The Dark Ages Flashcards
When were the middle ages?
500-1500
What occurred when germanic people invaded the roman empire, what did this cause?
- Fighting disrupts trade and the economy, people begin to abandon cities and flee to the rural countryside
- The invasion by the germans causes the dark ages
What do the dark ages do to Europe?
- Cause a lack of education within the citizens
- Stop’s innovation
- Stops greek and roman culture
- Latin stops being the universal culture of Rome
- Replaced roman provinces with germanic kingdoms
What did the church provide during the dark ages?
- The church was wealthy and housed educated individuals
- Church documents kept alive greek and roman traditions
- The church was a safe place for everyone was christian and wanted to go to heaven, so nobody attacked the church
- The church gave people a sense of unity in a time a chaos and uncertainty
When did Gregory I become pope?
590
What did Gregory do to the church that increased it’s influence and power?
- The church became secular, concerned with worldly issues
- The pope’s palace become’s the center of Roman government
- He used the church’s wealth to raise armies and care for the poor
By making the church secular, what did pope Gregory establish?
A christendom (Christian Kingdom), he created a kingdom based upon christianity
What was the largest and strongest kingdom in Europe during the middle ages?
The Franks
By 511, what area had Frankish rules expanded to?
Gaul (France)
What was the name of the most powerful official in the Frankish kingdom?
Major Domo, mayor of the palace
In 719 what was the name of the Major Domo that became more powerful than King?
Charles Martel
What did Charles Martel do that made him a christian hero and what was the significance of it?
Charles Martel defeated the muslim invaders at the battle of tours in Spain. If the muslims saw victory in this battle, western Europe would have been completely be lost.
Who was the son and successor to Charles Martel?
Pepin the short
What dynasty did Pepin begin and when did it last from?
The carolingian dynasty, 751-987
When does Pepin die, who is his successor?
Pepin dies in 768, his successor is his son Charlemagne after his other son dies (Note: at this time Charlemagne is NOT officially “emperor”)
What does Charlemagne do to improve the Frankish kingdom and restore the Roman Empire?
- Charlemagne reunites Western Europe
- Charlemagne limits the power of nobles by governing his empire through counts
- He encourages learning through schools and monasteries
What was the role of a count?
To rule over a province and keep it in line
What does Charlemagne do in 800 and what is it’s significance?
- Charlemagne travels to Rome to protect Pope Leo III from mobs
- The pop gives Charlemagne the official title of Roman Emperor, reviving the Holy Roman Empire
After Charlemagne dies who is his successor?
His son, Louis the Pious, he is a poor ruler and Charlemagne’s 3 Grandsons fight for rule of the empire
In 843 what is created to stop the fighting between Charlemagne’s grandsons
The treaty of Verdun, its splits the empire into three kingdoms
What is the definiton of Feudalism?
A politcal and economic system based on land-holding and protective alliances.
Who were the vikings and what did the do?
- The Vikings were warriors from Denmark, Sweden and Norway
- They sailed in long ships and sailed in shallow water that allowed them to do raids
- They raided rich monasteries and eventually adopted christianity and became farmers
What were the major changes that the germans brought to the roman government?
- Germans held together by family ties and loyalty rather than government
- Small communities were governed by unwritten rules and traditions
- Germanic warriors pledges loyalty to their chief and lived in their lord’s hall
How was christianity spread throughout the empire?
Missionaries
Who was the leader of the Franks that converted to christianity in 496?
Clovis
How did the church help to restore learning?
- Set up monasteries where monks learned and served
- Benedict wrote the rules to govern monasteries
- His sister Scholastica wrote rules for nuns living in covenants
- Monks set up schools and wrote illuminated manuscripts
What was a fief?
A large land grant given to a vassal
Who was a vassal?
A person who received a fief, they became powerful landowners
What was the pyramid of power in feudalist western europe?
King->Noble->Knights->Peasants
Who were knights?
Horsemen who defended their lords land in exchange for fief’s
What were the three social classes?
Those who fight: Nobles and Knights Those who pray: Monks, Nuns and church leaders Those who work: Peasants
How did you get your class?
Social class was inherited
What were most peasants?
Serfs, people lawfully bounds to a fief
What did serfs do?
Worked brutal work in exchange for food and living quarters in a manor
What did lords and their serfs provide for eachother?
Serfs provided work to maintain the manor and grow crops and the lord provided housing, farmland and protection from bandits
What was the purpose of a manor?
To be a self sufficient society that was protected, so that nobody had to stray out of the walls of the manor and they could live a normal life
Why did nobody complain about their feudalist class placement?
They believed that class was given by god and that they would anger him by refusing it
What was the life expectancy for a peasant?
35 years old
What was a tithe?
The tax that peasants payed to the church, equal to 1/10 a peasants income
