Medieval Europe

Medieval Europe_ Crash Course European History #1.mp4

The Crusades - Pilgrimage or Holy War__ Crash Course World History #15.mp4

Middle Ages Europe.mp4

Middle Ages.mp4

The Middle Ages, also known as the medieval period, started after the end of the Roman Empire. Most historians say the Middle Ages lasted for about one thousand years. During much of the Middle Ages, kings and lords fought each other over control of valuable.

Why is this time period called the Middle Ages?

This period is often called the Middle Ages or the medieval period, which means "middle time" in Latin. These names suggest it was in the middle of two greater time periods. Some of the people who lived after the Middle Ages saw a connection between the achievements of their own society and those of ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. So, they began using negative phrases like "ages of shadows" and "awful middle time" to describe the Middle Ages.

For hundreds of years, this negative view of the Middle Ages was commonly accepted. But present-day historians have shown that this view is incomplete. Their work shows that important achievements in government, education, and technology occurred during the Middle Ages. Here are some examples:

Kings ordered censuses, or official counts of people and animals, to better organize their land.

People living in religious communities became scholars and expert bookmakers.

Builders used improved technology to build huge stone churches with stained glass windows.

At the start of the Middle Ages, Western Europe was no longer protected by the powerful Roman government and army. So, after 500 BCE, more and more people claimed land to use and control.

By the early Middle Ages, many different Western European landowners had started organizing society in a new way. Historians call this new way of organizing society feudalism. Read the passage about how feudalism began.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Roman government no longer controlled Western Europe. So, individuals fought each other for control of land and the people living on it. The winners gained wealth and power, and people living on the land were forced to work for them.

Some new landowners became powerful and started calling themselves kings, but they couldn't manage all their land on their own. So, they divided their land up and gave small sections to loyal followers. These loyal followers were called lords, and they helped to control the land and people for the king.

Charlemagne: king and conqueror

One of the most famous kings during the Middle Ages was Charlemagne, or Charles the Great. He united nearly all of Western Europe for a short time in the 800s CE. He controlled these territories and different warring groups through military threat and promises of loyalty.

Charlemagne's legacy

Charlemagne is remembered for many of his actions:

He improved education by building new schools to educate Christian leaders.
He helped to spread Christianity throughout Europe.
He was a ruthless military leader, killing many people who rebelled against his rule.

After Charlemagne's death, different warring groups again began to fight one another for land. As a result, the feudal system fully set in throughout most of Europe.

As early feudal kings and lords were learning how to manage their new land, they also had to deal with raids from outside groups. For example, people called Vikings sailed along northern Europe's coastlines and up rivers to raid land, steal goods, and kill people.

Who were the Vikings?

Also called Norsemen, the Vikings were a group of people who lived in present-day Scandinavia. Starting around 800 CE, groups of Vikings began to explore, attack, and settle parts of Europe, North America, and Asia. Even though the Vikings are often remembered as deadly warriors, they were also experts in sailing, new technology, and metalworking. Below are some examples of artifacts made by Vikings:

Viking longships could sail in as little as six feet of water, making it easy for them to quickly sail up shallow rivers or along coastlines.

Vikings were very interested in good hygiene. So, they invented grooming tools, such as combs, to untangle their hair and beards.

Vikings were skilled metalworkers and added beautiful details to everyday items. This brooch was used to hold a shirt in place.

As kings divided their land into smaller pieces ruled by lords, the feudal system became more complicated and unstable. So, kings made legal agreements called feudal contracts with their lords. Look at the diagram below showing a typical feudal contract between a king and a lord.

This diagram shows a feudal contract between a king and one of his lords, known as a vassal. The king agreed to give the vassal a fief, or a piece of land and the people who lived on it. In return, the vassal promised to be loyal to the king, giving him taxes and soldiers. This legal relationship between kings and vassals made society more stable and was known as a feudal contract.

Feudal contracts in medieval art

Feudal contracts were a central part of life in the Middle Ages. They even show up in medieval artwork!

Women in the feudal system

Women were also an important part of the feudal system. Ladies, or the wives of lords, had all the duties that their husbands had. They sent knights to fight if their husbands were away, were responsible for overseeing their husband's land, and managed the household. Some households had hundreds of people, so this was a big task!

