History 10: How to Think About History Unit 2: Foundations of Medieval Europe

Events are the products of other events Causation Events are the products of other events The Catholic Church’s authority increased due in large part to the importance Charlemagne placed on achieving religious unity in his empire The spread of Islam to northern Europe was prevented by Charles Martel’s victory at the Battle of Tours thereby ensuring the Christian make-up and character of Europe into the future

Change is ongoing and ever present Feudalism became most important and developed in those areas that experienced the most invasions Roman and Germanic culture mixed creating a new European culture

Continuity Continuity connects different historical periods and developments Feudalism was weakest, or least developed, in regions where Roman Republican values remained relatively unchallenged, e.g. Italy and Byzantium Like feudalism, the manorial system grew out of earlier traditions, e.g. under the Roman Empire, coloni, or peasant farmers, worked the states of great landowners. The coloni were not slaves but could not leave the estate without permission. When Germanic nobles replaced Roman landowners, they retained the coloni system.

History is not a science but a perspective or story Perspectives & Biases History is not a science but a perspective or story Did the Catholic Church teach and represent the one true form of Christianity? Is typological history trustworthy or problematic?