Chapter 9: Emerging Europe and the Byzantine

Empire, 400-1300

Transforming the Roman World

Feudalism

The Growth of European Kingdoms

The Byzantine Empire and the Crusades

Transforming the Roman World

Objectives:

1. Characterize the New European civilization formed by the Germanic peoples, the legacy of the Romans, and the Church

2. Discuss how Charlemagne expanded the Frankish kingdom and created the Carolingian Empire

The New Germanic Kingdoms

Germanic migrations spread through Roman

land by the third century

*Visigoths occupied Spain

Ostrogoths occupied Italy

*Ango-Saxons in Britain

The Germanic rulers retained the Roman

structure of government

By 500, the Western Roman Empire had been replaced by a number of states ruled by German

kings

The Kingdoms of the Franks

The only Germanic kingdom which would remain standing is the

Frankish Kingdom

*Clovis, a strong military leader, established the

kingdom

c. 500, Clovis converted to Christianity—the first Germanic ruler to do so

Conversion through battle

The Catholic Church was eager to obtain

the friendship with a major Germanic state

The Frankish Kingdom extended

from the *Pyrenees in the southwest to the

east

Germanic Society

Germans and Romans intermarried and began to create a new society

Blood feuds and the breaking of the law

New system of government: the

establishment of a fine called a *wergild

—”money for a man”

Ordeal—the means of determining

guilt in Germanic law

fire and water were tools of judgement

Divine forces would not allow

an innocent person to he harmed

The Role of the Church

As the official Roman state fell apart, the Church played an

increasingly important role in the

growth of the new European civilization

Organization of the Church

Parishes — local Christian

communities

A group of parishes headed by a Bishop

*Bishopric—diocese

Roman provinces under an archbishop

*Popes—”papa”

The head of the Roman Catholic Church

*Gregory I—Gregory the Great (590-604),

strengthened the power of the papacy

He was especially active in converting non-Christian

peoples of Germanic Europe to Christianity

The Monks and Their Missions

*Monk—a man who separates himself himself from ordinary

human society in order to pursue a life of total dedication to God

*monasticism—the practice of living the life of a monk

*Saint Benedict—founded a community of monks for

which he wrote a set of rules

He placed an emphasis on prayer and manual labor

—regulation of sleep, work, eating, and praying

An abbot (“father”) ran each monastery

The monastic community came to be seen as the ideal Christian society that could provide a moral example to the

wider society

English and Irish monks, for example,

were especially enthusiastic

missionaries, attempting to spread

the gospel to the “pagan” lands

Women also ran monastic

communities—*an Abbesses ran a

monastery

Charlemagne and the Carolingians

During the 600s and 700s, the kings of the Frankish kingdom gradually lost their power to

the *mayors of the palace

*Pepin, the son of Charles Martel, took control of the

Frankish state

*Charlemagne—Charles the Great, reestablished and

expanded the territory of the Frankish kingdom

The Carolingian Empire

Charlemagne’s empire which covered much of

western and central Europe

Missi Dominici (“messengers of the lord king”)—two men who were sent out to local districts to ensure that the lords were carrying out the king’s wishes

Charlemagne as Roman EmperorCreated what is

known as the “kingdom of

Europe”

In 800, Charlemagne was crowned

Roman emperor

The idea of an enduring Roman

Empire

An Intellectual Renewal

Charlemagne encouraged the education of the

clergy and literate officials for the

government

Carolingian Renaissance—a

renewal of Latin and classical works

By the 800s, the Benedictine monks

began copying manuscripts in

*scriptoria—writing rooms

Most of the ancient Roman works we have today exist

because they were copied by

Carolingian monks

Objectives:

1. Characterize the New European civilization formed by the Germanic peoples, the legacy of the Romans, and the Church

2. Discuss how Charlemagne expanded the Frankish kingdom and created the Carolingian Empire

Feudalism

Objectives:

1. Discuss the Viking, Magyar, and Muslim invasions of Europe during the ninth and tenth centuries

2. Summarize how the collapse of central authority in the European world led to a new political system known as feudalism

The Invaders

The Carolingian Empire fell apart at the death of

Charlemagne in 814

His grandsons divided the empire into three

sections: the west, east, and middle

Local nobles gained power in what was once a centralized kingdom

In the ninth and tenth centuries, waves of

invaders disintegrated the european political

structures

Muslims attacked from the south, sweeping into

Spain, conquering various Mediterranean

islands, and parts of southern Italy

*The Magyars, a people from western Asia, moved into central

Europe at the end of the ninth century and pressured western

Europe

Massive decentralization in the Eastern Frankish

Kingdom

The most devastating invasions were by the

Norsemen of Scandinavia, called *Vikings

Throughout the century Vikings sacked villages and towns, destroyed churches, and easily

destroyed small armies

Population explosion and exploration

The Vikings were master shipbuilders

and sailors—fashioning long and narrow ships with

arched prows which could sail in shallow waters and was sea worthy in the rough seas of the Atlantic

The Vikings attacked into the deep interior of

Europe, including France, Germany, Eastern Europe to

the Black Sea, Russia, and too the

Caspian sea encountering

Muslims in the North of their

Empire

The Development of Feudalism

The invasions and attacks led to

centralization of power in some areas and a breakdown in others

For some, the attacks produced a new

political and social system called *Feudalism

Knights and Vassals

At the heart of feudalism is the idea

of vassalage

Oath of loyalty

*Vassal: A man who served a lord in a military capacity

Frankish Arms

For 500 years, warfare in Europe would be

dominated by heavily armored cavalry, or

*knights

Horses, armor, and weapons could only be

purchased by the wealthy

Land was given to those vassals that

would fight for a lord

The Feudal Contract

The relationship between lord and vassal was made

official by public ceremony

Often a grant of land was given called a *fief

A lord, who himself was made a vassal of the King,

in turn made his own vassals, and they in turn made their own vassals

An obligation toward military

service

Multiple vassals and

multiple lords

Familial contracts

The Nobility of the Middle Ages

Like Japan, Middle Ages Europe was dominated by men whose chief

concern was warfare

Training gave way to tests of knightly strength

*Tournaments—contests where knights could show their fighting

skills—appeared in the 12th century

The Catholic Church encouraged the notion of

*chivalry, that nobility conducted themselves in a civilized and “noble” way

Objectives:

1. Discuss the Viking, Magyar, and Muslim invasions of Europe during the ninth and tenth centuries

2. Summarize how the collapse of central authority in the European world led to a new political system known as feudalism

The Growth of European Kingdoms

Objectives:1. Describe how European monarchs began to extend their power and build strong states during the High Middle Ages

2. Identify the three distinct groups formed by the Slavic peoples and locate where they settled in eastern Europe

England in the High Middle Ages

Following the invasions of the

Vikings, the Anglo-Saxons unified under “kings” who led the

banded tribes against the Norsman

King Alfred the Great

The Norman Conquest

In 1066, an army of heavily armed knights

under *William of Normandy landed in England and defeated

the English King at *Battle of Hastings

French speaking

Intermarriage merged the cultures

Existing Anglo-Saxon institutions:

Shire reeve

Domesday Book: a census which

included people, manors, and farm

animals

system of taxation

feudalism

Henry II

The power of the English Monarchy

was enlarged during the reign

of Henry II (1154-1189)

Created a body of *common law—

law that was common to the whole kingdom

He imposed royal control over the Church

in England

Right to punish clergymen

However, his friend and appointee *Thomas á Becket, archbishop of

Canterbury claimed that only Roman Catholic

courts could try clerics

“Who will free me of this priest?”

The Magna Carta and the First Parliament

Many resented the ongoing growth of the

king’s power

Rebellion was inevitable

1215, the nobles kidnapped King John and forced him to sign the *Magna Carta (“the

Great Charter”)

The belief that the feudal custom and

obligation is mutual

Led to a limitation of absolute power

In the 13th century *Edward I created the English Parliament, 2

knights from every county and 2 from

towns along with all nobles and bishops

The French Kingdom

In 843, the Carolingian Empire was divided into

three major sections

The west Frankish nobles chose Hugh Capet as the

new king, thus establishing the Capetian dynasty of

French kings

The royal domain centered around *Paris

The reign of King *Philip II Augustus (r. 1180-1223)

Waged war against the rulers of England, who also ruled French territories of Normandy, Maine, Anjou,

and Aquitaine

Philip took most of these lands

Philip IV, called Philip the Fair, (r. 1285-1314)

Strengthened the French monarchy and expanded the

royal bureaucracy

Formed a French parliament based on the three *estates, or

classes,

clergy, nobles, and peasants

The Holy Roman Empire

In the tenth century, the dukes of the

Saxons became kings of the eastern Frankish

kingdom

“Germany”

Otto I, crowned emperor of the Romans

in 962

Struggles in Italy

Frederick I planned to get his chief revenue from

Italy

As the “Roman” Emperor, he believed he should rule

Italy as the Romans had

He attempted to conquer the Italian states but was held back by the Papal States and his alliance