Peasant women were just as necessary to society, but their lives were much harder. One source describes the day of a peasant woman:

Peasant women are burdened with children and landlords' rent. They have to make porridge, feed their hungry children, prepare wool, and patch and wash clothes. It is a pity to describe these women, who live in huts, and their troubles.

Adapted from William Langland, The vision of Piers Plowman. 1330-1400.

Knights were professional warriors who often fought on horses. Their job was to defend their lord's land and peasants from attack. But knights often used their power to benefit themselves only. To keep knights from acting unfairly, lords and religious leaders created rules that would eventually be called codes of chivalry.

Other ways to make knights behave

Along with using codes of chivalry, medieval leaders created other groups and practices to control the actions of knights:

Christian leaders used holy relics, or important religious objects, to encourage knights to be better Christians.

Knights created military groups to protect travelers, guard holy sites, and defend Christianity. One famous example was called the Knights Templar.

Lords and kings hired traveling songwriters to perform songs. Many of these songs were about knights who were brave, kind, and loyal.

Lords and kings held tournaments where knights could compete against each other in an organized way, instead of violently fighting each other.

In the feudal system, the majority of work was done by peasants. Peasants were often divided into three basic groups—serfs, freemen, and tradesmen. Look at the table, which describes these three peasant groups.

The life of a Middle Ages peasant was hard. Serfs were tied to the land and had almost no freedoms. Freemen were farmers who could leave the fief, but most never did because there were few opportunities for a better life elsewhere. Tradesmen were the most valued peasants because they made goods such as bread, farming tools, and bricks. Most peasants experienced poor living conditions.

The life of a Middle Ages serf

Of all the peasants who lived on the fief, serfs had the fewest freedoms and opportunities. They were forced to stay on the fief, and they couldn't hunt in the lord's forest, change jobs, or move houses. They couldn't even get married without their lord's permission! A serf's work was also very hard. One source from around 1000 CE says:

I go out at dawn, driving the cattle to the field, and I [connect] them to the plow . . . when the oxen are [connected], . . . I must plow one whole field a day, or more.

Adapted from Thomas Wright, ed., Anglo-Saxon and Old English Vocabularies. Copyright 1884 by Trubner.

Feudal lords organized their fiefs into small, farm-based communities called manors. Most manors included the lord's house, a church, fields for farming, surrounding forests for timber and hunting, and a village. Most manors in the Middle Ages were self-sufficient, or able to provide everything people on the manor needed. Look at the diagram of a manor.

Manor houses came in all shapes and sizes!

Some manor houses were small and others were massive castles. The more wealth and land a lord had, the bigger his manor house was. Some of the biggest manor houses were well protected by tall walls or by surrounding water, called moats. But most manor houses were smaller and made from wood as well as stone.

In Western Europe during the Middle Ages, most people were Catholic, a type of Christian. So, the Catholic Church played an important role in feudal society.The Catholic Church was led by different groups of officials.

he leader of the Catholic Church, called the pope, often worked together with early feudal kings. Together, popes and kings raised money for the Catholic Church and provided religious services to people. But as the Catholic Church gained more land, wealth, and influence, popes started treating kings differently. The following text is a summary of statements made by a pope around 1090 CE.

- - All princes shall kiss the foot of the pope alone.
  - The pope has the power to overthrow emperors.
  - The pope's orders cannot be overruled by anyone, but he can overrule anyone else's orders.
  - The pope can be judged by no one.
  - To be seen as a Catholic, you must agree with all Catholic Church teachings.

The power of popes

Since the beginning of Christianity, popes have had an important role as religious leaders. Many Catholics believe that Peter, a follower of Jesus, was the first pope.

Over time, popes became powerful in nonreligious ways. For example, in 800 CE, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as emperor, or a powerful leader, in Europe. By crowning Charlemagne, the pope was showing that he was even more powerful than an emperor!

Today, Pope Francis, the current pope, has become a powerful figure in promoting issues such as protecting the environment and helping immigrants.

By 1100, medieval society was starting to change. Over the next two hundred years, these changes caused the feudal system and manors to slowly decline. Two main changes had a large impact on manor life:

- Improved safety: Medieval Europe became safer because threats from outside raids and fighting between lords decreased.
- New farm technology: Medieval Europe went through an agricultural revolution, when new tools such as the plow, horseshoes, and the windmill were invented.

