captured regions, Christianity grew and many more societies accepted it as their official religion. THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 4 Question 3 Before the spread of Christianity in Western Europe, the Germanic tribes opposed Romans rule that imposed their laws as well as their religion on the conquered areas. After the battle of Adrianople, the people proposed peaceful coexistence with the Romans and willingly converted to Christianity. Instead of taking part in a conflict like they had in previous times, they suggested monastic living that was more communal. The new form of living supported the integration of the communities rather than shaving each life in isolation. This new form of life supported spiritual brotherhood and service to the world. The tribes converged to form Kingdoms and exert their influence on the population. However, the groups did not destroy Romanic way of life in the areas they conquered. The kingdoms did not establish themselves as autonomous entities but as imperially recognized allies of Rome. Each group respected the agreement and when the Roman Emperor wanted reinforcements, the tribes would provide soldiers who fought alongside those of the Romans as equals rather than as subjects. The corporation played a huge role in minimizing the levels of violence in Western Europe. As a result, Europe enjoyed a period of stability and peace leading to the development of agriculture and cities. However, the growth would be hampered by the fall of the Roman Empire with kingdoms controlling their areas and imposing heavy taxes on the people to sustain their rule. Due to that, many fled the cities leading to their disintegration but the tribes did not fall to the blood feuds that existed before monastic living started. Question 4 Arians were the Christians in the Germanic society who questioned the relationship between Jesus Christ and God the father. Their argument anchored on the argument that if he was not part of the trilogy of God because if his father begot him he did not exist in the period prior THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 5 to his birth. The disagreements between Arius, a priest, and Athanasius, a church father, led to a split of the church for over fifty years and caused the spread of Arianism. Arianism is a form of utilitarian theology that stresses the unity of God rather than the existence of the Trinity. Arius basic presume was that God was self-existent and had the power to bring into existence his son. The opponents argued that not recognizing Jesus as God was reducing him into a demigod. The council of Nicaea brought the groups together and aimed to settle the controversy. It suggested a return to the basic Christian teachings; the division remained until the death of Constantine. His death followed a persecution of the supporters of Arianism and a split of the empire. Christian groups which opposed Arians consolidated power and defeated the supporters of Arianism. As a result, a large number of them migrated west. The remnants of the Arians remained for several years but the success of the non- Arians. Their number reduced with time, so their Christian ideology waned with time. Arians fought to have their beliefs recognised by the church but the fact that they did not have a clear strategy saw them become overpowered and their ideology dwindled with time. Question 5 Christians in the early communities obtained forgiveness from practising good deeds, praying, fasting and giving of alms. Only the priests knew the sins of individuals from confession. However, after some time the people started publicly stating their sins in which led some to claim that it was excommunication. The Catholic Church teaches that confession is one of the seven sacraments. According to the church, the sacrament of penance is for the baptized members. The recognition of penance first emerged in its form in the third century. The penance involved the whole community where the sinners would publicly state their deeds and seek for forgiveness. THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 6 The Catholic Church accepted the teaching of Jesus and believed in the power of forgiveness he gave to the apostles. It is from the powers believed to have been granted by Jesus that they started taking into consideration the practice with those given the powers to forgive changing in the centuries that followed. The practice started with Jesus who left it to the Apostles who passed it to the priests. The power to forgive extends to all sins because the power of the priest would transform from the priest penetrate the sinners soul and reach heaven. Just as a person gets cleansed through baptism is forgiven by the Holy Spirit, the practice of penance also results in the cleansing of the sins by the grace of Jesus transmitted through the priest. The church describes Penance as the souls remedy for the sins that a person commits after birth. During the practice, priests appeal to the words of Christ from an interpretation given by the church in later centuries. It remains prevalent, and an important part of the church practice as religious teachings urge people to repent their sins while they are still on this earth. For the priests involved, confidentiality to what the penitents say is vital in ensuring the course of confession is absolute. Section B Question 1: Development of the Papacy The pre-eminence of the bishop of Rome over the Catholic Church, an institution referred as “The Papacy”, took centuries to develop. During the early church, bishops enjoyed little influence or powers. Only after Constantine converted to Christianity did he give them authority. However, after the fall of the Roman Empire, the ruling families determined the posts influence. In the early days, the term pope which means father got only used for the respected bishops. The bishop of Rome was one of the other important figures in the church together with the one in THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 7 centres such as Constantinople and Alexandria. The Catholic Church recognises any pope who takes the position as a successor to Saint Peter. Many of the popes of the early centuries are not recognized because, in most cases, they died as martyrs together with