Transcript Medieval and Feudalism Review

Europe in the
Middle Ages
5th Century-16th Century
Roman Empire—Middle Ages—Renaissance
Europe after the Fall of Rome
Rome founded in the 8th Century BC and
survived until the 5th Century AD
 Roman Empire was vast and extended
across much of Eurasia and parts of
northern Africa
 Rome had a very developed infrastructure
and society

 Roads
and trade routes, universities, public
baths, arenas, libraries
Europe after the Fall of Rome

Area that was vacated by the Romans was
taken over by other groups
 Ostrogoths
in Italy
 Visigoths of the Iberian Peninsula
 Franks and Burgundians of modern day
France and Germany (Gaul)
 Angles and Saxons of Britain
 Vandals of North Africa

Feudalism
Feudalism
Superintendent
Ass’t Superintendents
Building Principals
Teachers/Support Staff
Students
Feudalism
Lord
King
Vassal/
Lord
Noble/Knight
Vassal/
Lord
Knight/Noble
Serf
Flea
Feudalism

What is feudalism?
 A system
of intertwining allegiances
 Created for the security of the lord and the
vassal…and the serfs or peasants
King gave land (fief) to a noble in return for
loyalty and fidelity (fealty)
 Nobles often did the same thing with another
noble or knight
 At the very bottom of the structure, the serf or
peasant, who essentially just worked on rented
ground for his/her entire life

Feudalism
Lord
King
Vassal/
Lord
Noble
Vassal/
Lord
Knight
Serf
Flea
Feudalism

“What the peasants (serfs) produce in a
year, the lords waste in an hour.”
Feudalism and The Church

Early on, the Christian church was very involved
in feudalism.
 Bishops
and abbots became wealthy vassals to
powerful lords
 Interests of the lords were not always that of the
LORD…so Pope Gregory VII separated the Church
from the feudal system and exerted his control over
kings and lords through a process called an interdict


Interdict- no sacraments to a group of church goers of a
particular area
The massive poor could revolt and cause chaos, thus the
king or lord often did as the church wanted

“The meek shall inherit the Earth”
Journal Entry

Write a page entry as a poor medieval serf
struggling to get through the day. In the entry,
include details about the knights, lords, king, and
the church. Discuss the effect that each one
plays in your life. (or doesn’t) Also think about the
factors that helped this system (feudalism)
develop in Europe. Make sure that in the entry
you discuss the basic structure of the social and
political system of Feudalism.

Use your textbook as a reference
 Pg:291-296,
317-322