This outcome was a result of new farm technology:
- Manors needed fewer peasants to farm because new tools made it easier to grow crops.
- Europe experienced an agricultural revolution where many new farming tools and practices were created. As a result, it became easier to grow crops with fewer farm workers.
This outcome happened as a result of both improved safety and new farm technology:
- Western Europe's population increased because fewer people died from fighting and lack of food.
- New farming tools helped to produce more food faster. With less fighting, fewer people died in raids and wars. As a result of both of these improvements, Western Europe's population began to increase.
This outcome was a result of improved safety:
- Some peasants left manors because they no longer needed knights and lords for protection.
- Because outside raids and fighting between lords decreased, it became safer for peasants to travel outside their manors. Many moved to growing towns and cities.

Feudal society also started to experience change outside of manors. For example, trade, travel, and learning increased as Western Europe became safer. One of the first places for this to happen was in Catholic communities called monasteries. Monks, or men who lived in monasteries, lived simple lives filled with work and prayer. But they also performed other duties that were valuable to nearby manors and villages.

Nunneries: a better life for women?

Religious communities for women were called nunneries, and the women who lived there were called nuns. Many were wealthy women who didn't want to get married or who were widowed. In fact, many nunneries only let women of high status become nuns.

Some historians argue that the life of nuns provided more opportunity and freedoms for women in the Middle Ages. Similar to monks, nuns learned valuable skills such as translating and copying books, sewing detailed needlework, and managing property.

Because it was safer, skilled peasants and merchants began traveling more often to sell goods. As a result, trade fairs near large manors or growing towns became more common in the Middle Ages.

Read the summary about the decline of manors and the feudal system.

From 1000 to 1300 CE, several changes were starting to happen in the Middle Ages. On manors, new farming inventions made it easier and faster to grow crops. Fighting between feudal lords and raids from outside groups were decreasing. People were safer and had more food, so they could live longer and have bigger families.

Safer roads made it easier for monks, merchants, and tradesmen to travel, selling their goods at trade fairs and in towns. Kings realized they could make money from trade by taxing the sale of goods. So, kings encouraged trade activity, becoming even wealthier. As trade increased, more and more people moved to towns to take advantage of new jobs.

How was life different during the later Middle Ages?

As fighting decreased and more food was being produced, society in the Middle Ages changed. From around 1100 to 1400, towns and cities grew larger, producing more tax wealth for their rulers. This new source of wealth helped rulers become more powerful, and some abused their power.

The Crusades were a series of attacks and battles led by European Christians. The conflicts lasted from the 1000s to 1200s and took place in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Look at the map of these regions at the beginning of the Crusades.

Look at the timeline of the events leading up to Pope Urban II's speech.

What was Jerusalem like under Muslim control?

Before the Crusades, Muslims ruled Jerusalem for more than 400 years. During that time, different Muslim empires controlled the city and established different laws. But, Muslim rulers usually allowed Jews and Christians to visit Jerusalem and live in the city.

Retaking the Iberian Peninsula

The Iberian Peninsula is in southwest Europe, where the present-day countries of Spain and Portugal are located. European Christians and Muslims fought over the Iberian Peninsula for 780 years! The fighting ended in 1492 when Spanish armies conquered the last Muslim territory on the Iberian Peninsula.

Historians do not have a copy of Pope Urban's 1095 speech. However, some of the people who heard the speech wrote down what they remembered. Read part of what one person remembered hearing.

All who die [on their way to Jerusalem], whether by land or by sea, or in battle . . . shall have immediate remission of sins. . . . Let those who go . . . rent their lands and collect money for their expenses; and as soon as winter is over and spring comes, let them eagerly set out on the way with God as their guide.

remission: forgiveness

Read the passage about Muslim empires around 1095.

Around 1095, different Muslim empires controlled parts of North Africa, Europe, and Asia. In North Africa, the main empire in control was the Fatimid Empire. The Fatimids fought over land with a rival Muslim empire, called the Seljuq Empire. The Seljuq Empire controlled much of southwestern Asia.

In addition to fighting with each other, both of these empires were also dealing with conflicts within their empires. For example, in the early 1090s, the leaders of both the Fatimid Empire and the Seljuq Empire died. This led to disagreement within each empire about who would lead next.