their flock due to persecution. The position grew in stature after the recognition by Emperor Constantine and continued to do so in the successive appointments. Rome would later become the central place and residence for the holder of the office because of the political power and the recognition of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire. After the fall of Rome, to the barbarians the pope urged their leader Attila the Hun not to burn the city to the ground. The fact that they heeded his pledge highlighted the growing stature of the holder of the position. However, the fall of the Rome to the Huns led to a collapse of the previously established structures. As other structures disintegrated, the pope remained as the defender of people’s rights trough introduction of the “Primacy of Jurisdiction”. Relationship with Secular Rulers Beyond the health and growth of the religion, the ninth century papacy had descendent to its low point due to spiritual decline. The malaise continued into the late 900s and the early years of the new millennium with the German emperor appointees only being marginally better at the time. The papal office became a prize over which several leading families fought over. The jostling for the appointment of a pope loyal to a particular family eroded the ethical nature in which the position should have remained. The popes got appointed for aristocratic leadership. The by the end of the millennium, the institution had reached its lowest point with practises such as simony, clerical marriages and the subservience to secular feudal leaders being the norm. The institution became corrupt and only served at the mercy of the leading families. The people did not revere the post like they had done in previous times. Some of the popes THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 8 during this dark period brought their ecclesiastical positions with some even lacking proper qualification undermining the authority of the institution and perpetuating incompetence. Many of the popes broke their vows of celibacy and others had concubines. The moral degradation of the holders of the office led to a decline in the number of people converting to Christianity. The appointment of Pope Leo in 1049 began the period of restoration for the pride and legitimacy of the position. He did two major achievements that helped reverse the trend that has seen the fall of the papal powers. He made strides geared at riding the church the influence of the Roman nobles. He set a body of prelates that advised him and had the mandate of choosing later popes. Leo also began a campaign to rid the church of corrupt clergy. He began an anti-simony and anti-marriage campaign that removed the previously corrupt members from the church leadership. His legacy and imposition of a body mandated with selecting a pope ensured the position had legitimate holders since that time. Question 2 Reasons behind the Slow Disintegration of Charlemagne’s Empire After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth-century civilisation, many of the systems that had held the community together fell apart. The dark ages lasted for 500 years. However, Charlemagne came to power and tried to salvage what had remained by first reacquiring the land covered by the Roman Empire. He had a desire of acquiring a large and accomplished kingdom. After conquering most of the areas, he started by infusing his German Catholicism. Charlemagne felt that he had to ensure that his people practised the religion led by the bishop of Rome. The whole of Western Europe turned Christian on his command. Having a solid foundation in faith meant there were established structures that people in the society followed. His defence of Pope Leo when he got attacked by the Roman nobles is an indicator of THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 9 the dedication he had to maintain a strong church. That foundation ensured the empire remained strong during his reign, and it also took time for the system to disintegrate after his death. Charlemagne wanted to maintain a legitimate and powerful leadership. He wanted to build a centralized and progressive state run as an entity. He wanted control of affairs as much as he could and felt responsible for the welfare of his subject. To help him run the empire, he appointed dukes and counts and gave them some degree of autonomy. However, they ultimately answered to him, and those that rebelled got replaced. During his rule, he also made some unannounced visits and whenever he could not reach he sent inspectors. Charlemagne also had royal judges who had the duty of enacting laws and ordinances. This organized system meant his emperor remained strong during his lifetime. However, after his death there was no one to hold the system together and without a unifying figure the systems power to control situations began to decline. Charlemagne had a passionate policy of cultural and intellectual advantage. He wanted to renew the dying Latin culture that had crumbled with the fall of the Roman Empire. A revived culture would give him a unifying language that would help him communicate with all his subjects. It would also help the people understand the language of the Catholic Church. He initiated educational reform urging the clergy to learn different languages and started libraries across the empire. From that education, he could get learned leaders to fill positions in his leadership and the churches. The education system did not crash immediately after his death meaning it survived on the system in place. Charlemagne had initiated a currency that helped regulate trade in his empire. Silver currency became the accepted medium of payment making the system efficient. The regulated trade made a prosperous empire that catered for all its citizens. Justice and fairness helped people THE WORLDS OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE 10 love their emperor. They remained loyal until his death, but the systems could not hole without him because he did not leave a legitimate hair. His sons inherited his kingdom dividing it into three kingdoms, and that meant the unity he had worked fro could remain for long after she died. The sibling began civil wars. The emperor died three decades after he died.