Transcript Chapter 14 – The High Middle Ages

Chapter 14 – The High
Middle Ages
Section One:The Crusades
To Christians, Jews, and Muslims, Palestine
(Jerusalem) was a holy land.
 In the 600s, Muslim Arabs took control of
Palestine. They let Christians and Jews
practice their religions, travel freely, and
trade.
 During the Middle Ages, however, this
situation changed.
 During the late 1000s, the Seljuq Turks
(Muslims) from Central Asia gained
control of Palestine.
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When they threatened Constantinople,
the Byzantine emperor called on Pope
Urban II in Rome for help
 In 1095 Pope Urban II met with church
leaders and feudal lords in Clermont,
France
 They were asked to join in a great war to
win back the Holy Land = The Crusades
 Their battle cry was “God wills it!”
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Causes of the Crusades
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The Crusades were a series of military
expeditions to regain the Holy Land by the
Christians
At least 10,000 Europeans participated;
sewed a cross on their clothing and were
called crusaders (“marked with a cross”)
Reasons people joined:
◦ Save their souls
◦ Knights hoped to gain land and wealth
◦ Merchants saw a chance to make money
The First Crusade 1096 – 1099
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French and Italian lords led armies from
Europe to Constantinople; continued on to
Palestine (Jerusalem)
Suffered during their march – lacked food
and water, overheated in wool and leather
clothes and heavy armor
Fleets of ships from Italy brought them
supplies when they reached Jerusalem
Turks were disunited and unable to prevent
crusaders from surrounding city
Crusaders slaughtered Muslims and Jews and
captured Jerusalem
Results of First Crusade:
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Brought much of Holy Land under European
control
Introduced idea of feudalism and divided
land into fiefs, with lords and vassals
Trade between Europe and Holy Land
strengthened
Christians and Muslims now lived alongside
each other and began to respect each other
European Christians held onto Palestine for
almost 100 years
Turks eventually won back lands
Second Crusade – failed to regain
Jerusalem
 Third Crusade – failed to regain Jerusalem
but settled for a truce and allowed
Christians to enter Jerusalem freely
 Fourth Crusade – attacked
Constantinople and brought it under
European control for 60 years
 Children’s Crusade – young people from
across Europe were unprepared and
thousands died
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The Crusades continued until 1291, when
the Muslims captured the city of Acre
 Acre was the last Christian stronghold in
the Holy Land
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Results of Crusades
All failed except First Crusade
 Muslims again controlled Palestine
 Crossbow became main weapon for
Europeans
 Learned from Byzantines and Muslims how
to use catapults and gunpowder
 Some lords sold land to raise money for
crusades
 Without land, they had no power in feudal
system
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Results of Crusades
With fewer lords, power of European kings
grew stronger
 Helped bring an end to feudalism
 Christian church became more powerful
 Popes organized crusades and thus took on
more importance
 Ideas were exchanged as Europeans came in
contact with Byzantines and Muslims –
enriched European culture
 Italian cities became major trading centers
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Section 5:
Wars and the Growth of Nations
England
By the late Middle Ages, England’s feudal
lords had lost much of their power to its
king
 Single system of law and courts, larger
army, and more taxes helped strengthen
the king
 In early 1300s the English king also held
land in France – he was therefore a vassal
of the French king – led to Hundred
Years’ War (English king wanted control of French throne)
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Hundred Years’ War (1337 – 1453)
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116 years of raids and battles between
England and France
Long periods of uneasy peace
England won many battles but lost the war
New weapons used – French knights on
horseback were no match for the English
and their longbows
Both English and French used gunpowder
and cannons (could destroy castles)
France suffered during Hundred Years’ War
because war took place in France
Spain
Became united in 1479 under Ferdinand
and Isabella
 Spanish army captured last stronghold of
Muslims in Spain in 1492
 Ferdinand and Isabella took powers away
from church courts and nobles
 Ordered all Jews and Muslims to become
Christians or leave Spain
 Most did leave – thus Spain lost many
trade and industry leaders
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Section 6:
Challenges to Church Power
Innocent III
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After Pope Innocent, (1198 – 1216)
worldly power of church weakened
because:
◦ Power was shifting – kings of England, France,
and Spain were forming strong governments
◦ Many felt church laws limited their trade and
industry
◦ People began to question church practices
More Church Problems
Great Schism – church was divided and had two or
three popes; in 1417 it was decided to have one pope
 In the late 1300s, John Wycliffe (priest and teacher)
stated he did not believe in absolute power of pope –
wanted to replace authority of church with that of the
Bible
 Felt that people should read and interpret Bible as they
wished, without church intervention
 Great appeal among Europeans
 Accused of being a heretic but not executed – defended
by English royal court
 Questioning of church authority set the stage for later
reforms – profound impact on Christian church
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