Transcript Emerging Europe and the Byzantine Empire

Emerging Europe
and the Byzantine
Empire
The New Germanic Kingdoms
• Germanic peoples began to move
into the lands of the Roman
Empire.
• The Visigoths and the Ostrogoths
took control of Spain and Italy.
• The Anglo-Saxons took control of
Britain. The long lasting influence
of the Franks (present day
France) came from Clovis.
• In 500 A.D., he became the 1st
Germanic ruler to convert to
Christianity.
• He gained support from the
Roman Catholic Church.
King Clovis
Germanic Laws
• The Roman ways of handling
crime changed.
• The Germanic laws allowed
feuds to take place in which
acts of violence could mean
blood shed.
• Later, a fine called wergild
was placed.
• Wergild allowed payment to
be made from a wrongdoer
to the family of the person
that was injured.
• The value varied according
to social status.
• Another way to
determine guilt was the
ordeal.
• The ordeal was based
on divine intervention.
• All involved a physical
trial of some sort;
holding a red-hot iron is
one punishment.
• If the person was
innocent, divine forces
would not allow the
person to be harmed.
The Role of the Church
• The Church played a major role in
developing European civilization.
Communities (or parishes) were led
by priests.
• Bishops were over a group of
parishes whose area of authority
was called bishopric or diocese
who took directions from an
archbishop.
• The bishops of Rome believed they
were the successors of Peter (1st
bishop of Rome) and called
themselves popes.
• Christians accepted the pope as
the head of the Church but did not
agree on how much power the
pope should have.
• Gregory I (590-604), strengthened
the papacy by serving as the leader
of the city of Rome and established
the Papal States giving the papacy
a source of political power.
The Monastery
• Monks are men who took themselves
out of society to dedicate their life to
God.
• Practice of living life of a monk is
called monasticism.
• Saint Benedict set up rules for a
community of monks to follow.
• A Benedictine monastery was ruled
by an abbot (or father).
• Monks took on a vow of poverty.
• They provided schools for the young
and hospitals for the sick.
• The monasteries had great influence
over society (by 1050, most western
Europeans were Catholic).
• Women (nuns) also moved into
religious communities, known as
convents, they were headed by an
abbesses.
Charlemagne and the
Carolingians
• Kings of the Frankish Empire
eventually lost power to mayors of
the palace, who were chief officers
of the king’s household.
• Pepin became king over all of the
Frankish state for himself.
• Pepin was son of Charles Martel
who defeated the Muslims at the
Battle of Tours in 732.
• After Pepin’s death, his son took
the throne.
• Known as Charles the Great or
Charlemagne, he was a very
intelligent man and a fierce warrior.
• He was a supporter for learning
and a strong Christian.
• Charlemagne created the
Carolingian Empire and it became
the largest empire in Europe until
Napoleon Bonaparte.
• Counts (German nobles) were
appointed to be the king’s
representatives in local areas.
• Two messengers known as missi
dominici were to inspect and report
on provinces.
• Charlemagne gained the title of
emperor of the Romans (crowned
by the pope) in 800 due to his
prestige and Christianity.
• His coronation symbolized the
coming together of Roman,
Christian, and Germanic elements.
A new civilization had emerged.
• His reforms led to a revival in
learning.
• The works of the Romans and
Greeks were emphasized.
• Benedictine monks would
incorporate Charlemagne’s
policies by creating
scriptoria’s (writing rooms)
inside of the monasteries.
• Monks would copy the
Bible and works of Latin
authors as well.
• Most of the Roman
literature we have today
exist because they were
copied by Carolingian
monks.
The Invaders
• The Carolingian Empire began to fall apart after
Charlemagne’s death in 814.
• His grandsons divide the empire into three parts.
• Three different groups helped to defend the Frankish
kingdoms: Vikings from the North, Muslims from the
South, and Magyars from the West.
• The Vikings, known as Norsemen of Scandinavia, were
great shipbuilders and sailors.
• Their ships were known as dragon ships and could hold
up to 50 men.
• They could sail up rivers and attack places far inland.
• By 911, the Vikings were given land in the Frankish
kingdom known as Normandy.
• The Vikings converted to Christianity and were made part
of the European civilization.
The Development of Feudalism
• The Vikings and other invaders posed greater threat to
the safety of people throughout Europe.
• Rulers found it harder to defend their subjects.
• People began to turn to local nobles to protect them.
• The people found powerful lords who could offer
protection.
• This system became known as feudalism.
• In feudalism, warriors swore an oath of
loyalty to their leaders and fought for them.
• Warriors who served a lord were called
vassals.