Effect on the Empire

By spending their time fighting in Italy, the German empire

left the nobles to gather strength and create independent

kingdoms

No real power in either Germany or

Italy

Central and Eastern Europe

*Slavic people settled to the north of Constantinople

They were divided into three groups: west, south, and east

The *Czechs in the West converted to Christianity

The *Hungarians in the North all accepted western

Christianity

The Southern *Slavs converted to Orthodox

Christianity by two Byzantine missionary

brothers, Cyril and Methodius

The Slavs, Croats, Serbs, Czechs, Hungarians,and

Bulgarians all formed different types of Christian

communities in Eastern Europe

The Development of Russia

In the late eighth century, Swedish Viking moved into the lands of north

lands to trade and plunder

The natives called them Rus from which is where

“Russia” is derived

Kievan Rus

Oleg, a tenth century viking leader, settled

the principality of *Kiev

They gradually expanded their territory to the

Baltic, Black Sea, the Danube, and the

Volga River

Intermarriage between Slavs

They eventually converted to Eastern

Orthodox Christianity through their wives and

missionaries

Civil wars and new invasions brought an end to the first Russian state

in 1169

Mongol Rule

In the thirteenth century, Mongols conquered Russia

They required Russian princes to pay tribute to them

*Alexander Nevsky, prince of

Novgorod, defeated a German invading army in

Russia in 1242

As a reward, he was given the title “prince” from the

Mongols who later became the leaders

of Russia

Objectives:1. Describe how European monarchs began to extend their power and build strong states during the High Middle Ages

2. Identify the three distinct groups formed by the Slavic peoples and locate where they settled in eastern Europe

The Byzantine Empire and the Crusades

Objectives:

1. Examine the unique civilization of the Byzantine Empire in the eastern Mediterranean

2. Discuss how the Crusades affected medieval society in both the East and the West

The Reign of Justinian

fifth century, Germanic invasion led to the

collapse of the western Roman Empire

The East survived and was stable

*Justinian, Eastern Roman Emperor

(crowned in 527), sought to reconquer the West

Through several military campaigns, he

conquered Italy, parts of Spain, North Africa,

Asia Minor, *Palestine, and *Syria

After his death, however, the Lombards

took back Italy

He codified many Roman laws, creating

the *Body of Civil Law

From Eastern Roman Empire to Byzantine

Empire

Trouble emerged; too much territory to protect far from *Constantinople

plague

An Empty Treasury

The Rise of Islam

Many enemies to the North, South, and

East pressed into their lands

By the eighth century, all that remained was the eastern *Balkans

and Asia Minor

This marked as the transition from Rome to Byzantine Empire

Art, church buildings, ceremonies, and decoration were

important features of Byzantine faith

The emperor was seen as chosen by God whose power was absolute

The emperor appointed the head of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the

*patriarch

Life in Constantinople

Riots in Constantinople in 532 caused

widespread destruction

Afterward, Justinian rebuilt the city

Constantinople became the largest city in

Europe during the Middle Ages

TradeConstantinople was a

medieval center of trade

Products from the east: silk from China, spices

from SE Asia, wheat and furs from Russia, and flax

and honey from the Balkans

Monks eventually smuggled silkworms out

of China

Building

Immense palace

complex, hundreds of

churches, Hippodrome

Hagia Sophia—the Church of Holy Wisdom

New Heights and New Problems

A new dynasty emerged known as the

*Macedonians who ruled from 867-1081

They helped expand the shrinking empire

The Byzantine Empire was troubled by the *Great

Schism between the Latin and Greek Church

Threats also came from the new military threats from the East

*Seljuk Turks helped expand Islamic

territory into Byzantine lands

Emperor Alexius I turned to the West for

aid

The Crusades

From the 11th to 13th century, European

Christians carried out a series of military

campaigns to regain the Holy Land called

*Crusades

Pope Urban II declared a war of the *infidels who were “defiling” Christ

“All who die...whether by land or by sea, or in

battle against the pagans, shall have

immediate remission of sins”

Motives: religious fervor, adventure,

fighting, riches, title, trading opportunities

The Early Crusades

Three organized bands of warriors, most of

them French, captured Antioch in 1098

The sacking of Jerusalem

Latin Crusader States

Trade made Italian merchant cities wealthy

By 1140, Muslim forces struck back

*Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, a

monastic leader, called for renewed efforts leading to another crusade

*In 1187, Saladin sacked Jerusalem

The Third Crusade: European kings band

together to retake Jerusalem

Fourth Crusade: the sacking of Constantinople

“Children’s Crusade”

Albeginsian Crusade

The Later Crusades

Consequences in Europe

Crusader states brought wealth and trade to Italian

port cities

The return of Greek and Roman Knowledge

The breakdown of Feudalism

The development of stronger, centralized states

Objectives:

1. Examine the unique civilization of the Byzantine Empire in the eastern Mediterranean

2. Discuss how the Crusades affected medieval society in both the East and the West