Transcript 12/18 Focus: The Christian church helped to unify western Europe

• 12/18 Focus:
– The Christian church helped to unify western
Europe after the collapse of the Roman
Empire.
• Do Now:
– Identify one effect that the fall of Rome and
invasions by Germanic tribes had on western
Europe?
The Middle Ages
Germanic Kingdoms
The Power of the Church
Impact of Germanic Invasions
and Collapse of Rome
• Roman Empire
replaced by
small kingdoms
throughout
western
Europe
Germanic Kingdoms
Rome
• Loyalty to public
government and law
Germanic Tribes
• Loyalty based on family
ties and personal
loyalties
• Chiefs led bands of
warriors who pledged
loyalty to him
• Lived in small
communities
The Franks
• Germanic tribe
that controlled
Gaul
– France
• Clovis I
The Franks
– Frankish King
– Converted to
Christianity in 496
– Allied with the
Church
• Church supported
military campaigns
against other
Germanic tribes
• Clovis converted
other Germanic
tribes to Christianity
• Church gains political
power
Ivory carving of Clovis converting to
Christianity. He is being baptized by
a bishop
The Church in the Middle Ages
• Two major Christian
Churches
– Orthodox Christian
Church
• Byzantine
– Catholic Church
• Western Europe
The Church in the Middle Ages
• Catholic Church
led by a pope
based out of
Rome
– Papacy; Papal
– Believed by
followers to be
the spiritual
representative
of Jesus on
Earth
The Church in the Middle Ages
• Catholic church
provided order and
security after the
fall of Rome
– Served the
spiritual needs of
followers
– Became a powerful
political force
• Had authority over
powerful rulers
Nuns and Monks
• Devoted their life
to prayer and good
works
• Lived in
monasteries or
convents
– Religious
communities
– Had to follow strict
rules
• Benedictine rule
Nuns and Monks
• Took an oath of
poverty
• Provided social
support to
communities
– Helped the sick and
the poor
– Educated children
• Preserved ancient
writings by copying
Greek and Roman
texts
A Medieval Monk’s Day
Nuns and Monks
• Missionaries
– Nuns, monks,
and priests who
went out to
spread
Christian
teachings
– Worked to
convert
Germanic tribes
and Celts in
Britain
– Example: St.
Patrick setup
the church in
Ireland
Role of the Church in Everyday
Life
• Church provided
spiritual protection
in exchange for land,
protection and crops
• Christians attended
village churches led
by priests (clergy)
Economic Power of the Church
• Church required
Christians to pay a tithe
– Tax
– Required to pay 10% of
income
• Church became very
wealthy
• Became the largest
landholder in Europe
Political Power of the Church
• Church had its own laws
and courts
– Canon Law
• Claimed authority over
secular rulers
– Secular= not having to
do with religion
– Could excommunicate
rulers who did not obey
the church
– Banned from the church
Closure
• Describe the impact of Clovis I conversion
to Christianity on the Catholic Church?
• Identify how monks preserved Roman and
Greek knowledge.