The Rise of Europe

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The Rise of Europe

• Chapter 10
• EQs What factors influenced the development of
  early Europe? How did Feudalism affect social
  identity? How did Europe become an extension of
  the classical Mediterranean?

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Introduction

• 476 CERome fallsthe Western Roman Empire
  Romulus Augustulus was deposed and replaced by
  the barbarian Odoacer
• By the end of the 5th century, Roman states had
  fallen into the hands of barbarian chiefsItaly
  to the Ostrogoths, Spain to the Visigoths, Gaul
  to the Franks, North Africa to the Vandals and
  England to the Angles and Saxons
• Barbarians were now the masters of Europe BUT
  they were willing to learn from those who they
  conquered (IMPORTANT)this brings to their
  peoples acculturation, particularly, by
  religionRoman culture remained, just under the
  control of different masters
• The early Middle Ages (476-1000) saw the birth of
  European societyit was a time of experimentation
  of new political, economic and religious
  ideasand it was a time in which Europe faced a
  challenge from the EastISLAM!

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Islam Comethand Vikings Raid!

• Islam was knocking on Europes doorstep by the
  beginning of the 8th centuryMuslim conquerors
  had taken control of most of north Africa and
  were making their way across the Straits of
  Gibraltar into Spain, while the Byzantines
  continued to hold off Umayyad and Abbasid
  incursions
• The Catholic church took it upon itself to
  declare the Islamic hoard as an unholy barbarian
  forced and charged all rulers of Europe with the
  mission of defending Europe in the name of the
  faith.
• In 732 CE a Christian army led by Charles the
  Hammer Martel defeated the Arab armies at
  Poitiers (Tours) in central France, ending for
  the time, any further Muslim invasions into
  EuropeMeanwhile, from the north, Viking kingdoms
  remained largely heathen and continually raided
  European states in England and Germany
• As a result of these events, political and
  cultural development were hindered, as was
  tradeonly those in the religious orders
  developed and maintain intellectual ideas

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The Rise and POWER of the Church

• The Christian (Catholic) church became the center
  of Europeit is said that nature abhors a vacuum
  and the vacuum left by the loss of Roman rule was
  filled by the local bishops and cathedrals of the
  Catholic churchthe cathedral became the center
  of life in cities and villagesthe bishop was the
  highest authority and, in reality, only the
  church at the time had any form of hierarchical
  political structure or intelligentsia
• Monasticism also became a central feature and was
  the purest, unspoiled form of the Christian
  faithit represented the churchs idea of the
  idea life and created the notion that the clergy
  was superior
• In addition, the bishop of Rome (the Pope), took
  the opportunity to claim superiority over the
  churchas early as the 6th century, the Pope was
  taking advantage of political weakness to
  establish the doctrine of papal primacy,
  allowing the holy father to be the sole authority
  in church doctrine, church legal matters and
  church practicesit also became interpreted that
  the Pope had authority over secular rulers,
  forming the first religious empire in world
  history

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The Holy Roman Empire

• With absence of central political authority in
  the secular state, the question of who is going
  to be the one to control the many became the
  chief political issue in Medieval Europe
• Only one king was able to take advantage of this
  disarray, Charlemagne (grandson of Charles the
  Hammer Martel) of the Frankshe made alliances
  with religious leaders and proved to them that he
  was their protectoron Christmas Day, 800 CE,
  Pope Leo III crowned him Holy Roman Emperor,
  based in Germany, and what would be a revival of
  the old Roman Empire in the West of Europe
• Charlemagne created a bureaucracy of counts
  selected from local rulers within his
  kingdomunfortunately, though they supported the
  king/emperor, they were never fully loyal (more
  in a moment)Charlemagne established his capital
  at Aachen, creating a center or wealth and
  learning unparalleled in Europethe first of
  Europes many Renaissances started here.
• Charlemagne died in 814 CE and his empire
  literally died with himhis son Louis the Pious
  held the empire together until his death, upon
  which it was divided equally among his 3
  sonscounts and regional rulers broke away and
  began fighting each other for supremacy, while
  the papacy played off relationships with each
  minor kingdom

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The Feudal/Manorial System

• The results of constant attacks by outside nomads
  (Vikings, Magyars and Muslims) forced the local
  populations to become ever more dependent on
  local strongmen to protect thementer the
  invention of feudal society, the social,
  political, military and economic system that
  responded to these concerns
• At the top you find the king or regional prince
  (those left over from Holy Roman Empire) who held
  the highest virtues of mutual trust and fidelity
• Next, the nobles, barons or lords (vassals)
  represented the political and economic
  backbonethey supported the king by swearing
  allegiance (fealty) to his rule and by providing
  military protection to the greater statein
  return, the king promised to uphold the lords
  social position
• That is where the knights come in, they were the
  hired protection, paid for by the fees provided
  by the lords with sworn allegiance to king
  (greater lord)
• And the majority of people in Feudal Medieval
  Europe were serfs (or freemen)they provided the
  labor for the lord in return for protection on
  their manorthey also did have recognized legal
  rights upon their swearing of allegiance to a
  landlordthey WERE NOT slaves nor could they be
  bought or soldthey owned their houses and passed
  property rights on as inheritancefreemen were
  those that either escaped this system or served
  as merchant traders

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Early Economic, Social and Political Impacts

• In the 9th and 10th centuries, new agricultural
  techniques emerged the moldboard plow (better
  plows meant deeper digging of soil and opening of
  new farm land), the 3 field system and new horse
  implements
• As nomadic incursions ceased, trade opened
  uptowns emerged as regional trade centers and a
  new merchant class developed (one that would come
  to dominate Europe in the coming centuries)
• Population increased as did the need for food as
  did the need for labornew areas were settled and
  new manors were built to fill food needs
• In the area of politics, new relationships
  evolvedthe elites consolidated their power and
  ruled greater territory, establishing
  bureaucratic councils comprised of several
  vassals and their states
• Political divisions developed, as vassals
  demanded rights, separate form those of church
  authoritythe first parliaments were created by
  edicts in Spain and England, mainly comprised of
  nobles, church leaders and urban leadersserfs
  were not represented, but their rights remained

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Expansion and Reform

• Changes brought desire for greater kingdomsin
  Germany, local rulers expanded eastward into
  still barbarian territory
• In Spain, the Reconquista (11th C) involved the
  unity of several small Spanish kingdoms against
  the Muslim Moorsfull expulsion of Muslims was
  not complete until 1492
• And the Crusades started in 1095 under Pope Urban
  IIwarriors were promised complete absolution for
  their service as did promises of great riches and
  wealth from Arab (Abbasid) landsbut all the
  Crusades eventually did was to create 1)
  competition within European kingdoms and 2) break
  up a vital trading empire (Byzantine)
• In the areas of religion, several events
  occurredseveral monastic orders devoted to
  keeping the church poor were formed in the 13th
  century (St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi)
• Pope Gregory VII also attempted to rid the church
  of ties to feudal stateshe declared priests
  should not marry to keep them pure and he fought
  for the removal of investiture (state appointment
  of religious leaders rather than by the church)
  thus declaring the church superior to the state
  (more this week)

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The High Middle Ages

• Post-Classical Western Civ reached its high point
  in the 12th and 13th centuries as tensions
  created further changes in politics, religion,
  intellectual, social and economic life
• Religion and philosophy became one in the
  samechurch members had become engaged in
  resurfacing the great thinking of Greek
  philosophersabsolute faith in Gods word was
  stressed, but attached human reason to the
  understanding of religion and the natural order
• Thinkers like Peter Abelard stressed
  logic/skepticism in some church doctrines (Yes
  and No)his rival St. Bernard of Clairvaux
  challenged these positions stressing a mystical
  union with God and that reasoning was dangerous
• These debates literally opened up entire schools
  (universities) dedicated to philosophy, theology
  and literaturethey largely produced men bound
  for religious service or work in the bureaucracy
  but also produced a thirst for knowledge of past
  and present civilizations
• Thinkers took advantage of these schoolThomas
  Aquinas taught at the U of Paris that faith comes
  first but reason alone could help determine
  natural order, morality and the nature of God
  (Summas)Roger Bacon did advanced work in optic
  sciences (unheard during this period)
• Christian devotion also ran deep during this
  period, as cities led to development of lay
  groups devoted to spiritualityeven cults of the
  Virgin Mary and particular saints emerged to make
  a human connection with God all the while
  promoting magic and Pagan rituals that blended
  into Christian practices

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Rural Life and Economic Changes

• Agricultural innovations allowed many peasants to
  go out on their own and shake free of the
  manornobles still served the state with military
  services but began dabbling in tradethese
  ventures brought on higher taxes, which, in turn,
  brought on tensions between serfs and lordsin
  general, peasants gained while lords lost
• Trade expandedItalian business people created
  banking and monetary systems became prevalent (to
  the dismay of the church) and Italians became the
  merchants of long distance trade (via the
  Mediterranean)in the Baltic, Germanic and
  Scandinavian states formed the Hanseatic League
  to encourage trade
• Individuals emerged as merchant leaders, like
  Jacques Coeur, who founded trading companies,
  mainly in Italy and dealt with Arab traders in
  the Middle Eastthis was all made possible by the
  weakness of government who allowed merchants to
  gain poweraside from taxation and borrowing,
  merchants were left alone by kings or local
  rulers
• Commercial and artisan guilds (groups of similar
  occupations) developed in urban areasthese
  unions essentially protected their groups,
  regulated apprenticeships, maintained product
  quality and discouraged new innovations of
  products (ie. dont think of a new way to do
  it)their motives were NOT about profitguilds
  also played a large role in urban politics and
  society, giving their members a say in local
  affairs (or even parliaments)
• Manufacturing areas, however, were still behind
  their eastern counterpartsonly in clock making
  did Europeans gain any technical ground

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Women in Medieval European Times

• As always, as society becomes more complex, the
  role of women disintegrates
• A womans role as a domestic in the family
  remained important, and, there was always
  becoming a nun if you didnt want to be a
  housewife
• Religiously, the veneration of the Virgin Mary
  gave women greater prestige in society to
  counterbalance a previous emphasis of women as
  sinners (think about Eve and the apple)
• Women still had higher status than in the Muslim
  societies of the time and could actually attend
  worship services (though not lead them)
• Urban women played roles in guilds and in
  commerce, helping to improve their statusby the
  end of the Middle Ages, the stressing of women as
  assistants to and comforters of men became
  prevalent

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The Decline of the Medieval Synthesis

• Several key events represented a disruption in
  Western Post-Classical civilization in the late
  14th century and are considered the ending events
  of the Middle Ages
• At the beginning of the 1300s, France and England
  decided to fight over some territory and oh the
  war lasted almost a 100 yearsthe French won, but
  this proved the general weakness of European
  states in the areas of military and defense AND
  of their political and social institutions
  (namely feudalism)
• At the same time, all open land in Europe proper
  was now claimed, and famines caused population
  levels to decline
• And then there was the PLAGUE!!! The Black Death
  arrived in 1348 wiping out 1/3 of the population
  and further challenging Europes social and
  political structureit would take almost 2
  centuries for Europe to fully recover thanks in
  part to its next emerging erathe RENAISSANCE.

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This week

• Tuesday Change Analysis
• Wednesday NO SCHOOL
• Thursday Start DBQ
• Friday Test (MC Only) and continue DBQ