World History
Chapter 8
Middle Age Spreads
During the Late Middle Ages, kings fought with popes, Muslims, and
each other, but in the end, the most powerful king proved to be
King Death.
I.
1066-England’s King Edward died without an heir, so his
brother-in-law Harold took the throne. “Pas si vite!” cried
French William of Normandy, “Not so fast! Edward promised
ze throne to moi!”. So he sailed across the channel with his
army and trounced the British at the Battle of Hastings, killing
Harold in the process and earning the handle “William the
Conqueror”. One of his first acts as King of England was to
order an accounting of his new subjects and their property, in
order to levy taxes. The result was called the Domesday Book
(pronounced Dooms-day) because it was as final as the Day of
Judgment.
II. Henry II- William’s descendants ruled for centuries. Henry II
came to the throne in 1154. The first well-educated king, he set
about reforming the justice system. He established courts,
judges, and juries to punish crimes and settle disputes in a
consistent manner for all the country. This became the basis for
English common law. However, Henry is best remembered, not
for justice, but for murder.
A. Beckett- Henry squabbled with the pope over the right to
try clergymen in his courts. When he appointed his best
bud, Thomas Beckett, to be Archbishop of Canterbury, he
expected his pal to have his back. But Thomas got religion
all of a sudden, and sided with the pope. “Can’t somebody
DO something about this guy?” cried the betrayed Henry,
and four knights promptly rode off and murdered Beckett
in his own cathedral. Henry claimed “That’s not what I
meant!” but dropped his issues with the pope. Beckett was
named a saint.
III. Bad King John-Henry’s heir, Richard the Lion-heart, went off
on crusade and got himself captured, so his nasty little brother
ruled in his place. King John lost a war with France, got the
kingdom placed under interdict, and so over-taxed his nobles
that they forced him to sign the Magna Carta. Although it
mostly dealt with tax-relief for the nobles, it limited the power
of the king. The king must obey the law, not be a law unto
himself. The Magna Carta also introduced due process
(protection from arbitrary arrest) which evolved into the right of
habeas corpus (you can’t be held in prison unless charged with
a specific crime).
A. Parliament- the Magna Carta said the king couldn’t raise
taxes without consulting his advisors. The power of the purse
gave them power over the king. These advisors evolved into
Parliament, Britain’s legislature. By 1295, two houses were
evolving. The House of Lords consists of titled aristocrats,
while The House of Commons represents everyday people.
IV. France-Although French William had unified Britain through
conquest, France was still in the hands of powerful nobles.
When the nobles elected minor land-owner and Count of Paris,
Hugh Capet, to the throne they never expected that his family
would hold it for 300 years! Hugh consolidated power by
creating a hereditary monarchy, gaining support of the church,
and building an effective bureaucracy. During a dispute with the
pope, Philip IV rallied support from the people by creating the
Estates General in 1302. This governing body was made up of
nobles, clergy and townspeople. But they never got the power of
the purse, which gave them less control over the king than the
British parliament.
V. The Crusades- Jerusalem was in the hands of the Muslim
Turks, who prevented Christian pilgrims from visiting the Holy
Land. Byzantine emperor Alexius I sent an SOS to Pope Urban.
A. The First Crusade-In 1096, Pope Urban II called for
thousands of knights to drive the Turks out. The pope was
hoping to strengthen the power of the church. He also
thought it would be better for Christian knights to bash Turks
instead of each other. The knights were looking for a free
pass to heaven, along with any cool eastern stuff they could
pick up on the way. In the first Crusade, the Christians took
Jerusalem (and celebrated by massacring all the city’s Jews
and Muslims).
B. Later Crusades-The Crusades continued for 200 years. In
1187, Muslim leader Saladin retook Jerusalem. The
Christians kept fighting, but it was a long losing battle. The
crusaders never took Jerusalem again. However, it wasn’t
just a waste of blood and money, as the Crusades had many
positive effects on Europe.
1. Trade- the East had all the best stuff, which
crusaders brought back with them. Merchants
established trade routes, got rich, and expanded the
Western economy.
2. Kings- monarchs who sponsored or even led
Crusades were admired. They increased their ability
to tax the people to fund the holy cause.
3. The Church- Popes gained popularity and power,
although it was short-lived. Once the Crusades
ended, popes and kings began squabbling again.
4. Knowledge- Travelers wrote of their experiences in
the East (most notably Marco…..Polo!) and ended
the isolation of Europe.
VI. Spain- Muslims known as Moors inhabited most of the Iberian
Peninsula. Christian warriors fought to drive the Moors out.
Called Reconquista, they slowly pushed the Moors out.
A. Ferdinand and Isabella- they unified Spain through marriage
and took the last Muslim city, Granada, in 1492 (yes, the
same year they paid for Columbus to sail the ocean blue).
Isabella wasn’t having any heathens in her newly unified
country, and set up the Spanish Inquisition to root out nonChristians. 150.000 Jews and Muslims fled Spain. Those that
didn’t leave or convert were burned.
VII. The Black Death- Religion couldn’t keep you safe from the
greatest power, Plague! The Bubonic plague invaded to Europe
in 1347, carried by rats infested with germy fleas. Victims died
within 24 hours. One in three Europeans died.
A. Religion- Why had God sent the plague? The priests
couldn’t explain it; they were dying like everyone else.
Desperate people blamed Jews and slaughtered them.
Weird cults developed as the world seemed to be coming
to an end. It seemed the church no longer had all the
answers.
B. The Economy- With the death of so many peasants, labor
came to a standstill. Once the danger had passed, peasants
sought higher wages and better living conditions,
undermining the old feudal system. Inflation was out of
control. On the other hand, there were fewer people to
share with. Survivors inherited from the dead and the
middle class was strengthened.
VIII. The Hundred Years War- England and France had fought
each other over land that had belonged to William the
Conqueror. With the increase in trade after the Crusades, both
sides wanted control of the English Channel. Throw in
patriotism and the egos of kings, and we are in for a long fight!
A. Saint Joan- Because of the longbow, the British came close
to taking all of France, but they were beaten by an unlikely
warrior. Joan of Arc was a 17 year old peasant girl who heard
the voices of angels telling her to save France. She managed
to convince the desperate Dauphin, Charles VII to put her at
the head of the French Army. Frenchmen were inspired by
her and began to turn the tide of war. Joan was captured by
the English and burned as a witch, but her martyrdom only
increased French spirit. The cannon helped as well. The
English lost all territory except Calais.
B. Impact- The national pride inspired by Joan made French
kings more popular and they expanded their power. English
kings, however, had to go hat-in-hand to Parliament for the
money to fight, so Parliament gained power (power of the
purse again). Pushed out of mainland Europe, England
looked to trade to expand their power. New weapons were
making knights obsolete as kings formed armies of soldiers
for hire.
All the calamities of the High Middle Ages actually resulted in an
improved Europe. Greater trade led to a better standard of living.
The labor shortage caused by the plague increased the power of the
peasants. Religious questions raised by the plague and the Crusades
led to an enlightened way of thinking: you might say…
The Renaissance