Name:____________________________________
AIM:
Date:_____________
Fall of Western Rome (476 A.D.)
“The Huns were far worse than any definition
of savagery. Like unthinking animals, they are
completely ignorant of the difference between
right and wrong. Fired with an overwhelming
desire for taking the property of others, these
fast-moving and uncontrollable people make
their destructive way by robbing and
slaughtering those who live around them.
Where is the Roman Senate? Where are the
Roman people? The bones are all dissolved,
the flesh is consumed, all the goodness and
justice of this world is gone. The whole mass is
boiled away.”
-Pope Gregory the Great
How do you think the Germanic invasions
changed Western Europe?
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
Name:____________________________________
Invasions of Europe, 800-1000
Date:_____________
The barbarians have broken
through the defense. The
Muslim invasions have spread
in waves over the South. The
Hungarians swarm over the
Eastern provinces...they sacked
town and village, and laid
waste the fields. They burned
down the churches and then
left with a crowd of
captives...There is no longer
any trade, only unending
terror...The peasant has
abandoned his ruined fields to
avoid the violence and chaos.
The people have gone to hide
in the depths of forests or have
taken safety in the high
mountains...Society has no
longer any government...
How would you describe what life was like for people living in Europe during the 800s?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Feudalism: system of rule based on land and mutual responsibilities
I, John of Toul, make known that I am the liege man of the [count and countess of Champagne]...I will aid the
count of Champagne in my own person, and will send to the count and countess of Champagne the knights whose
service I owe to them for the fief which I hold of them..."
THE FEUDAL CONTRACT
Dukes and counts held largest estates of land
called___________________.
Explain the mutual obligations of the feudal system:
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
_______________ pledged service and
loyalty to the greater lord. He agreed to
provide the lord with 40 days of military
service each year, money payments, and
advice
Grant of land was given to ______________
in return for military service which was
provided by _____________________.
___________ were bound to the land and in
return for a lifetime of labor they were
given the right to farm several acres for
themselves and were entitled to the lord’s
protection.
Name:____________________________________
Date:_____________
For the privilege of living on the lord's land, peasants paid a high price.
They paid a tax on all grain ground in the lord's mill. Any attempt to
avoid taxes by baking bread elsewhere was treated as a crime. Peasants
also paid a tax if they got married. Weddings could take place only with
the lord's permission. After all these payments to the lord, peasant families
owed the village priest a tithe, or church tax, which was 1/10th of their
income. Serfs lived in crowded cottages, close to their neighbors. The
cottages had only one or two rooms. Peasants warmed their dirt-floor
houses by bringing pigs inside. At night, the family huddled on a pile of
straw that often crawled with insects. Peasants' simple diet consisted
mainly of vegetables, hard brown bread, grain, cheese, and soup.
1. Based on Sources 4 & 5 why was
life difficult for a medieval serf?
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
In a time of great political chaos, the Roman Catholic Church was the single,
largest unifying structure in medieval Europe. From the moment of its
baptism a few days after birth, a child entered into a life of service to God
and God's Church. As a child grew, it would be taught basic prayers, would
go to church every week barring illness, and would learn of its responsibilities
to the Church. Every person was required to live by the Church's laws and to
pay heavy taxes to support the Church. In return for this, they were shown
the way to everlasting life and happiness after lives that were often short and
hard. In addition to collecting taxes, the Church also accepted gifts of all
kinds from individuals who wanted special favors or wanted to be certain of
a place in heaven. These gifts included land, flocks, crops, and even serfs.
This allowed the Church to become very powerful, and it often used this
power to influence kings to do as it wanted.
Why was the Roman Catholic Church so powerful during the Middle Ages?
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
What does the illustration show
about a typical manor?
1.
All residents were treated
equally.
2. Secular values in society were
stressed.
3. There were a large number
of factories.
4. People depended on
agricultural production.
Manor life during the early Middle
Ages is called "self-sufficient" because
people
1.
traded with others
throughout Europe
2. took care of their needs
locally
3. traveled widely for
education and work
4. had the leisure time to
devote to the arts
Name:____________________________________
AIM:
The Crusades
Date:_____________
“Your brethren who live in the
[Middle] East are in urgent
need of your help...For, as
most of you have heard, the
Turks and Arabs have attacked
them and have conquered the
Byzantine Empire, a Christian
land...They have occupied
more and more of the lands of
those Christians...They have
killed and captured many, and
have destroyed the churches
and devastated the
Empire...Seize that land from
[the Muslims], and subject it to
yourselves…Participate in this
journey eagerly for the
[forgiveness] of your sins and
with the promise of
everlasting glory in the
kingdom of heaven.”
-Pope Urban II
1. According to the source above, why did the Pope want Christians to participate in a war against Muslims?
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. What affect did the Crusades have on both trade and travel between Europe and Asia?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Name:____________________________________
Date:_____________
3. Why did knights participate in the Crusades?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
When the Renaissance started, the world
awoke out of a long deep sleep. The
Middle Ages were a time when learning
was only found in the religious orders.
During the Renaissance learning was
passed to princes and scholars. People no
longer felt the weight of the Church
pressing on the human mind, demanding
respect and loyalty. The human mind—
with all its capabilities, talents, and
possibilities—was the center of interest.
The idea that there was a great revival or
rebirth of literature and the arts in the
14thRenaissance
and 15th centuries originated with
The
the Italian writers and artists of the
Renaissance themselves. Finding the
medieval and church literature and Gothic
art of the Middle Ages unsatisfactory, they
turned to the ancient civilizations of
Greece and Rome for inspiration.
1. How was learning different in the Renaissance than it was in the Middle Ages?
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Where did Italian artists and writers of the Renaissance turn to for inspiration?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Based on the map, why do you think the Renaissance began in Italy?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Name:____________________________________
Date:_____________
The Ottomans were Muslims
from central Asia who were able
to defeat the Christian Byzantine
Empire in the year 1453.
Cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg,
cloves…these and other spices
were a vital part of the world
economy in the 1400s. The map
to the left shows the trade routes
that enabled Europeans to
obtain these goods from Asia.
(Shaded area=Ottoman Empire)
What do you think happened to Europe’s access to these items when the Ottoman Empire rose to power in
1453?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
What routes do you think Europeans will try to take in order to get directly to Asia?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Summary: Answer the following multiple choice questions: