WHG 14: The Formation of Western Europe

• The period in Western Europe between 500 and 1000 was called a "dark age" by some historians
• Magyars seeking plunder pushed up from the Danube River region
• Vikings raided western European church monasteries, destroying many centers of learning
• Around the 900s, a new spirit invaded the church, leading to a spiritual revival in the clergy
• The church began restructuring itself and started massive building programs to create new places of worship
• Monasteries led the spiritual revival, with the Cluny monastery in France being especially important
• Reformers at Cluny wanted to return to the basic principles of the Christian religion and established new religious orders
• The popes began to reform the Church, restoring and expanding its power and authority, leading to the Age of Faith
• Some priests were nearly illiterate and some popes had questionable morals
• Reformers were distressed by issues such as village priests marrying, bishops selling positions in the Church (simony), and kings appointing church bishops through lay investiture
• Pope Leo IX and Pope Gregory VII enforced Church laws against simony and the marriage of priests
• The Church was reorganized in the 1100s and 1200s to resemble a kingdom, with the pope at its head
• The pope's group of advisers was called the papal Curia, which also acted as a court and developed canon law
• The Church collected taxes in the form of tithes, using the money for social services such as caring for the sick and the poor
• In the early 1200s, wandering friars traveled preaching and spreading the Church's ideas, taking vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience
• Francis of Assisi founded the Franciscans, treating all creatures as spiritual brothers and sisters
• Women played an important role in the spiritual revival, joining various religious orders and helping the poor and sick
• Economics exam
• The feudal system declined as agriculture, trade, finance, towns, and universities developed
• Cathedrals were built in city areas, viewed as representations of the City of God, with Romanesque style churches built between 800 and 1100
• Changes in the Middle Ages laid the foundations for modern Europe
• Europe's great revival was made possible by better ways of farming and an increased food supply
• Gothic architecture evolved in the early 1100s, characterized by buildings thrusting upward, huge stained glass windows, and inspiring elements meant to magnify God
• A warmer climate from about 800 to 1200 brought improved farm production
• Gothic cathedrals were built in many towns of France, with elements such as ribbed vaults, flying buttresses, pointed arches, and tall spires
• Farmers began using horses instead of oxen for plowing, leading to increased productivity
• The Crusades were launched by the Catholic Church to gain control of the Holy Land, with economic, social, political, and religious motives
• Around A.D. 800, villages began organizing their lands into a three-field system, increasing food production
• The Crusades aimed to reclaim Palestine, reunite Christendom, and get rid of quarrelsome knights, among other goals
• Guilds were organizations of individuals in the same business or occupation working to improve economic and social conditions
• Merchant guilds controlled the number of goods being traded and kept prices up
• Merchants profited from the Crusades by making cash loans, leasing ships, and hoping to win control of key trade routes from Muslim traders
• Craft guilds set standards for quality of work, wages, and working conditions
• Pope Urban II issued a call for the First Crusade, leading to an outpouring of religious feeling and support
• Guilds trained young people in skilled jobs, regulated the quality of goods sold, and were major forces in community life
• The Commercial Revolution involved an expansion of trade and business
• Pope Urban's call for the First Crusade led to an outpouring of religious support
• Most trade took place in towns, with great fairs held several times a year where merchants from all parts of Europe traded goods
• Crusaders wore red crosses on their tunics and had the battle cry of "God wills it!"
• Increased availability of trade goods and new ways of doing business changed life in Europe