This capital city of the Byzantine Empire, located in modern-day Istanbul, was well-fortified and ideally placed for trade.
What is Constantinople?
100
King John of England was forced to sign this document in 1215, which protected the rights of citizens against abuses of power.
What is the Magna Carta?
100
In medieval Europe, these were peasants legally bound to the land who had to provide labor services, pay rents, and be subject to a lord’s control.
What are serfs?
100
In 1095 Pope Urban II called for the first of these military expeditions in order to regain Jerusalem from Muslims.
What are the Crusades?
100
This crisis of the Middle Ages was the most devastating and resulted in the deaths of up to one-half of the total population of Europe between 1347 and 1351.
What is the plague (or Black Death)?
200
This Byzantine emperor’s most lasting contribution was his clarification of the legal code.
Who is Justinian?
200
The threat of barbarian invasions during the Middle Ages encouraged the development of this political and social system in which nobles offered protection and land in return for service.
What is feudalism?
200
These business associations, which were usually tied to a particular trade or craft, came to have a leading role in the economic life of medieval cities.
What are guilds?
200
The church built some of the first of these educational institutions where students often learned by listening to books being read aloud.
What are universities?
200
Due to this conflict over Catholic leadership, the Church’s power began to decline after the 1300s.
What is the Great (Papal) Schism?
300
Although predominantly Greek in its language and culture, the Byzantine Empire was also referred to as this.
What is the Eastern Roman Empire?
300
This powerful ruler, also known as Charles the Great, united much of Europe and was granted the title of Holy Roman Emperor.
Who is Charlemagne?
300
In medieval Europe, these were agricultural estates that lords ran and peasants worked.
What are manors?
300
This court, which used torture to extract confessions, was created by the Catholic Church to find and try heretics.
What is the Inquisition?
300
Although this woman was ultimately captured by the English and condemned to death as a heretic, her actions helped bring an end to the Hundred Years’ War.
Who is Joan of Arc?
400
The mutual excommunication of the Roman Pope Leo IX and the Byzantine patriarch Michael Cerularius in 1054 led to the split between the Roman Catholic Church and this new church.
What is the Eastern Orthodox Church?
400
In the Middle Ages, this term referred to a man (such as a knight) who served a lord in a military capacity.
What are vassals?
400
This term is used to describe the expansion of trade and new forms of business, including using banks and currency, that arose in the 13th century.
What is the Commercial Revolution?
400
The Benedictines and Franciscans are two examples of groups that practiced this lifestyle in the Middle Ages.
What is monasticism?
400
Jewish people in Europe were sometimes blamed for crises such as the plague, resulting in the rise of this hostile and sometimes violent attitude.
What is Antisemitism?
500
This massive Byzantine church, which dominated the landscape of the capital, was converted to a mosque in 1453.
What is the Hagia Sophia?
500
In around 500, this Frankish king became one of the first Germanic rulers to convert to Christianity.
Who is Clovis?
500
A boy who wanted to learn a trade had to first become one of these, usually at around the age of 10, which meant that his education was generally limited to training under a master craftsman.
What is an apprentice?
500
This style of architecture, often used in building cathedrals, became popular in Europe starting in the 12th century.
What is Gothic?
500
This civil war took place within England as two families contested the throne.