• The army now could ride horses with the
introduction of stirrups to keep them on the
horse.
• The warriors wore coats of mail (armor made
of metal links or plates).
• Heavily armored cavalry became known as
knights.
• The more powerful lords granted land to
vassals.
• Land was the most important gift a lord could
give.
• This land was known as a fief.
• Vassals became powerful and started
granting land to their own vassals.
• Unwritten rules known as a feudal contract
were the common service by the vassal.
• He performed services (worked 40 days a
year, give advice, and making financial
payments) as the lord protected him (military
and taking his side in court).
Nobility of the Middle Ages
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Nobles – kings, dukes, counts,
barons, bishops, and archbishops.
These individuals held political,
economic, and social power.
The knights simply fought.
Tournaments - contests where knight
show their skills by hand to hand
combat, jousting, and other activities
that helped them train for war.
The knights took on civilized
behavior called chivalry.
This was a code of ethics that
knights were to uphold.
Chivalry implied that knights were to
defend the castle, defend the
community, and treat captives as
honored guests.
Medieval Tournaments
Aristocratic Women
• The Lady of the castle had to
manage the estate while the
lord was away as well as
oversee the food supply of the
household.
• Eleanor of Aquitaine (12th
century France) married at age
15 to King Louis VII.
• Their marriage was annulled
and 8 weeks later married to
Duke Henry of Normandy and
had 8 children.
The Growth of European
Kingdoms
England in the High Middle Ages
• Alfred the Great - United (860) AngloSaxon kingdoms and defeated the Danes
– land became known as “Angle-land” or
England.
• He had the history of England written in
the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.
• William of Normandy conquered England in
the Battle of Hastings
(1066) - William took
a census in a book
called the Doomsday
book (taxes and
courts).
• Henry I – developed
the exchequer
(system of royal
finances).
• Henry II – developed a court system which
strengthened his rule. He incorporated a
common law – laws that were followed by
the entire kingdom.
• Henry’s reforms placed the Church under
his jurisdiction.
• An archbishop named Thomas `a Becket
claimed that only the Roman Catholic
Church courts could try clerics (Church
officials).
• Henry II was furious and stated “Who will
free me of this priest”.
King Henry II
• Four knights took the
challenge, went to
Canterbury, and killed the
archbishop.
• Many nobles resented the
power of the king and during
King John’s rule, they
revolted.
• At Runnymeade in 1215,
King John was made to sign
the Magna Carta or (Great
Charter).
• It limited the King’s power.
• Why is this important? It was
a written document that
placed limits on the king’s
power.
The French
Kingdom
• Hugh Capet - chosen as the new
king of France in 987 (begins the
Capetian dynasty).
• These kings only ruled over the
royal domain (in and around
Paris.
• Philip II Augustus (1180-1223) –
waged war against England who
ruled French territories of
Normandy, Anjou, and Aquitaine
and gained most of the land.
Capet
• Louis IX (1214-1270) –
greatest French medieval
king and is known for his
strong faith in Christianity
(became a saint).
• By 1300, France was the
largest and best governed
monarchial state in Europe.
• Philip IV (1285-1314)
established parliament by
creating 3 estates (classes)
to meet with representatives
from each estate (1st –
clergy 2nd nobles 3rd
commoners) to discuss
government.
Louis IX
Holy Roman Empire
• Saxon dukes became kings of the eastern Frankish
kingdom which came to be known as Germany.
• In 962, Otto I became the emperor of the Romans by
offering protection to the pope.
• Kings Frederick I and Frederick II tried to take over
Germany and Italy with Italy becoming the state as a source
of revenue and the most holy (Holy Roman Empire comes
from).
• Frederick I and II both attacked northern Italy and were
opposed by the pope fearing that Rome and the Papal
States would fall under their empire.
• They were unsuccessful in gaining Italy.
• Germany and Italy failed to become powerful states like
France and England due to struggles between the popes
and emperors.
• These states consisted of many small independent states.
Central and Eastern Europe
• Slavs divided into three groups in Eastern
Europe (western, southern, and eastern).
• Czechs, Poles, and Hungarians made up the
western slavs and accepted the Catholic faith as
well as Latin culture.
• The eastern and southern slavs, (Moravia,
Serbs, Bulgarians, and Croats) converted to
Orthodox Christianity (brought by Cyril and
Methodius, 2 Byzantine missionaries).
• Their culture was linked to the Byzantine state.
The Development of Russia
• Eastern Slavs moved into parts of Ukraine and Russia.
Swedish Vikings also moved into the regions and began to
take over the land.
• The native people called these Vikings the Rus (where
Russia gets its name).
