The Middle Ages & Feudalism
What was the main political and social system of medieval Europe?
Feudalism
What is the difference between an epidemic and a pandemic?
Epidemic = regional
vs.
Pandemic = spreads across countries or continents.
What does the word Renaissance mean?
Rebirth
What is a city-state?
An independent city with its own government.
Who wrote the 95 Theses?
Martin Luther.
In the feudal system, what did lords primarily give in exchange for loyalty and service?
Land, primarily. Secondarily...
Protection
Military backing
Political support
What caused the Black Death to spread so quickly in Europe?
Trade routes, especially sea trade.
What Renaissance idea focused on human potential and education?
Humanism
Name two powerful Renaissance city-states.
Florence, Venice, Milan, Naples, the Papal States = most powerful. Genoa & Siena = less powerful, but ok
What Church practice did Martin Luther most strongly criticize?
The sale of indulgences.
Who made up the largest group in medieval society?
Peasants or serfs.
Name two major symptom of the Black Death.
- buboes
- fever
- black spots
- internal bleeding.
What artistic technique (from the renaissance) created depth and realism in paintings?
Perspective.
Who were the Medici?
A powerful banking family in Florence. (Interestingly, the bloodline became extinct in the 18th century).
What invention helped the Reformation spread quickly?
The printing press.
Why did peasants have limited freedom under feudalism?
They were bound to the land and owed labor to their lord.
What economic change resulted from the massive population decline?
Labor shortages increased wages.
List two reasons the Renaissance began in Italy.
- wealth from trade
- city-state competition
- access to classical knowledge
What is patronage?
Financial support given to artists and thinkers.
How did Renaissance ideas contribute to the Reformation?
They encouraged questioning authority and independent thinking.
How did the Black Death weaken the feudal system?
It caused labor shortages
- gave peasants more bargaining power that weakened noble control.
Why did port cities often experience the plague first?
Ships carried infected rats and fleas (from trade networks.)
Which two ancient civilizations most directly influenced Renaissance art and learning?
Roman
Greek
How did patronage help spread Renaissance ideas?
Funding art and learning allowed ideas to flourish and to gain in prestige and popularity.
After the Reformation, which two major branches of Christianity divided Western Europe?
Catholicism and Protestantism
DOUBLE JEOPARDY CATEGORY
HUMANISM
Humanism changed medieval ways of thinking because it shifted the focus from religious authority to...(name at least two changes)
human potential
individual achievement
critical/scientific thinking