The Late Middle Ages:
(1000-1500)
The Late Middle Ages was an era marked
by major social, religious, and health
crises. War, plague, social unrest, and
religious schism characterized this era.
Start Thinking Research…
•
•
•
•
•
•
Popes and Kings
The Crusades
Medieval Society and Christianity
The Hundred Years’ War
The Black Death
And???
Popes and Kings Rule Europe
• Early in the Middle Ages, kings and
nobles held power. As time passed,
power came to be held by KINGS and
POPES.
• What is a pope? Where did the word
“pope” originate? Who was the first
pope? What kind of power did the pope
have?
Ecclesiastical Breakdown and Revival:
The Late Medieval Church
• Pope Leo IX (1049) argued that since, St. Peter (the first
pope) was leader of the entire Christian Church so also
should later popes. The bishop of Constantinople
disagreed and in 1054, Pope Leo excommunicated him.
• Pope Innocent III (1198-1216) continued to transform the
church into a secular power, creating a papal monarchy
• Pope Urban IV (1261-1264) continued the secularization
of the church by establishing its own law court
• The College of Cardinals became the political body
within the church.
Popes v/s Kings
• As popes increased their power, they often
conflicted with kings. Kings thought that,
as leader, they should be able to select
bishops for their own country. Why does it
matter?
• Pope Gregory VII v/s Emperor Henry IV.
• Yikes!!! In 1302, Boniface issued the bull,
Unam Sanctum, which declared that
temporal authority was subject to the power
of the church.
• Pope John XXII (r. 1316-1417) tried to restore the papacy of
Rome.
• John Wycliffe and John Huss led the popular lay movements
that protested the rights of the pope. They translated the Bible
into the common language and were persecuted by the church.
• They were the first Protestant Reformers.
Pope Urban II
• Pope Urban responded to
Byzantium’s request against
the Islamic armies with a
rousing speech in Clermont,
France in 1095 in which he
called upon Christians to
“Enter upon the road to the
Holy Sepulcher; wrest that
land from the wicked race,
and subject it to
yourselves…”
• Urban’s speech would help
launch the first of several
Crusades
Reasons for the Crusades
• The Byzantine Empire was
in severe decline and no
longer could act as a buffer
between the Muslim East
and the Catholic West
• Christian pilgrims visiting
the holy sites in Jerusalem
began experiencing
increased harassment and
danger
“A pilgrim camp near Jericho”
by David Roberts
4 Crusades
• First Crusade – About 5000 Crusaders left Europe
and headed for the Holy Lands. They attacked
Jews on the way. They failed.
• Second Crusade – French and German kings set off
in 1147 to retake the land from the Muslims. They
failed.
• Third Crusade – England and France led armies
against a Muslim held Jerusalem. Ultimately King
Richard failed.
• Fourth Crusade – French soldiers ended up sacking
Constantinople.
• The end.
Medieval Society
and Christianity
• In the Middle Ages, life revolved around the church.
• Christians wanted to build large Christian “shrines” and travel to
holy sites.
• When landowners died, they left their land to the church. The
church was the largest landowner in Europe.
• The church built large universities? Why?
The Black Death
Also known as The
Bubonic Plague, came
about as a result of
decades of
overpopulation,
economic depression,
famine, and bad health
and hygiene in some
European regions.
The “Black” Death
• The Black death was named for the
discoloration of the body.
• It is believed to have been introduced by
seaborne rats from the Black Sea area.
• By the early fifteenth century, western
Europe had lost as much as 40% of its
population to the plague.
Who’s to blame?
• Lack of sophisticated medicine led to
superstitions about the reasons for the
plague, including poisonous fumes released
during earthquakes and a corruption in the
atmosphere.
• Jews were sought as scapegoats for the
plague and were persecuted.
Remedies and Self-Inflicted Pain
• Popular remedies
against the plague
included the use of
leeches.
• Flagellants
believed that
beating themselves
until they bled
would bring about
divine
intervention.
Economic Effects
• Farm laborers decreased in numbers
• Peasants rebelled against efforts by governments
to limit their wages
• Opposition to such legislation spurred the English
peasants’ revolt of 1381
• And???
The Hundred Years’ War and the
Rise of the Nationalist Sentiment
• During the Middle Ages, tremendous
violence and political unrest led to the
breakdown of European governments.
• Toward the end of the period, monarchs in
England and France began to reassert their
power.
• The Hundred Years’ War was the result of
their struggle for control??
The Hundred Years’ War
(1337-1453)
• The Hundred years’ War
began when the English king
Edward III claimed his right
to the French throne after the
death of Charles IV.
• England and France warred
with one another for nearly
100 years.
• Who won?
Edward III
Success and Weakness in the War
English success in the
war was due to its
military superiority and
its use of weaponry like
the longbow.
French weakness was
due to territorial
infighting and a lack of
leadership.
Joan of Arc (1412-1431)
• A peasant from Domrémy who
claimed she heard the voices of
God, led the French victory in
the Battle of Orleans.
• Joan served as an inspiration for
the French, who eventually
defeated the English and won
the war.
• Joan was later burned at the
stake at Rouen as a heretic for
refusing to recant her beliefs.