What are we going to do today?
• What are the “middle ages”?
• What was life like?
• What caused it to end?
Transition to the Renaissance
Small
Kingdoms
Rural
Population
Characteristics
of Medieval
Europe
Pagan
Religions
What is the Feudal system???
Ruler of a small
kingdom, the king is
usually the strongest or
wealthiest lord
King
Lord
Lord
Peasant
Peasant
Peasant
These are “vassals” of
the king. They give up
some of their power in
exchange for the king’s
protection
Peasants
Peasants are
obedient to their
lord. They work on
his lands and pay
taxes, and in
exchange he gives
them protection
Factors Effecting Medieval Europe
Mongols
• Conquests of
Genghis Khan
• Marco Polo
Crusades
Trade
• Contact with
Arabs
• Contact with
Eastern Europe
• Goods from
Asia
• Goods from
Middle East
Trade…
• As Europeans have more contact
with foreign people…
• They have more contact with
foreign stuff…
• Europeans develop a strong
desire for foreign goods like…
– Silk, Cotton, Spices, Porcelain,
Persian rugs
Changes to Western Europe…
Life During the Middle Ages
Life During the Renaissance
• Rural society
• Agricultural society
• Feudal society
•Small towns & villages
SOCIETY
• Shift to urban society
• Shift to manufacturing society
• Shift to worker society
•Shift to larger cities
• Held by land-owning nobles
• Regional power
•Feudal system
POWER
• Held by wealthy people
• Centralized power
• Determined by birth
STATUS
• Determined by wealth and
ability
Why did the Feudal system end???
100 Years
War
Black
Plague
End of the
Feudal
System
The Black Plague…
• Came out of Mongolia
• Carried by the Mongol army
• Disease traveled in the fleas on
the Mongols’ horses…and themselves!
• How did people fight it?
How did people fight it???
The Black Plague
The Black Plague…
• Carried along the Silk Road to the Middle East
by merchants and travelers
The Black Plague…
• Caught by Italian merchants…who fled back to
Italy trying to avoid the disease, and ended up
spreading it throughout Europe
The Black Plague…
Impact on Europe:
• Loss of population
– 1/3 of Europeans die
– 25 to 50 million….about 8 million per year
– Which social class was hit hardest?
• Loss of faith in the church…why?
• Loss of faith in feudal lords…why?
Why did the Feudal system end???
100 Years
War
Black
Plague
End of the
Feudal
System
100 Years War…
• Fought between France & England
• Fought over who will be King of France
• Lasts for 116 years
• New technologies
• Joan of Arc
• End of
Feudalism…why?
She’s a witch!!
End of the Feudal System…
Black
Death kills
1/3 of
Europe’s
population
Peasants
revolt and
demand
more
freedom
100 Years War
allows monarchs to
build huge armies
and reduce power
of nobles
People move
to cities to
earn better
wages
Status began to be
determined by
wealth and ability,
not birthright
Rise of the Renaissance…
Italian cities make
trading
connections with
the Middle
East…become rich
and powerful
Medici family
of Florence
used profits
to promote
art and
learning
Crusades make
Europeans
eager to learn
about the
outside world
Scholars and artists look to
ancient Greece and Rome for
inspiration and new ideas
Middle class
merchants
develop the idea
of banking and
insurance…gain
control of huge
sums of money
The Renaissance…
• Renaissance means “rebirth”
– Rebirth of “classical art and learning”
– Classical civilizations refer to Greece and Rome
• Society becomes more secular
– Secular = worldy
-- Non-secular = religious
• Development of “humanism”
– Belief in human potential
– Idea of a “renaissance man”
The Renaissance…
• The printing press…significance?
•
•
•
•
•
Leonardo da Vinci (1452 – 1519) - umm…everything
Erasmus (1466 – 1536) – belief in free will
Machiavelli (1469 – 1527) – politics, music, philosophy
Miguel de Cervantes (1547 – 1616) – literature (Don Quixote)
Shakespeare (1564 – 1616) – poet and playwright
And the winner is…(LP)
1st, 2nd, & 3rd place: Most influential
people/animals/events/inventions…and explain
I’m in 3 place
WHY!!
rd
because I helped
to create the
Renaissance by
carrying this
armful of
papers….
2nd
1st
3rd