The Fatimid and Seljuq Empires

Both the Fatimid and Seljuq Empires were Muslim empires, but they followed different forms of Islam. Leaders of the Fatimid Empire were Shia (SHEE-uh) Muslims, while leaders of the Seljuq Empire were Sunni (SOO-nee) Muslims.

The division between Sunni and Shia Muslims started soon after the founder of Islam, Muhammad, died. His followers split over who their next leader should be.

Shia Muslims believed Muhammad's son-in-law Ali should lead. Sunni Muslims thought Muhammad's close friend Abu Bakr should lead.

This division still exists today.

Historians often divide the Crusades into multiple parts. Look at the map of some major conflicts that happened during the First Crusade, which started in 1095 and ended in 1099.

The first people to go on a crusade left Western Europe in 1096. On the way to Jerusalem, the crusaders attacked Jews and Muslims. When crusaders took control of Jerusalem in 1099, that marked the end of the First Crusades.

Who went on crusades?

Some crusaders were highly trained soldiers, called knights. But most crusaders had much less military experience. Many crusaders had little to no military training. Priests, women, and sometimes even children also went on crusades!

Many people who took part in the Crusades wrote about what happened when crusaders took control of Jerusalem during the First Crusade. Read the following quotations from crusaders.

- - "Our men cut off the heads of their enemies, others shot them with arrows so that they fell from the towers. . . . Piles of heads, hands, and feet were to be seen on the streets."
  - "Indeed it was a [fair] and splendid judgement of God that this place should be filled with the blood of [non-Christians]."
  - "None were left alive, neither women nor children were spared."

Hurling cannonballs and climbing walls

The city of Jerusalem was surrounded by high walls. These walls protected the city from invaders and kept crusaders from easily entering the city during their attack.

During the battle for Jerusalem, crusaders used huge catapults to hurl cannonballs at the walls. The crusaders also built large, moveable towers. They moved the towers closer to the city walls as they fought. When the towers were close enough, they extended a bridge to connect the tower to the top of the city's walls. Crusaders then walked across the bridges to enter the city.

Muslims and European Christians often had different perspectives, or points of view, on the crusaders conquering Jerusalem.

Why weren't Muslims more worried after the First Crusade?

Crusaders were able to conquer a number of cities, including Jerusalem. But, crusaders never really threatened the strength of the Seljuq Empire.

Most crusaders also returned home after completing their crusade, and many who stayed adopted local customs. Because they accepted local customs, crusaders did not seem to threaten most people's ways of life.

A Muslim leader named Saladin (SAH-luh-deen) was one of the most influential people in the history of the Crusades.

Saladin beat a lion

After Saladin recaptured Jerusalem in 1187, European Christians tried to retake it in the Third Crusade.

One of the European leaders was called Richard the Lionheart because he was considered a great warrior. Richard the Lionheart's army attacked Saladin, but Saladin defeated them. After his victory, Saladin made an agreement with Richard the Lionheart that allowed Christians to visit Jerusalem.

Much of the Crusades involved European Christians fighting to take land from Muslims. However, there were also conflicts between other religious groups. Look at the timeline showing some of the other conflicts during the Crusades.

The timeline shows that crusaders attacked Jews and other non-Christians in Europe. They also attacked Roman Catholic Christians in Zara and Eastern Orthodox Christians in Constantinople.

Why did crusaders attack Roman Catholics in Zara?

During the Fourth Crusade, a group of Catholic crusaders agreed to pay Venetians to use their ships. But, when the crusaders arrived in Venice, they were unable to pay. The Venetians asked the crusaders to help conquer the Catholic city of Zara instead of paying for the ships. Zara had once been part of Venice, and Venice wanted the city back.

In 1202, the crusaders and Venetians attacked and captured Zara. At first, the pope condemned the crusaders for attacking Catholics. But, later he forgave the army.

During the Crusades, the relationship between Roman Catholics and other religious communities, such as Muslims, Jews, and Eastern Orthodox Christians, became worse.

Christians attacking Christians

Before the Crusades, Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians did not get along. When the Crusades began, they agreed to fight together against Muslims. But by the Fourth Crusade, Roman Catholic crusaders were attacking Eastern Orthodox cities.

