1. The Middle Ages
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2. Objectives To describe feudalism and life under it
Explain how urban centers emerged
Identify major events in the evolution of government

3. End of the Roman Empire Roman Empire collapsed around 500 A.D.
Europe entered into a new era – a period known as the Middle Ages
Period lasted until the 1400s

4. Roman Empire Legacies Latin language Large network of roads
Christian religion
Breakdown of Roman rule brought great changes -- many small kingdoms developed

5. Economic Changes in Europe
Breakdown of the Roman Empire caused trade to decline
Ownership of land came to mean wealth and power
Large estates owned by wealthy nobles were called manors
Serfs (workers) became bound to work on the manors
Serfs had more freedom than slaves, and, unlike slaves, they could not be bought or sold

6. Checkpoint When did the Middle Ages take place?
From about 500 A.D. (following the fall of Rome) to about the 1500s
What effects did the breakdown of Roman rule have on Europe?
Small kingdoms replaced central rule; trade declined; wealthy nobles established manors; workers (serfs) were bound to the manors

7. The Frankish Empire
Of the many small kingdoms in Western Europe, one rose to great powers in the 700s
Ruled by a people called the Franks (present day France)
The Frankish Empire was the largest and richest in Europe since Roman times

8. Charlemagne
The greatest leader of the Franks was Charles the Great (or “Charlemagne”)
He conquered the lands in what is now France, Italy, and Germany
He was Christian
As his armies spread across Europe, they also spread Christianity

9. Charlemagne as Emperor
800 A.D., he arrived with his army in Europe to see Pope Leo III
Pope Leo III placed a golden crown on Charlemagne’s head and declared him Emperor
It seemed like the old Roman Empire had risen again

10. Charlemagne’s Court
Charlemagne’s capital city was Aachen (in what is today Germany)
Charlemagne loved to learn
Books were scarce in the Middle Ages and very few people could read
Charlemagne filled his court with scholars, poets, and musicians

11. Checkpoint What did Charlemagne achieve?
He formed Western Europe into a new empire; he spread Christianity
How did Charlemagne make his court a center of learning?
Filling it with scholars, poets, and musicians

12. Life in the Middle Ages
Manors were sometimes so large that they included villages within them
Most people seldom left the manor their entire lives!
In 800 A.D., a system called “feudalism” developed in Europe
Feudalism = a way of organizing and governing society based on land and service (like the laws of Ancient Rome, feudalism required people to behave in certain ways)

13. Lords and Ladies Were at the top of feudal society
Lords owned the manors
A lord’s wife was the lady of the manor (she was in charge of castle affairs)
When the lord was away, she often led the defense of the castle if attacked
The lord’s castle was the center of all activity on the manor
The castle served as both a house for the lord’s family and a fort to protect the manor against an attack

14. Lord’s Vassals
Lords chose nobles who did not own land to serve as vassals
Vassals took an oath of loyalty to his lord, pledging to serve him
In return, lords gave each vassal a fief (FEEF)
A fief was a separate manor
The vassal had authority over serfs on this separate manor
Next to lords, vassals were the most powerful people in feudal society

15. Knights
The most important duty of a vassal was to serve as a lord’s knight
Knights protected the manor

16. A Knight’s Training
The sons of nobles began preparing as children for knighthood
They first learned to ride and care for horses
At age 7, they left their homes and went to live and train in a knight’s household
There, they learned to handle small weapons
Ages 15-20, they rode into battle alongside knights
Finally, at a special ceremony, they knelt by a lord and were declared knights

17. Checkpoint How did the manor lord bind his vassals to him?
By giving them fiefs, separate manors to control
How did feudalism make lords and their vassals dependent on each other?
Lords needed soldiers, which the vassals provided, while vassals needed a means of support, which the lords provided

18. Life of a Serf Only about one person in one hundred was a noble
Most people were serfs or village craft workers
Serfs were given land to farm – they had to pay rents and taxes to the lord
Serfs had to ask their lord’s permission to even get married!

19. Homes of Serfs
Serfs lived in one room houses with fires in the center for cooking and warmth
The whole family slept in one large, straw bed
Most families shared houses with animals

20. Life of the Serfs
Ages: lived short, difficult lives – few lived past age 40
Most people married in early teens
Their lives revolved around work in the manor fields
They gathered wheat and picked vegetables
Church bells rang every hour and signaled breaks for meals

21. Checkpoint
Why would a young man want to go through the long training to become a knight?
Knighthood held high status and was one of a few options for a man of good family
What duties did serfs have to their feudal master?
Work his land, pay him rents and taxes, get his permission to marry

22. Growth of Towns
Traders exchanged goods (grains, wool clothes, wine) for spices and silks from Asia and Africa
Used coin money
People started to live longer with more food to eat (population grew)
By the 1200s, towns became very dirty and crowded
Serfs tried to escape manors by living in the towns

23. Town Craft workers
Town streets were lined with shoemaking, saddle making, and other shops
Most shops were family-owned businesses on the ground floor of a house
Traders and craft workers organized themselves into groups called guilds

24. Europe’s Cities Some towns, such as London, grew into cities (1100s)
Not everyone thought London was glorious – many thought it was very dangerous
PRESENT

25. Checkpoint What was the role of the guilds?
These organizations of individual crafts made rules that set quality, prices, and training standards
How would you describe a typical craft worker operation?
Family owned and run

26. Invasions from the North
Invaders were called Vikings (or Norsemen)
Norsemen means “Northmen”
Sailed from Scandinavia in search of riches and land
For hundreds of years they made surprise attacks across Europe – they eventually took over the Frankish Empire
900s A.D., set up villages around the Seine River
Norsemen became known as Normans, and this region is what today is called Normandy
The Normans adopted Christianity, the French language, and many Frankish customs

27. Normans invade England
1066: Norman forces crossed the English Channel and conquered the Anglo-Saxon people of England
Norman leader became known as William the Conqueror
William = first Norman king of England
Established strong and well- organized rule in England
Norman and English cultures blended
The English language that we speak today comes from a mix of French and the language of the Anglo-Saxons

28. The Power of English Kings
King John I – crowned in 1199
Tried to increase power by taking over England’s lords
Demanded money from the lords to pay for wars
1215: lords took action to limit king’s power – they wrote a charter
The charter (legal document) stated that they had certain rights
This charter was called the Magna Carta (“great charter” in Latin)

29. Why it Matters
The Magna Carta was a beginning toward limiting the power of a ruler by law
It gave rights mainly to nobles
Eventually, it would serve as an example of rights for all people

30. Checking for Understanding
What did vassals promise to a lord under feudalism? What did the lord give in return?
Military support; control of a fief
What was the purpose of guilds in European towns?
To regulate crafts
How was life different for serfs and town residents during the Middle Ages?
Serfs were bound to the land; townspeople were free; living conditions differed along urban/rural lines
What effects did the Magna Carta have on the relationship between England’s lords and kings?
The lords gained the protection of laws, limiting the king’s power