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Chapter 5 vocabulary
Middle Ages Vocabulary
Medieval-referring to the middle ages
Feudalism-a system in which land was owned by kings or lords but held by vassels in return
for loyalty
Manor-large estate often including farms and villages ruled by a lord
Serf-a farm worker considered part of the manor on which he or she worked on
Clergy-persons with authority to perform religious services
Excommunication-expelling someone from the church
Guild- a medieval organization of crafts workers and tradespeople
Apprentice-an unpaid person training in a craft or trade
Chivalry-the code of honorable conduct for knights
Troubadour-a traveling poet and musician of the middle ages
Holy Land- Jerusalem and parts of the surrounding areas where Jesus lived and taught
Crusades- Christian expeditions to take over the Holy Land
Jerusalem- City in the Holy Land regarded as sacred to Christians
Pilgrim- a person who journeys to a sacred place
Magna Carta- the “Great Charter” in which the king’s power over his nobles was limited,
agreed to by King John of England in 1215
Model Parliament- a council of lords, clergy and common people that advised the English
king on government matters
Hundred Years’ War
Lesson 5.1
Feudalism and the Manor System
p. 118-123
1. A knight is A SOLIDER WHO
SERVES A LORD OR KING
2. What items were given to knights
for their use in battle? SWORD,
SPURS AND SHIELD
3. What was a knight’s job? TO
PROTECT LESS POWERFUL PEOPLE
The Middle Ages
4. Ancient times are considered to have lasted until AD 500 and modern times started in
about AD 1500. The period in the MIDDLE is known as the MIDDLE AGES and is also
called the MEDIEVAL TIMES. (see how they were in the middle of two ages!)
5. The Middle Ages started when the ROMAN EMPIRE collapsed. (Recall some of the
reasons the Roman Empire collapsed from previous chapter).
6. Once the ROMAN empire collapsed Europe broke into many small KINGDOMS and were
invaded by many groups.
a. One group that invaded was the FRANKS, who were led by CHARLEMAGNE.
They invaded GAUL, which is now France. (find France on the map above: circle
it AND write the work Gaul under it).
i. Charlemagne went on to conquer WEAKER kingdoms and control much of
Western EUROPE.
1. During his rule Charlemagne kept Western EUROPE united,
established SCHOOLS, spread the CHRISTIAN religion, issued
MONEY, and improved the ECONOMY during his reign which united
the area.
a. After his death the kingdom was divided amongst his 3 sons
who fought one another for power which left the region
susceptible for attacks from outsiders.
7. The VIKINGS took advantage of the weaknesses in the area and attacked from the
NORTH (Norway, Sweden, and DENMARK areas) for about 300 years. (find these 3
regions on the map above and circle them).
8. The Vikings were skilled SALIORS and tough WARRIORS.
9. What is a similarity between the causes of the collapse of the Roman Empire and the
collapse of Charlemagne’s empire? EMPIRE BEING SPLIT AND IN-FIGHTING,
INVASIONS FROM THE NORTH
Feudalism: A New Kind of Government
10. In an effort to repair Western Europe after the collapse of ROMAN empire, a new
system of government known as FEUDALISM developed where land was owned by
KINGS OR LORDS but held by VASSELS in return for their LOYALITY.
a. This form of government would last for HUNDREDS of years.
11. The people with power in the Feudal system were the people who controlled the LAND
(usually nobles).
a. The pieces of land that were given to the vassals were called a FIEF. They were
given land in return for a promise to FOLLOW the land owner but in return the
land owner (or lord) promised to treat their vassals with RESPECT and help them
out in times of need.
12. Why do you think lords believed it was important to give vassals land and treat them
well? SO THEY WOULD NOT REBEL AGAINST THE LORDS
13. A vassal’s job was not only to FOLLOW the lord but to raise and lead
ARMIES that would do so. They were also expected to SHOW LOYALITY to
the lord (often times in the form of food, rather than money).
The Manor System
14. * FEUDALISM was the way they organized power and government, while
MANNORALISM was the way they organized their economy.
15. A manor is a large estate that includes FARM FIELDS, PASTURES AND OFTEN
TIMES AN ENTIRE VILLAGE.