In 1203, crusaders attacked the Eastern Orthodox city of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. They destroyed religious sites, stole anything of value they could find, and attacked the people of the city.

One result of the Crusades was that relationships between Roman Catholics and other groups worsened. However, another effect of the Crusades was the introduction of new ideas and goods, or products, to Western Europe. Silk, spices, and compasses are examples of goods that spread to Western Europe during the Crusades. New philosophies, different kinds of math, and chemistry are examples of ideas that spread to Western Europe during the Crusades.

Read the following passage about the effect the Crusades had on the spread of Christianity.

Although crusaders had some success capturing land, many historians argue that the Crusades did not actually spread Christianity. One piece of evidence that supports this argument is that crusaders did not introduce Christianity to Muslim empires. There were already Christians living in Muslim empires long before the Crusades began.

Another piece of evidence historians use is that most Christian crusaders returned to Western Europe after they completed their crusade. So, the Christian population in Asia did not increase much as a result of the Crusades.

Why didn't crusaders stay?

European Christians went on crusades for many reasons. Some of them went to take land for themselves. But, most crusaders fought for other reasons, such as having their sins forgiven. Since most crusaders were not trying to gain land for themselves, they usually returned home after their crusade.

The Crusades lasted for about 200 years and involved many groups of people. After the Crusades ended, people from different groups often had different perspectives on the Crusades.

Perspectives on the Crusades today

People still have different perspectives on the Crusades. Many people from different religious backgrounds consider the Crusades a particularly terrible time while others think about it as a normal period of war.

In 2001, Pope John Paul II apologized for part of the Crusades. He wrote an apology to a leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church. He said, "The fact that [crusaders] were [Roman Catholics] fills Catholics with deep regret."

The following maps show who controlled the area around Jerusalem at different times during the Crusades.

During the Crusades, European Christians conquered a small part of the Muslim controlled territories and established Christian Crusader kingdoms. However, by 1225, Muslim armies had retaken most of the territory they had lost to Roman Catholic crusaders during the Crusades.

The Middle Ages, or the medieval period, is a time period in Europe that started around 500 CE and lasted almost 1000 years. In the early Middle Ages, society was organized by a feudal system where land was divided up and controlled by lords. But by 1100, medieval society was starting to change.

By 1100, raids from outside groups and fighting between lords had decreased. Since there was less fighting, society became safer. Around the same time, new farming technology was invented. These types of inventions made it easier for people to farm and produce more crops. Some people saved up enough money and were able to move to growing towns and cities in search of new opportunities, such as new education or jobs.

As the amount of food increased and roads became safer, people began to travel more to trade goods and supplies. But other changes were also taking place during this time period.

How did medieval rulers create powerful kingdoms?

Rulers created powerful kingdoms by waging war and taking land by force! Different groups of fighting forces were used in a typical medieval army:

Crossbows were easy to fire but took a long time to reload. Longbows were harder to shoot, but were more accurate over long distances.

Archers

Archers were soldiers who were trained to shoot arrows at an enemy force from a long distance away. Often, archers were used at the start of a battle to kill or wound their opponents before the fighting began.

Infantry were given spears, shields, or swords and were clothed in light body armor. Cavalry usually wore thick metal-plated armor and used heavy weapons such as battle axes or maces.

Infantry

Infantry, or ground troops, made up the majority of the army. They marched into battle and fought the opponents' infantry. Most infantrymen were farmers and were the least skilled fighters in a medieval battle.

Cavalry

To support the infantry, cavalry, or soldiers on horses, were sent into battles. Cavalry rode through the battle, attacking opponents from horseback. Most cavalry were knights, or professional fighters.

As kingdoms in Western Europe became larger, kings gained more wealth and power. Some kings began to take advantage of this power and abused the people in their kingdoms. In some parts of Europe, people responded to this behavior by trying to limit the power of kings. One king who abused his power was King John of England, who ruled from 1199 to 1216 CE.

King John illegally taxed his lords and took their land when they refused to pay.
A group of lords were angry about the taxes and demanded that King John obey the law and end the tax.
King John refused to end the tax and follow English law. So, the lords captured the city of London, where King John ruled.
Once London was under the lords' control, the lords forced King John to sign an agreement that would limit his power as the king.
The agreement that King John signed became known as the Magna Carta, or Great Charter.

