The Middle Ages Powerpoint

The Middle Ages 1066-1485

Objectives 

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Understand the historical and social forces that shaped the Middle Ages Identify the influence of history on the literary works of the Middle Ages Take notes and discuss the concept of loyalty in the world then and now

KWL 

What do you know about the Middle Ages?

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What would you like to know about the Middle Ages?

The Middle Ages Four Centuries of Change 

The Norman Conquest of England created a powerful Anglo- Norman entity and brought England into the mainstream of European civilization

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The Feudal system centralized military, political, and economic power in the Crown

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The Roman Church transcended national boundaries and fostered cultural unity among Europeans The rise of towns and cities freed people to pursue their own commercial and artistic interests The Magna Carta weakened the political power of the Church and laid the groundwork for later constitutional law Exposure to Eastern civilization as a result of the Crusades broadened Europeans’ intellectual horizons

Change 

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The ideals of Chivalry improved attitudes toward, but not the rights of women The rise of the yeoman class paved the way for democracy in England The bubonic plague created a labor shortage that contributed to the end of feudalism and to the passing of the Middle Ages

Some key words/ideas dates and people    

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October 1066 Duke William of Normandy King Harold of England Norman Conquest-----responsible for changes to English history, character and language William the Conqueror--- illegitimate son

Key ideas  

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Cousin of Edward the Confessor Was promised the crown when he died but it was given to Harold instead Bad move------William sailed the English Channel with a large army in the winter---no one had ever done that before---too dangerous---Harold had to run from the other end of England with his tired army. They met and Harold lost---arrow through the eye—no one knows where he was buried.

William the Conqueror  

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Efficient and ruthless Wanted to rule the Anglo-Saxons not eliminate them Great administrative feat was an inventory of nearly every piece of property in England--land, cattle, buildings—The Doomsday Book First time people could be taxed based on what they own

•Doomsday Book title suggests a comparison between William’s judgment of his subjects’ financial worth and God’s final judgment of their moral worth. •William brought a new language to England--Norman French The Anglo-Norman entity that resulted from the Norman Conquest brought England into mainstream European civilization, which included feudalism.

•Chivalry and Courtly Love: Ideal but Unreal •Chivalry was a systemof Ideals and social codes governing the behavior of knights and gentlewomen. •Among it rules was the adherance to one’s oath of loyalty to the overlord and observing certain rules of warfare, such as never attacking an unarmed opponent. •Also, adoring a particular lady (not necessarily one’s wife) was seen as a means of achieving selfimprovement •Courtly love was nonsexual---a knight might wear his lady’s colors into battle, glorify her in words,

•Chivalry led to an idealized attitude toward women and gave rise to a new form of literature, the romance. •Medieval society • centered around the feudal castle. •As the population grew, an increasing number of people lived in towns and cities thereby eventually rendering the feudal system obsolete. •The development of the city classes---lower, middle, and upper- middle is evident in Canterbury Tales •The people in the cities were free---tied neither to the land, knighthood or chivalry.

The Great Happenings •The Crusades --- Chaucer’s knight---a series of wars waged by European Christians against the Muslims with Jerusalem and the Holy Land as the prize. •The Europeans ultimately the Crusades, Christian Europe was exposed to the Middle East’s sophisticated civilization.to hold Jerusalem but this contact with Eastern mathematics , astronomy, architecture, and crafts made possible the rich varied life we find in Chaucer. •As a result of the Crusades, Christian Europe was exposed to the Middle East’s sophisticated civilization.

Thomas A Becket martyred Friend to Henry II---was his chancellor (prime minister) Henry appointed him as Pope expecting him to agree with his policies---he didn’t Four of Henry’s knights murdered Becket in his Church on his altar because they thought Henry wanted this and they would be rewarded---they weren’t This incident created a backlash against Henry and was a significant setback for the monarchy in its power struggles with Rome. Examples of this are shown in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales--The Monk---lives a life of luxury without regard to the poor; Friar chases women and money; Summoner and Pardoner blackmail people with threats of eternal damnation. The Medieval Church fostered cultural unity; it was the center of learning---Latin was the international language of educated Europeans

THE MAGNA CARTA In 1215 at Runnymede, king John signed the MAGNA CARTA (the Great Charter)---it hearlded a return to older, democratic tendencies in England The signing was a defeat for central papal power. It became the basis for English Constitutional law in which such rights as trial by jury and legislative taxation were established

THE HUNDRED YEARS WAR The first national war England vs France based on the dubious claims to the throne of France by two English kings--- Edward III and HenryV Militarily unsuccessful for the English but an important factor in the gradual development of British national consciousness. After the war the English were no longer represented by the knight in shining armor but by the yeoman (small landowners) with his long bow---they could fly over castle walls and pierce the armor became a dominant force in the new society that grew out of feudalism Because of the yeoman, modern, democratic England was born.

The Black Death Bubonic Plague 1348-1349 Reduced the nations population by a third causing a labor shortage and giving the lower classes more leverage than ever before against their overlords. One long term result was the freedom of the serfs which knocked out feudalism ‘s last support.