(kind of like a very large farm with lots of people living and working together on it to
be self-sufficient).
a. Why would a manor need to be mostly self-sufficient? THEY HAD TO PROVIDE
FOR THEMSELVES
b. A LORD was in charge of overseeing all operations on a manor.
16. Women of the noble class also held responsibilities such as MANAGING the
household, providing MEDICAL care, and SUPERVISING servants.
Peasants and Serfs
17. PEASANTS were the majority of people in medieval Europe who made their living by
being FARMERS AND LABORERS.
a. They were often VERY POOR and did all the work on the MANORS, even gave
most of their crops to their LORDS.
18. Most peasants were also known as SERFS, who were considered to be part of the
manor but had very few rights (they could not leave the MANOR or get MARRIED
without the permission of the NOBLE).
a. They were considered SLAVES, but unlike slaves they could save enough MONEY
and buy a plot of land (on the manor) and become a free PEOPLES.
b. Many serfs ran away to a CITY, where if they could live for a year and a DAY
without being caught, they became FREE.
19. What was life like for medieval peasants? WORKED ALMOST EVERY DAY, LIVED IN
ONE ROOM HUTS, SLEPT ON HAY BEDS
FOCUS ON A MEDIEVAL MANOR (pg. 124-125)
20. What kinds of goods were produced on manor estates?
CORN, POTATOES, TURNIPS, AND WHEAT
21. What were many of these goods used for?
FOOD
22. How did the people in a medieval manor use the surrounding manor lands?
FARMLAND AND VILLAGES
23. Characteristics of a Medieval Manor: Included a LARGE home and homes of the
PEASANTS and SERFS, a mill, a chapel or CHURCH, a bakery, and
usually surrounding FIELDS/FARMS for growing CROPS, and usually WOODLANDS
where nobles could hunt and gather timber for BUILDING and FUEL.
Lesson 5.2
The Church and the Rise of Cities
p. 126-132
1. Some of the biggest, tallest, and most
beautiful churches in Europe come from the
MIDDLE Ages.
2. Describe these churches: TALL, GOTHIC,
STAINED GLASS WINDOWS
The Church in the Middle Ages
3. During this time, nearly all people in Western Europe were Roman CATHOLIC.
4. The Roman Catholic church had so much influence over people it was simply know as
“THE CHURCH.”
5. Most Western Europeans followed the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church because
life for people in the middle ages was SHORT and HARD so they were comforted by
the Roman CATHOLIC belief that they would go to HEAVEN if they followed the
Church’s teachings. They also feared PUNISHMENT after death for not following the
CHURCH’S teachings.
6. The Church had great ECONOMIC ($$$) power because it collected TAXES and took
FIEFS (land) from the lords in exchange for services from clergy members.
a. The Church was the largest owner of LAND in Europe at the time
7. The church had so much political power because of their combination of RELIGIOUS
power and ECONOMIC power that it got from taxes and land ownership.
a. Since it had great amounts of political (dealing with government) power, the
church took on many roles that a GOVERNMENT deals with today.
b. People who did not obey the Church could be EXCOMMNUICATED, or
expelled from membership and participation in Church life which at this time
often led to becoming a social outcast.
8. Complete the graphic organizer below about church authority:
POPE(authority over all of the
church officials)
ARCHBISHOPS
BISHOPS
PRIESTS
9. What major events did the Roman Catholic clergy offer their services for? FUNERAL,
BAPTISM, WEDDINGS, CONFORMATION
10. Some men and women chose to dedicate their lives to God by living in religious
communities. The communities that men lived in were known as MONISTARIES and
those that women lived in were known as CONVENTS.
i. What unique opportunity did convents offer to women? TO BECOME
EDUCATED
Trade Revives and Towns Grow
11. As feudalism became well established EUROPE was becoming a safer place to live with a
GROWING population.
12. People began to travel more because THEY FELT SAFE. This led to the revival of trade
because people brought back GOODS from places they visited and introduced them to
their region which created a desire for these goods, leading to the revival of TRADE.
13. Two major reasons for the growth of towns was an increase in TRADE and the
PROSPERITY of manors.
a. Towns grew into busy TRADE centers, especially where rivers
crossed.
b. As manor became too crowded, it became difficult to provide FOOD
and HOUSING for everyone who lived there, so lords encouraged
peasants to buy their FREEDOM and move to CITIES.
Life in Towns and Cities
14. The largest city in the world at this time was PARIS. (go back to the map in section 1
notes and underline this city!)
15. The middle class was a class of people between the NOBLES and the PEASANTS that
included MERCHANTS, TRADERS, & CRAFT WORKERS.
16. The middle class workers began to form associations that included all people who
practiced the same trade or craft. These associations were called GUILDS.
a. The guilds allowed people in the same TRADE to work together for common
GOOD.
b. People in guilds supported each other, trained new APPRENTICES, and
standardized QUALITY and QUANTITY of goods.
c. Before a person could join a guild they had to go through years of training in
that trade as an APPRENTICE.
17. Medieval towns and cities were extremely CROWDED and had BAD sanitary conditions
which led to disease spreading QUICKLY.
a. One example of a disease that spread rapidly was the BLACK PLAGUE
that was spread by fleas and killed 1/3 of Europe’s population.
18. Cities attracted traveling SCHOLARS and were centers for learning and ART.
19. TROUBADOURS traveled throughout Europe sharing their poetry and music.
Lesson 5.3
The Crusades
p. 133-137
Causes of the Crusades
1. The Crusades were
MILITARY
expeditions started by the
Church to capture the
HOLY LAND_. What
city in the Holy Land attracted
religious pilgrims?
JERUSALEM
2. The Holy Land is sacred to the Christians because JESUS had taught and lived
there.
3. Identify the three religious groups that considered Jerusalem sacred:
CHRISTIANS,.MUSLIMS, AND JEWS
4. Compare how the Arab Muslims treated Christian Pilgrims when they controlled
Jerusalem, to how the Christians were treated when the Seljuk Turks controlled
Jerusalem. THE ARAB MUSLIMS TREATED CHIRSTIAN PILGRIMS WELL, THE
SELJUK TURKS DID NOT
5. When the Turks attacked the Byzantine empire it triggered the POPE
because the Byzantine emperor in Constantinople asked POPE URBAN II to
send in knights to help Constantinople defend against an attack by Muslim TURKS.
a. Pope Urban II agreed to help and declared war against the TURKS,
who were also occupying the HOLY Land.
6. Three reasons why Pope Urban II wanted to control the Holy Land was that:
i. he wanted CHRISTIAN pilgrims to be able to visit Jerusalem
ii. he thought that if Europeans united against a common enemy they would stop
FIGHTING AMONGST THEMSELVES
iii. he wanted to gain power and PRESTIGE for himself and the Church
A Series of Crusades
7. The purpose of both the First Crusades and the Second Crusades was to gain control of
HOLY LAND, however only the 1st Crusade was successful, while the
LATER Crusades had little success.
a. Although European armies captured THE HOLY LAND during the first
Crusades, those who stayed in the Holy Land were subject to repeated
attacks from the MUSLIM TURKS to which the Christians responded by
launching further attacks.
b. Following the Second Crusades SALADIN (an Arab Muslim leader) rose to
power but said that was Jerusalem was as important to MUSLIMS as it
was to CHRISTIANS.
The Results of the Crusades
8. Despite all of the fighting, crusaders were NEVER able to gain control over the Holy
Land.
9. The Crusades brought lasting changes to Europe such as:
a. Revival of TRADE
b. Growth of TOWNS and CITIES
c. Increased use of MONEY
d. Introduction of new IDEAS and TECHNOLOGY
Lesson 5.4
The Power of Kings
p. 140-144
1. In the middle ages, KINGS and POPES fought over who should select bishops. Because
bishops were CHURCH officials. Popes thought they had the right to choose them, but
KINGS thought they had the right to choose them because bishops controlled large
areas of their KINGDOM.
2. In 1081 King HENRY invaded Italy (where the POPE lived) and replaced Pope GREGORY
with a new Pope who crowned Henry EMPOROR of the Holy Roman Empire.
Nation Building
3. In the feudal society many of the wealthiest LORDS had great power and saw
themselves as equal to the KING. However, if the feudal system would
decline, so would the noble’s POWER.