Robin Hood and Prince John

You may have already heard of King John from stories about Robin Hood. In those legends, John was a prince who unfairly taxed the English people while his older brother, who was king, was away fighting a war. Robin Hood, who was said to be an expert archer, stole money from Prince John to help feed the people of a town called Nottingham. So, even before John became king, he was believed to be cruel and greedy.

Was King John really a bad king?

Many historians agree that he was. He did many terrible things, such as jailing and starving a rival to death, imprisoning his former wife, and even murdering his own family members.

The Magna Carta is a document that limited the power of English kings and stated that kings must obey the law. Several parts of this document had a larger impact. The Magna Carta shaped the government of England over the course of hundreds of years. Below is a table that describes some effects that the Magna Carta had on English government practices.

The Magna Carta and American democracy

Many historians consider the Magna Carta to be an important founding document for democracy in America. In fact, some parts of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights are inspired by details in the Magna Carta:

Article I of the Constitution created Congress, a group of representatives that make laws. The United States Congress was inspired by the Parliament of England, which came from the Magna Carta.

Three amendments in the Bill of Rights discuss how people should receive a fair trial in an independent judicial system. These amendments were inspired by details in the Magna Carta.

During the later Middle Ages, kingdoms often fought expensive wars. To fund these wars, kings began taxing economic activity, such as trade, in cities.

During the later Middle Ages, Europe went through the Commercial Revolution, a period of time when business and trade began to grow quickly. Read the passage about the new features of the Commercial Revolution.

- - New coinage: More coins were being produced, allowing more people to buy goods.
  - Bills of Exchange: Merchants kept records of trade across long distances by asking money lenders in faraway cities to make payments for them.
  - Job specialization: Each craftsman became highly skilled at making one kind of good instead of making many different types of goods.

How did the Commercial Revolution change medieval society?

In the early Middle Ages, society was divided into two main groups—wealthy landowners and everyone else. During this time period, the only way to gain wealth and power was to own land.

But by the later Middle Ages, the increased wealth and economic activity created by the Commercial Revolution allowed a new class to emerge. This new group was eventually called the merchant middle class. Members of the middle class did not usually own land. Instead, they became wealthy and successful as craftsmen or traders. As members of the middle class, they had access to many new activities and goods:

Middle class city dwellers had time for leisure activities, such as playing music and dancing.

Middle class families could afford to send their children to schools and universities.

Member of the middle class had access to new foods and spices through trade with faraway places.

During the Commercial Revolution, skilled laborers and traders created guilds.nGuilds were organized groups of tradesmen and craftsmen with a common goal. Their members were paid well to create and sell high-quality products.

As trade and business grew in the Middle Ages, merchant guilds were formed to provide protection for traders while they traveled to sell their goods. Traders and buyers wanted to make sure that the goods they purchased were well made. So, they bought their goods from craft guilds, or groups that specialized in making a specific good. The goal of both types of guilds was to make money from high-quality products.

Modern-day guilds

There are still guilds in the world today! One of the most active guilds is the Writers Guild of America:

Members of the Writers Guild write scripts and storylines for films, television, and radio shows.
The guild's goal is to make sure their members are treated well and paid fairly for their work.

When members of the Writers Guild of America are unhappy with their treatment or pay, they can go on strike! That means they choose to not work until their working conditions improve.

The Commercial Revolution led to more wealth and highly skilled workers. Many of these workers were hired to create new, beautiful buildings. They used a new form of designing and constructing buildings called Gothic architecture.

Outside of guilds, most formal education took place in Christian places, such as monasteries and cathedral schools. But as cities and towns grew during the later Middle Ages, people began to found universities. Look at the map showing where some of these universities were located and how they were founded.

New learning in European universities

Most of the first university students in Europe studied religious texts to become Christian scholars. Over time, university students began to study ancient Greek and Roman texts about law, science, and math. But some Christian leaders worried that studying these subjects would conflict with Christian beliefs.

Combining faith and logic

One of the most well-known scholars to argue that faithful Christians could study nonreligious subjects was an Italian priest named Thomas Aquinas. He believed that God gave humans the ability to use logic. He thought humans should study science and reason to learn about the world and as a way to honor God.

