Download 11 Hist 604 -900

Lecture 6: Historical
Developments 604-900
Ann T. Orlando
22 February 2011
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
1
Introduction






Review of historical situation in 7th C
Rise of Islam
Charlemagne
Europe after Charlemagne
Eastern (Byzantine) Efforts to oppose Islam
Review Readings
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
2
Historical Situation in Early 7th C
in West




City of Rome is a desolate ruin with poor sanitation and filled with
very poor people; under direct authority of Pope
 Pope St. Gregory the Great rebuilds sanitation and water supply
 Feeds the hungry
Bishops are often the only real source of learning, administration
and civil justice
Irish and Roman missionaries have some success in converting
pagan and Arian tribes
Visigoths rule Spain; Vandals rule North Africa; Lombards rule
northern Italy; Byzantine control of Southern Italy and Sicily,
Franks rule Western France; Anglo-Saxons in England; Alamani
in Germany
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
3
Historical Situation in Early 7th C
in East





Unified politically under control of Byzantine
Emperor from Egypt to Danube
But monophysites in Egypt and Nestorians in Syria
undermine religious unity
Primary contact between East and West is through
the Pope
Ecclesial authorities are subordinate to civil
Eastern Empire will see itself as the continuation of
ancient Roman Empire until the fall of
Constantinople in 1453
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
4
Late Sixth Century Eastern Mediterranean
ocw.nd.edu/arabic-and-middle-east-studies/islamic-societies-of-the-middle-east-andnorth/lectures/Lecture%201.html
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
5
Rise of Islam

Muhammad (570-632)





The flight from Mecca to Medina (622) is beginning of
Muslim calendar (prior to this time, referred to a Age of
Ignorance)
Qur’an is revelation given to Muhammad; its language,
Arabic, is part of that revelation
Founded a religious and political movement aimed at
uniting all Arab tribes.
By 716 all of North Africa, Sicily and the
Iberian peninsula was under Muslim control
By 730 France and Constantinople were
threatened
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
6
Early Islamic Political Leadership

First four caliphs:





Rashidun, rightly guided
Umayyads
Abbasids
Fatimids
Like Hellenistic kingdoms after Alexander and
then the Romans, Arab Muslims found
territory too large to rule consistently by one
power
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
7
Early Islamic Culture

New Capital Cities





Damascus, old city but new capital
Baghdad
Cairo
Cordoba
Arabic becomes the common language


Replaces Greek in Southern Mediterranean,
Persia
Replaces Latin in North Africa, Spain as common
language
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
8
Rise of Islam 7th C
ocw.nd.edu/arabic-and-middle-east-studies/islamic-societies-ofthe-middle-east-and-north/lectures/lecture-3
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
9
Merovingian Dynasty (496-741)

Recall Conversion of Chlodwech (Clovis) 496 in Rheims
as a Catholic Christian



Real power was with wealthy land owners, especially
Mayor of Palace,





Clovis is beginning of Merovingian dynasty in France
When Clovis dies in 511, control is divided among his sons
Attached to king by oaths of loyalty and promise to provide
troops
Bishops take an increasingly secular role; judicial and
military because they were also large land owners
Custom develops that the king appoints bishops
Merovingian kings become weak and ineffective rulers
Transition from Roman system to early feudalism
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
10
Rise of Carolingians





Largest land owners, and Mayor of Palace, in early 8th
C was family of Charles Martel
Charles Martel (Charles the Hammer) stopped the
Muslim army at Tours in 732
Charles’ son, Pepin (Pippin) the Short (714-758), asks
Pope Zachary if incompetent rulers should rule,
Zachary says no
Pepin overthrows last Merovingian ruler, Childric the
Stupid; Pope Stephen II goes to France to anoint
Pepin king (note: St. Boniface may have anointed him
first)
Pepin invades Italy and rescues the Papacy from
Lombards and threats from Muslims in Sicily
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
11
Papal Control of Western Europe



Pepin gave central Italy to the Pope in 754;
beginning of Papal States (lasted until 19th C)
Problem: Constantinople had a claim to Italy
Papacy justifies its land holdings with one of most
famous forgeries of all time: Donation of Constantine




This document claimed that Constantine gave control of
Western Empire to Pope
Accepted as genuine until 15th C
Basis for Papal claims to political power in Europe
King nominates bishops, but appointed by Pope
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
12
Charlemagne (747-814)






Pepin and his wife, Bertha the Big Foot, have son,
Karl, later known as Charlemagne
Reclaimed parts of northeastern Spain from Muslims
(Song of Roland)
Defeated Saxons and forced their conversion to
Catholicism
United Western Europe; established capital at
Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle)
Crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III in
Rome Christmas Day 800
Note a problem: there was already a Holy Roman
Emperor in Constantinople
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
13
Charlemagne’s Empire
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
14
Impact of Charlemagne’s Rule





Enforced Latin, Roman liturgy
Established centers of learning for clergy and
monks (although he could not read)
Setup European-wide system of
administration
Establish precedent of Western Holy Roman
Empire
Cemented special relationship between Pope
and France
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
15
After Charlemagne




Kingdom divided among his three sons at
Treaty of Verdun
Sons are weakened rulers, creating a power
vacuum
Viking invasions begin during Charlemagne’s
lifetime, and increase throughout Europe in
8th C
Lingering problem: who’s in charge politically,
Pope or King
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
16
Extent of Viking Conquests
darkwing.uoregon.edu/%7Eatlas/europe/static/map16.html
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
17
Western Relations with Byzantium

Major political issues from Byzantium’s perspective



Contributing to weakened position of Byzantium




Donation of Constantine
Coronation of Charlemagne by Pope
Muslim invasions
Iconoclast controversy in East
Empress Irene
Efforts made to arrange a marriage between
Byzantine Empress Irene and Charlemagne, but not
effective
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
18
Mediterranean
th
9
C
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
19
Readings

Vidmar, 88 -117. Note he and I disagree about the
break from ‘dark’ to medieval;



McManners, Ch 3 (Mayr-Harting)



Boniface NOT an embryonic English Protestant
Only skim this chapter; pictures and captions better than
text
McManners, Ch 5 (Johns)


Vidmar takes ‘dark’ to 1000;
I stop ‘dark’ at 900 (foundation of Cluny, taming of Vikings
part of medieval for me)
Read 163-170 carefully
CCC 232-242
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
20
Readings (cont.)

Donation of Constantine




Read all carefully
What land, rights, powers, symbols of office does
Constantine give?
From what you know already of history of church and
history of doctrine, why might you be suspicious of this
document?
Einhard, Life of Charlemagne


Read all
Pay special attention to relations with Eastern (Byzantine)
Empire, Islamic Empire, Pope
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
21
Reading (Optional)

Jonas of Orleans (780 – 843)



Bishop during reign of Pepin Short and
Charlemagne
Wrote The Institution of the King
Builds on Gelasius’ Letter
CH 500 Lecture 6 ATO
22