 After the fall of Rome, the Eastern part of the Empire became know as and thrived as the Byzantine Empire  The capital of Constantinople had a good location for trade and protection from invasion

 Emperor, art, and architecture tied to Christianity  Emperor = deputy of Christ  Mosaics included stylized religious figures

 The church was divided over the use of icons  Clergy thought it helped because the symbols reached many people who could not read (MAINLY CLERGY COULD READ during this time period after groups of different languages who could not read invaded after the fall of the Roman Empire)  East became Orthodox, West Roman Catholic

 Attacked from the north by Slavs and Bulgars  Macedonian dynasty rule comes to end when internal fights cause emperors to come and go  Culture versus military: Where do you spend money? Lead to split  1453 Ottoman Turks capture Constantinople

 Charlemagne’s family, the Carolingians, controlled west and central Europe  Charles’s dad took throne and passed it on to him  Helped Pope Leo III when the Lombards attacked the Papal states  TO THANK HIM, the Pope named Charlemagne Emperor  Charlemagne’s grandsons divide empire and invasions lead to decline

 Vikings, Magyars, and Muslims  Vikings and Magyars both warriors  Some of them settled in Europe  Example: Vikings in northern France

 In order to defend themselves against constant raids and invasions, Europe became a feudal society  Feudal system = political and social system in which land was exchanged for service  A vassal was the person accepting the land or service and the lord was the person giving or controlling  The lord was obligated to the vassal and the king; the vassal was obligated to the lord and the king.  A lord and vassal each agreed to common obligations  Knights most commonly traded military service for land  The manorial system governed medieval economics

 “Hear you my Lord [name] that I, [name] shall be to you  both faithful and true, and shall owe my Fidelity unto  you, for the Land that I hold of you, and lawfully shall do  such Customs and Services, as my Duty is to you, at the  times assigned. So help me God and all his Saints.”  Source: The Manner of Doing Homage and Fealty

 A highly layered or stratified society was created  It centralized government

 English Kings ignored feudal obligations  1215 King John losing territory from France and forced to sign Magna Carta which restricted his power  The real significance of the Magna Carta was its embodiment of the principal that basic human and civil rights belonged to every English citizen.

 The majority of the people in Europe were Christian  Church officials were teachers and record keepers  Many of the written works created during the early Middle Ages were religious texts because few people outside the clergy could read and write  Both Popes and Kings wanted the right to appoint Bishops because the bishops would be loyal to whoever appointed them

 The Pope kept control and reformed the church by excommunicating their opponents  “All things were under its domain…Its power was such that no one could hope to escape its scrutiny.”