6. Medieval Europe
What does the term Middle Ages describe? What are 2 key things that occurred during this time?
-Time from the Fall of Rome to the Renaissance
-Political Fragmentation (Roman empire doesn't rule everyone now) and Cultural decline (lack of innovation among other things)
Who was King Henry II, what were his main accomplishments?
-King in England, made legal reforms-People had to go to court trail with a jury when accused of crime. *Strengthened Royal Court, made Catholic Church mad because a clergy would be tried in Royal Court, not Church Court*
-Constitutions of Clarendon: kings traditional rights document
-supporters of king assassinated Archbishop Thomas Becket
Why did the English initially succeed in the 100 yrs war? How did the English and French army differ?
-English: light armor, longbows
-French: heavy armor, crossbows
*Even though the English were outnumbered, they were swifter and could attack precisely from further away*
Briefly summarize the Roman Empire's relation to the Byzantine Empire.
-Roman empire was divided into east and west, Emperor Constantine established capitol in Byzantium (east)
-Even though western Roman Empire fell, east lived on for another 1000 yrs (Byzantine Empire)
Describe the government structure in Imperial China.
What did China use/rely on to help decide who should be emperor, how does it relate to the Dynastic cycle?
-Imperial dynasties: person from special family rule
-Emperor: person in power, mostly males
-Succession: emperor's son next emperor, if no son then emperor's brother, no brother then cousin or uncle
-Bureacracy: Gov't offical that followed Emperor's rules (since so much land, Emperor can't be every ya know)
____
-Mandate of Heaven, kind of like blessing from gods/heaven
(Good sign -> should rule, they rule for a while but probelms eventually arise -> bad sign-> should not rule, people rebel)=Dynastic cycle, pattern of rising and falling of dynasties
Describe Feudalism in the Middle Ages, why did people follow it?
-Monarch (king) owns a lot of land, needs help protecting, gives fiefs to lords in return they are a vassal (give loyalty). Lords could repeat process with knights
-People followed feudalism because 1 Code of Chivalry 2 peopled wanted to be safe from Vikings
Who was King John, what important document did he put his seal on?
-Henry's youngest son, was very hated because of his mistreatment of barons/nobles and losing land
-Angry nobles/barons forced him to put his seal on the Magna Carta which stated that the king is king, but he must respect noble's rights
(Rights slowly extend to commoners over time)
How did the French fight back, what did they change, were they inspired?
-Adopted English tactics, commoners now payed to fight
-Joan of Arc: 17 yr old peasant girl heard voices of saints to save France, dressed as a boy, and led army to victory in the Battle of Orleans. The English end up capturing her and putting her on trail for being a heretic. She is burned at the stack but her actions inspire the French.
Why was Byzantium/Constantinople chosen as the capital, what advantages did it have over Rome?
-Byzanium, later renamed Constantinople, was located on a peninsula. The Byzantine fleet surrounded the seasides while the land side had a multi layered wall which was extremly thick. Its location was also in the center of trading, making trade great in Byzantium. (Rome was in an awkward location for trade and easily attacked)
What are the cultural developments we learned about in China? Who is a key person in this?
-Confusius
-His teachings influenced China--Behaviour of people: virutue, respect, trustworthines--Government's job to provide education for this
-Filial Pity: respect elders, women respect men
*Buddhism spreaded from India to China*
What was Manorialism and how did Serfdom relate to it?
-Manorialism: Manors provided protection and essentials due to limited trade, lord+knights would protect the people, in turn, the serfs stayed in the manor and worked to keep it self-sufficient.
What was King Edward's main accomplishment?
-Formed and organized the Model Parliament, a governing body which limited Monarchy and consisted of the Catholic Church, nobles, and commoners.
What happened to feudalism (1/3 impact of 100 yrs war)
-Feudalism declined; power shifted from feudal lords to monarchs and common people (kings no longer relied on nobles to supply knights)
Why was Constantinople/Byzantium one of the most impressive cities in the world?
-Cosmopolitan- lots of people of various backgrounds
-Had a Hippodrome, like an arena for chariot racing
China was the most comercialized civilization through history, what were some of its Economic Developments?
-Silk & Porcelain
-Grand Canal: increase trade
-Paper money
*Agriculture led to population growth
-Terracing and irrigation
How did the Roman Catholic Church come into being?
-Constantine gets a vision to paint cross on shield/armor, ends up winning a battle and becoming emperor. Makes Christianity (Roman Catholic Church) the main religion of the Roman Empire.
Where did the Black Death begin? How did it spread to Europe? How did people react to it?
-Spread by silk road and ships, because fleas on infected rodents would carry the disease
-Dirty conditions also contributed to the spread
-People had no clue what was going on and blamed the Jews
What changed in military tech? (2/3 impact of 100 yrs war)
-Gunpowder-Cannons- very useful-
-Castles less effective because of cannons (need for knights also reduced because commoners were being payed to fight)
Why is Justinian considered one of the greatest Byzantine Emperors?
-Territorial expanison
-Nika Riots (Blue and Green teams in chariot racing hated eachother, Justinian crushed their rebellion_
-Haiga Sophia
-Plague of Justinian
-Justinian's code (Justinian rewrote old laws because organized and updated laws needed for a succesful empire)
What are 4 main technoligical developments from China?
-Magnetic compass:travel directions
-Paper+Printing
-Gunpowder (an accidental discovery by Chinese alchemists who wanted potion for long life, used for fire arrows and flamthrowers initially, then fireworks, spread by Mongols)
-Junk(ship) China had best ships
What were The Crusades?
-Christians wanted to visit Jerusalem but were cut off by the Islamic world. Pope called for the people to retake the holy city, if they succeeded their sins would be removed. The first Crusade was successful, but the Muslims took the city back. Following Crusades all failed.
What was the Impact of the Black Death/Bubonic Plague in Europe?
-Mass death
-Trade & commerce slowed
-Peasant Revolts=decline of serfdom, power shifted away from feudal lords because peasants valued for their work
What is the 3rd impact of 100 yrs war that we learned about? (related to Joan of Arc)
What 3 external threats led to the Byzantine Empire to decline?
-Islamic expansion
-The Crusades sack Constantinople
-The Ottomans conquest broke the walls of Constantinople
What were the Civil service Exams used for? Why would one take them even if they are harsh?
Describe how 4 dynasties used these exams.
-Used to get a position in government, consisted of history, literature, poetry, Confucius' teachings and law+administration. Rules and grading very strict, but if you manged to pass you were set for life by wealth and respect
-Han:founded, Tang:favored aristocrats, Song: Meritocracy, Yaun(Mongols): abolished