Transcript File - Yip the Great

Life in the Middle Ages
4 elements governing life
1. Feudalism
- de-centralized government
- no dominant political institution
- set of rules governing relationships  involved
upper class only
Feudal Contract
My liege lord, I, _______________, do willingly
enter into homage and faith and become your
sworn man, and to you and your heirs will I
faithfully bear body, chattels, and earthly worship,
and I will keep faith and loyalty to you against all
others.
In addition, I swear I will perform the following
services:
Signed this ___ day in the month of_______ in
the year of our Lord, ________
X________________________________
I, ________________, do promise to you, as my
vassal and liegeman, that I and my heirs will
guarantee to you and your heirs the lands you
hold of me, against all others, that you may hold
said lands in peace.
Signed this ___ day in the month of_______ in
the year of our Lord, ________
X________________________________
Kingdom of Yip the
Great
Political system
- involved lord (grants land and
provides protection), vassal
(receives land and offers
services), and fief (land itself)
- feudal contract
- spelled out obligations of all
parties
- for eternity
- designed to provide
framework for governing
- relationships often complex
– owe obligations to
conflicting parties
- vassals become more
powerful than lords/kings
I, Thiebault, count palatine of Troyes, make
known to those present and to come that I have given
in fee to Jocelyn d'Avalon and his heirs the manor
which is called Gillencourt, which is of the
castellanerie of La Ferte sur Aube; and whatever the
same Jocelyn shall be able to acquire in the same
manor I have granted to him and his heirs in
augmentation of that fief I have granted, moreover, to
him that in no free manor of mine will I retain men
who are of this gift. The same Jocelyn, moreover, on
account of this has become my liege man, saving
however, his allegiance to Gerard d'Arcy, and to the
lord duke of Burgundy, and to Peter, count of
Auxerre. Done at Chouaude, by my own witness, in
the year of the Incarnation of our Lord 1200 in the
month of January. Given by the hand of Walter, my
chancellor; note of Milo.
2. Manorialism
- Economic and social
system of the Middle Ages
- governed how people lived
and made a living
- includes everybody –
kings, nobility, priests,
peasants, serfs
- serf – tied to land, limited
to no freedom – work for
lord of manor 3-4 days,
work for themselves 2-3
days
- provides protection and
some certainty for serfs
- self-sufficiency
- manorialism (along with
feudalism) would slowly be
replaced as organizing
structure of Middle Ages
as towns grew and new
farming techniques
developed  no longer
need as much intensive
labor
3. Chivalry – code of conduct
governing nobility
- had to be brave
- protect the weak
- fight fairly
- loyal to friends, keep word,
treat conquered foes fairly
courteous to women
- generally treated only nobles
fairly
To become knight
page  learn manner & begin
training w/weapons
squire  knight’s asst take care
of horse, weapons & clothing
4. Church (again)
Hierarchy – priests (sacraments),
bishops (diocese), archbishop
(several dioceses), pope & curia
(advisers to pope)
- key to salvation for people
- had power to excommunicate
(deprive membership in church)
Problems in the Medieval Church
- Lay investiture – appointment of clergy by secular
authority
- Worldly lives of priests
-Simony - payment for positions in the church
- Heresy - beliefs against church teachings  led to
creation of Inquisition to root out thinking that
threatened unity of Church
Growth of Nations
-England
- early Middle Ages  ruled
by Saxon kings
- related to Viking invaders
- Edward the Confessor
(1042-1066)  no heirs;
leaves England to both
Harold of Wessex and
- Harold of Wessex (1066)
William of Normandy
- no compromise
- last Saxon king
- Battle of Hastings (Oct.,
1066)
Three factors going against Harold
- Rebellion & fatigue
- papal support for William
- omens
- last time England was successfully
invaded by foreign power!!
- William the Conqueror (10661087)
- excellent administrator
- Domesday Book
- brings French culture to
“backwaters” England
- controls English nobility
Three sons (& one daughter)
- Robert, William, & Henry
- Robert  Normandy,
William II (1087-1100) 
England
- Henry  nothing
- Robert goes on Crusade
- William II goes hunting (dies)
- Henry I (1100-1135); Robert also
“gives” Normandy to Henry
(how kind!)
- excellent administrator of both
holdings
- one legitimate son (and one
legitimate daughter)
- son William dies tragically;
leaving Matilda as only
legitimate heir
- barons do not accept Matilda
- choose Stephen I (1135-1154) 
Matilda’s cousin – grandson of
William the Conqueror through
daughter
- 1135-1154 – The Anarchy (or
“When Christ & his Saints Slept”
-Matilda’s son – Henry II (11541189) becomes heir after death of
Stephen’s son
- ends civil war
Henry II
- Married to Eleanor of Aquitaine (11
yrs older)
- made Henry most powerful man in
Europe – England, Anjou, Brittany,
Maine, Normandy, and now Aquitaine!
- ends civil war
- effective administrator
-laws – jury system, circuit judges,
common law
- Eleanor of Aquitaine
- married to 2 kings (Louis VII of France & Henry
II) mother to 2 kings (Richard I & John I)
- courtly love, chivalry
- adventure
Problems
- fight w/ Thomas Becket and
church
- murder of Becket causes loss
of prestige
fight w/ family Eleanor &
Richard
- Eleanor incites open rebellion
by son Richard against Henry
- dies after being defeated by
Richard
Richard I (1189-1199) – the
Lion-Hearted
- favorite of Eleanor
- spendthrift  wars
- Third Crusade
- insignificant king but
important in English folklore
- succeeded by brother –John I (11991216)
- Runnymeade
- Magna Carta
- John’s grandson  Edward I (12721307)
- parliament
- powerful monarch
France
- Last Carolingian king -987
- Hugh Capet appointed king of
France  weak monarch
controlling small area
- Capetian line of kings grow strong
over next 3 centuries – centered
around Paris
- Marriage creating alliances among French
families
- rivalry with Richard I & John I  taking land
from England
- encouraging commerce & trade
- Philip Augustus II (son of Louis VII)
- Philip the Fair  Parlement of Paris & Estates
General
- Spain controlled by Umayyads (Muslim)
- Germany & Italy
- both unable to achieve independence due to
fighting amongst princes, Holy Roman Emperors, &
popes
Europe – 1273-1378