14.1 Church Reform and the
Crusades
The Catholic Church underwent
reform and launched Crusades
against Muslims.
The Age of Faith
• Spiritual Revival
– Starting in the 900s,
monasteries help bring
about a spiritual revival
– Reformers help restore
and expand Church
power
Coat of Arms of Cluny Abbey: "Gules two
keys in saltire the wards upwards and
outwards or overall a sword in pale argent".
Founded in 910, this is the Benedictine Abbey of
Cluny as it looked in 2004.
Problems in the Church
• Some Church officials
marry even though the
Church objects
• Some officials practice
simony—selling religious
offices
• Kings use lay investiture
to appoint bishops
• Reformers believe only
the Church should
appoint bishops
This is an illustration of the
concept of “lay
investiture.”
In this picture a king from
the Middle Ages is handing
a bishop his “shepherd’s
crook” a symbol of the
office of bishop.
The Catholic Church
insisted that bishops were
chosen by the Pope, not by
kings.
Pope Gregory Vs Henry IV
• PG questioned KH’s authority to pick
bishops.
• KH tried to get PG removed as Pope.
• PG excommunicated KH.
• KH begged for 3 days to be let back into
the church so people would listen to him
again.
• PG let him in after proving the pope was
the most powerful figure.
The Emperor Clashes with the Pope
• Concordat of Worms
– Concordat of Worms : 1122 CE compromise in
Worms, Germany
– Compromise: Pope appoints Bishops, Emperor can
veto appointment
Reform and Church Organization
• Starting in the 1100s,
popes reorganize the
Church like a kingdom
• Pope’s advisors make
Church laws; diplomats
travel throughout
Europe
• Church collects tithes;
uses money to care for
sick or poor
“Peasants paying tithes” (17th century)
school of Pieter Brueghel the Younger
Cathedrals—Cities of God
• Early Cathedrals
– Between 8001100, churches
are built in
Romanesque
style
– Style includes
thick walls and
pillars, small
windows,
round arches
Romanesque
Romanesque
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gothic style evolves around 1100
• term from Germanic tribe, Goths
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gothic style characteristics:
1) Gothic Arches (pointy)
Gothic vs. Roman Arches
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gothic style characteristics:
1) Gothic Arches (pointy)
2) Flying Buttresses
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gothic style characteristics:
1) Gothic Arches (pointy)
2) Flying Buttresses
*Allows thin walls & more windows!
Gothic
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gothic style characteristics:
1) Gothic Arches (pointy)
2) Flying Buttresses
3) Ribbed Vault
Gothic Architecture
The master builders in
France, where the Gothic
style originated, developed
techniques of structural
engineering that were key to
Gothic architecture:
1. ribbed vaults that
supported the roof’s
weight
2. flying buttresses that
transferred weight to
thick, exterior walls
3. pointed arches that
framed huge stained
glass windows
4. tall spires that seemed
to be pointing to heaven
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gargoyles!
A New Style of Church Architecture
• Gargoyles!
A New Style of Church Architecture
• About 500 Gothic churches are built from
1170 to 1270
Floor Plan:
• Nave = central area
where congregation
meets
• Crypt = lower-level
used for burials
• Transept = crosses the
nave