As new universities and trade grew in the later Middle Ages, bookmaking became a valuable industry. Decorated books, called illustrated manuscripts, became both a new art form and a way to communicate information.

How much did books cost in the Middle Ages?

Books today are very inexpensive compared to books in the Middle Ages. For example, in England in the late 1300s, the average book cost a little bit over one pound. Pounds are the unit of money used in England, like dollars in the United States today. That may not sound like much, but many workers only earned between two and five pounds a year. That means that one book could cost half of a laborer's yearly wages!

One of the most well-known pieces of literature from the Middle Ages was called The Canterbury Tales. The Canterbury Tales was written in a version of English that common people could read, so this book became very popular. Read the passage about this book.

The Canterbury Tales begins by describing a group of 30 people who are traveling together to see an important Christian object. In this group, there are many different types of people, including a knight, a doctor, a merchant, a priest, a lawyer, and a sailor. Along their journey, they tell each other stories about their lives.

The characters of The Canterbury Tales

In the prologue, or opening part, of The Canterbury Tales, the author included detailed descriptions of the people who went on this journey. Read the summarized descriptions of some of these characters. Based on these descriptions, what do you think the author was trying to communicate about each of these characters?

- - The Knight: honest, trustworthy, a good Christian, a strong fighter
  - The Friar: a Christian official, takes money from poor people, mistreats young women, wears expensive clothes
  - The Merchant: pretends to be an expert with money, but is secretly in debt
  - The Doctor: healthy, educated on new medicines and medical practices
  - The Parson: a priest, poor, moral, humble, tries to set a good example as a Christian

What are the advantages and disadvantages of city life in Europe today?

Large populations

One benefit to living in a crowded city is that you can meet many different people from diverse cultures and backgrounds. One disadvantage is that the cost of housing becomes more expensive because more people are living there and fewer houses are available.

Pollution and clean energy

As cities grow, it is common for them to become dirty and unclean. As more people and jobs move to a city, trash and pollution increase. But cities in present-day Europe work hard to encourage recycling, clean energy, and earth-friendly practices.

In the mid-1300s, a disease called the bubonic plague swept through Asia and Europe. Look at the map showing the spread of the disease.

- Most historians believe the bubonic plague started in Asia. The legend and the arrows show that the plague moved from Asia towards Europe and Africa.
- Many of the first infected cities in Europe were coastal trading cities, such as Genoa and Naples.
- The map shows that the plague spread to these two cities in 1347, which was the first year that the disease spread to Europe.
- Within three years after 1347, the plague had spread throughout Western Europe. The map shows that by 1350, the majority of Europe had been affected by the plague.

The bubonic plague, which eventually gained the nickname the "Black Death," had a huge impact on life in Europe. In 1353, an Italian scholar published a book called The Decameron that included details about the plague in his home city of Florence, Italy.

A punishment from God?

During the bubonic plague, people tried to understand how and why this disease was causing so many people to die. Some people even thought that the plague was a punishment from God for their sins, or bad actions. To repent for their sins, some groups participated in a practice called flagellation. In the 1350s, an English historian wrote a description explaining flagellation:

In 1349 over six hundred men came to London . . . Each had in his right hand a scourge with three nails. Each tail had a knot and through the middle of it there were sometimes sharp nails fixed. They marched naked in a file one behind the other and whipped themselves with these scourges . . .

Adapted from Robert of Avesbury, Mirabilia Gesta, 1356

Even though the plague had a negative impact on Europe, many historians argue that the later Middle Ages was a time of many important achievements. During this time period, kingdoms grew large and powerful, cities became wealthy through trade, and artistic activity spread. Read the claim a historian might make about the later Middle Ages.

Claim:

The later Middle Ages was a time of exciting changes, new ideas, and big accomplishments in Europe.

Legacies of the Middle Ages

The legacies, or remembered achievements, of the Middle Ages live on in Europe today. For example, some types of government, cities, and impressive architecture that were created in the later Middle Ages are still parts of European cultures. Which part of the Middle Ages would you like to learn more about?

Some European countries still have kings and queens.

The Magna Carta helped lead to new democratic nations around the world, such as the United States.

Many of the cities that were growing in the Middle Ages are now large modern cities.

Many Gothic cathedrals are open daily to visitors and worshippers.

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