Western Europe During the High Middle Ages 1000 to 1300

The cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris, whose construction began in 1163, is one of the finest examples of the High Middle Ages architecture.

Post Classical Era 500 to 1000 C.E.

• Most of the classical societies had collapsed under the strain of internal power struggles and/or external invasions.

• What then was the first task of these societies? – In China, the Sui and Tang dynasties restored

centralized imperial rule.– In India, by contrast, centralized imperial rule did not

return; authority dissolved into a series of regional kingdoms.

– In western Europe centralized imperial rule returned only for a short time under the Carolingian empire.

Post Classical Era 500 to 1000 C.E.

• With the reestablishment of order, postclassical societies revived networks of long distance trade enabling cross-cultural communication and exchange.

• As a result, it was a time of rapid economic growth in the eastern hemisphere.

• Increased trade brought about biological and technological exchanges.

• New crops and improved agricultural techniques led to enlarged harvest and enriched diets, especially in China, India, and SW Asia.

• Increased trade and manufacturing encouraged technological invention and innovation.

Post Classical Era 500 to 1000 C.E.

• How was this period defined in terms of religion?– Islam first appeared in the postclassical era.– Buddhism expanded beyond the Indian subcontinent

and central Asia, attracting converts in China, Korea, Japan, and SE Asia.

– Christianity was the official faith of the Byzantine empire, where the Eastern Orthodox church emerged.

– Orthodox missionaries spread their religion through eastern Europe and Russia.

– In Western Europe, Christianity spread to western and northern Europe where papal leadership guided the emerging Roman Catholic Church.

Charlemagne (pp. 445-447)

The Crowning of Otto I of Saxonypp 519-520

• How might this event, along with Charlemagne’s crowning a century and a half earlier represent a transition or event a birth for Europe?

• What would this struggle mean for the Holy Roman Empire as well as the church?

• How might a centralized kingship be both harmful and helpful?

• What is significant about the passage from a decentralized, feudal system to a more centralized system?

The Crusades – pp 541-543

• Who launched the Crusades and for what purpose?

• Was the campaign successful?

The First Crusade 1095-1099(pp 541-542)

• What is most significant about this First Crusade?

• What was the outcome?

The Fourth Crusade 1202 - 1204(p. 542)

• What is most significant about the Fourth Crusade?

• What was the outcome?

Consequences of the Crusades(pp. 542- 543)

• What were the consequences of the Crusades?

• What is its legacy?

Children’s Crusades(pp 541-542)