1. Charlemagne and the Medieval Church
Middle Ages
Charlemagne and the Medieval Church

2. The “Dark” Ages
After the fall of Rome, much of Europe went through a tough period.
From about 500 AD to 1500 AD, most of Europe was cut off from the thriving civilizations of China, India, and Africa.
Although historians used to refer to this time period as the “Dark” ages, we now refer to them as the “Middle Ages.”
Medieval is the Latin word for Middle

3. The “Franks.”
After the fall of the Roman Empire the Franks took control of most of Europe.
The Franks were mostly farmers and herders, they did not have cities or a written language.
Around the year 500 AD the Franks took over “Gaul,” which is present day France.
Charles Martel, a Frank, became the king of Gaul, and he converted to Christianity.

4. Charlemagne (Latin for “Charles the Great)
He was the grandson of Martel and he was successful in uniting most of Western Europe.
In 799 Pope Leo III asked Charlemagne to come to Italy and help him control some rebellious nobles.
Charlemagne sent his army and they arrested the nobles, which caused Pope Leo III to crown Charlemagne King of the Roman Empire

5. Charlemagne’s legacy
He united most of Europe under the Christian religion.
His empire did not last long after his death, however, and soon the Vikings from Northern Europe invaded and broke up most of his empire.

6. The Medieval Church
The Church dominated Medieval culture. Due to Charlemagne’s efforts, almost all of Europe had become Christian.
The village Priest was the center of the religious culture. He was often the only one who could read and he would interpret the Bible for the villagers.
The village church was the center of the village culture, all important events happened at church.

7. Homework! (Is the best)
Pages Checkpoints and 3-5

8. Church Power Grows During the Middle Ages
The Roman Catholic Church became very powerful.
The Pope had “Papal Supremacy,” which meant that they had power over every king on Earth.

9. Church Power
The Church held the keys to heaven, or so the Middle Ages people believed, which meant the Church had complete power over the people.
Anyone who disobeyed the Church could face EXCOMMUNICATION, which was getting banished from the Church and being condemned to Hell.
If a nobleman disobeyed the Church he could face an INTERDICT, which basically excommunicated his entire village.

10. Tonight’s Homework and Announcements
Homework is the DBQ packet on the Medieval Church. Answer the questions in COMPLETE sentences on a SEPARATE sheet of paper.
I will be open for both Smart Lunch periods today.
Keep up with Power School. If you have a question about a grade please see me at lunch.