• One Viking ruler named Oleg created the Kievan Empire
(city of Kiev).
• Kiev attracted missionaries from the Byzantine Empire.
• Vladimir (Rus ruler) married a Byzantine emperor’s sister
and the Orthodox faith spread into the region.
• In the 13th century, Mongols conquered Russia.
• Alexander Nevsky (prince of Novgorod) became the grand
prince of the Mongol territory and his descendants
became the princes of Moscow who would later be leaders
of Russia.
The Byzantine Empire
• During the 5th century, the western part of the Roman Empire was
attacked by Germanic tribes while the eastern part centered around
Constantinople but was being pressured by Islamic forces.
• In 527, Justinian became emperor (known as the Emperor who never
Sleeps) of the Eastern Roman Empire.
• He tried to rebuild the old Roman Empire in the Mediterranean ( 565).
• Only 3 years after his death, much of the empire had been taken over
by Lombards.
Justinian and Theodora
• Justinian’s most important
contribution to the empire was
the codification of Roman law
in the Mediterranean.
• The Body of Civil Law lasted
until the empire fell in 1453.
• Justinian’s wife, Theodora,
was important because she
became regent (temporary
ruler who served while the
emperor was away) from the
throne.
• She also is given credit for
saving the empire during a riot.
From Eastern Roman Empire to
Byzantine Empire
• Justinian’s attempt to rebuild the Roman Empire left the
treasury empty.
• A plague decreased the population.
• Islam was the most powerful threat to the empire.
• The Muslims had taken Palestine& Syria; the Eastern
Roman Empire became known as the Byzantine Empire
(consisting of the eastern Balkans and Asia Minor).
• The Byzantine Empire followed Christianity.
• Because of their strong Greek influence, the official language
of the empire became Latin.
• The Church became known as the Eastern Orthodox
Church.
• The emperor held absolute power and appointed the
patriarch who was ahead of the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Life in Constantinople
• In 532, a riot destroyed much of Constantinople and
Justinian rebuilt the city.
• Constantinople was the largest city in Europe.
• Traders from India and Southeast Asia were brought in
to the city and sailed to the west through the
Mediterranean Sea.
• The city had prestigious buildings such as arenas and
the Hippodrome where gladiators fought and chariot
races were held.
• Public work projects by Justinian: roads, bridges, walls,
public baths, law courts, schools, colossal underground
reservoirs to hold the city’s water supply.
• Justinian’s greatest achievement was the Hagia Sophia Church of Holy Wisdom (537).
New Heights and New Problems
• The Byzantine emperors who
ruled from 867-1081 were known
as the Macedonians.
• They helped expand the empire
and revive trade.
• The split between the churches:
The Eastern Orthodox and the
Roman Catholic Church.
• The patriarch was unwilling to
accept the pope as the head of
the Christian faith.
• In 1054, Pope Leo IX and
patriarch Michael Cerularius,
excommunicated (to take away
the right of church membership)
each other and created a schism
(or separation) of the two
branches of Christianity.
• The Seljuk Turks defeated the
Byzantine forces at Manzikert in
1071, and Emperor Alexius I
turned to Europe for military aid.
Crusades
• From the 11th to the 13th
centuries, Christians carried out
a series of military expeditions to
rescue the Holy Land from the
Muslims.
• They became known as the
Crusades.
• Pope Urban II saw a great
opportunity to provide papal
leadership to liberate Jerusalem
from the infidels or unbelievers
(Muslims).
• At the Council of Clermont in
1095, Pope Urban II challenged
Christians to take arms against
the Muslims (if they died in
battle, they would be forgiven of
all their sins).
• Many were attracted to the
Crusades for religious
fervor, fighting, land, and
gold.
• The 1st crusade was
successful in gaining
Jerusalem, however, the
Crusades were
unsuccessful overall.
• King Richard I of England
(the Lionhearted)
negotiated with Saladin to
allow Christians access to
Jerusalem.
• Other crusades helped
revive Constantinople for a
short time until the
Ottoman Turks took the city
in 1453.
Children’s Crusade
• In Germany in 1212, a
youth named Nicholas of
Cologne announced a
“Children’s crusade”.
• Other youth in France also
were attracted and a pope
agreed to send these
children to the Holy Land
on 7 ships.
• 2 of the ships were lost in a
storm near Sardinia while
the other 5 sailed to Africa
and sold into slavery.
• The Crusades failed
to free the Holy
Land from the
Muslims, however,
many port cities in
Italy benefited from
the Crusades.
• The Crusades also
was thought to have
caused the
widespread
massacre of Jews
because they were
the ones who
“murdered Christ”.