4. Feudalism did indeed decline because:
a. Growth of TRADE and TOWNS: Kings began to support
the new towns in exchange for money.
b. The CRUSADES also weakened the nobles. Many gave up money to join in the
wars and many nobles were killed during this time resulting in the kings
taking their land.
5. The decline of feudalism helped lead to the building of nations because as the power of
KINGS increased and they in turn used this power to unite smaller, separate FIEFS
under their rule which gradually led to these large kingdoms becoming NATIONS (also
known as Nation Building).
6. People of a nation share a common TERRITORY, GOVERNMENT, and often a language
and CULTURE.
7. By the late Middle Ages the idea of a NATION was taking hold in Europe.
8. How do you think the development of nations affected the power of the church? THE
DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONS WEAKEND THE CHURCH’S POWER IN EUROPE
BECAUSE KINGS BEGAN TO RULE SEPARATE FROM THE CHURCH .
Changes in England
9. When King JOHN came to power he moved to increase his wealth and power by
TAXING people heavily and JAILED his enemies. He also angered the Church by taking
their PROPERTY and trying to block the pope’s choice for the chief BISHOP OF
ENGLAND.
10. King John was not strong enough to overcome the church and as a result the English
NOBLES called a meeting of about 2,000 nobles at RUNNYMEDE and presented the
King with a list of demands.
a. What was created was a document called the MAGNA CARTA which limited the
KING’S power.
i. The King could no longer JAIL any freeman without a reason and he could
not RAISE TAXES without consulting his Great Council or lords and
Clergy.
ii. The Magna Carta gave the people of England more SAY in government and
protected some of their basic RIGHTS.
11. The Kings council became known as the MODEL PARLIMENT which included common
people as well as lords and clergy. Parliament eventually gained more power and evolved
into a LAW- making body.
The Hundred Years’ War
12. A long series of wars between ENGLAND and FRANCE was called the Hundred Years
War.
13. The causes of the Hundred Years’ War were:
a. KING EDWARD III claimed to be king of France, but the French NOBLES did
not agree.
b. Edward III invaded FRANCE to get his way.
c. Both ENGLAND and FRANCE wanted control of the English Channel and TRADE
in the region.
14. As the wars progressed ENGLAND won most of the battles. However, the tide turned
when a peasant girl named JOAN OF ARC took charge of French forces.
a. She led her forces to several victories until she was captured and tried for
WITCHCRAFT, convicted and burned at the STAKE. As a result the French saw
her as a MARTYR (someone who dies for a cause) and were inspired.
b. By 1453 the English had been driven from most of FRANCE.
15. How do you think the Hundred Years’ War helped lead to the colonization of North
America? (Hint: Why would England now look to a new location for colonization?)
SINCE ENGLAND COULD NOT EXPAND INTO FRANCE, THEY DECIDED TO HEAD
WEST.
16. The Hundred Years’ War had many effects on England and France:
a. New WEAPONS were developed that increased the importance of
FOOTSOLDIERS and decreased the importance of ARMORED KNIGHTS.
b. The war inspired NATIONAL feeling where people began to think of
themselves as citizens of their country, not just loyal to a lord.
c. The war gave KINGS more power, but also gave Parliament more power.
d. The war set modern boundaries for ENGLAND and FRANCE,
and ultimately led England to explore and colonize in distant lands.
Chapter 5 study guide
1. What was a lord’s main duty towards the people who were loyal to him?
2. How was life in towns different from life on the manor?
3. Why was the church so powerful during medieval times?
4. Why is the holy land so important? What city is the main city of importance in the Holy Land that
attracted pilgrims?
5. What did kings and popes often argue over?
6. Why did Christians fight the Muslim Turks?
7. Who fought in the Hundred Years’ War?
8. The medieval period is also known as the _________________.
9. What was the economy in the feudal system based on?
10. What were some effects of the Crusades?
11. Who made up most of the population during the middle ages?
12. Who changed the tide of Hundred Years’ War when they took charge of French forces?
13. How could peasants improve their standard of living during the middle ages?
14. Many surviving Illuminated manuscripts come from the middle ages. What were illuminated
manuscripts commonly used for/where could they be commonly found? What did illuminated
manuscripts look like? Who commonly made illuminated manuscripts? (Remember the station you did
during Medieval Fair Activities!)