WESTERN CIVILIZATION -A SHORT SURVEY

Europe in the Middle Ages

The Early Middle Ages

In the history of western civilization, the centuries following the fall of the Roman Empire in the West are
called the Middle Ages. During this time, new civilizations developed lands once ruled by Rome. In Arabia,
the new religion of Islam arose in the 7th century. Its followers called Muslims, built an Empire that
stretched from Spain to India. In the eastern Mediterranean, the rich eastern provinces of Rome became
the Byzantine Empire.

In Western and Central Europe, great changes occurred during the early Middle Ages (500-1500). City life
almost disappeared, the economy was disrupted, and learning declined. A new civilization – medieval
civilization - was taking shape, blending Christian, Germanic and Greco-Roman influences.

An organized Church develops – By the late years of the Roman Empire, the Christian Church had
developed a strong organization. The leading Church officials were bishops. Of these clergy, the bishop
of Rome, later to be called the Pope, came to be considered the head of the Church. For most people,
the local priest was their connection with the Church. Priests administered the sacraments, gave advice,
and tried to help the sick and needy.

Other men and women served the church by becoming monks and nuns. They lived apart from society,
devoting their lives to prayer, good works, and scholarship. Convents and monasteries served as hospitals,
provided shelter for travelers, and became centers of learning.

Medieval kingdoms develop in Western Europe – In the 8th century, a unified kingdom was established
by the Franks, a Germanic people living in what is now France. Their greatest ruler was Charlemagne, or
Charles the Great, who became king in 768. Charlemagne built an empire by conquering lands in Italy,
Spain, and what is now Germany. On Christmas day, 800, Pope Leo III crowned him “Emperor of the
Romans”.

Charlemagne’s empire was not like the Roman Empire, however, but the sign of something new. The form
of government and the laws he established were derived from Germanic customs. As a Christian, he
defended the Church against its enemies, and was crowned emperor by the Pope. Charlemagne also
encouraged scholars to preserve the learning of the Greco-Roman past. This blending of Germanic,
Christian and Roman elements came to characterize medieval civilization.

Raiders terrorize Europe – The breakup of Charlemagne’s empire after his death left Europe once again
with little centralized government. To add to the disorder, Europe suffered frequent invasions in the 9th
century. The most fearsome raiders came by sea from Scandinavia and were known as Vikings or
Northmen. In the 800’s and 900’s they spread terror all along the European coasts.

Other invaders, the Magyars, came from the broad Danube plain in eastern Europe and swept across Italy
and Germany. Along the Mediterranean, people faced raids by Muslim pirates based in Spain and North
Africa.

Feudalism develops to provide protection – The invasions disrupted European life, hindering trade,
hurting agriculture and leaving settlements and monasteries in ruins. As there was no central authority
to offer protection, people turned to local lords who owned large estates and had their own armies.

The system of protective alliances and relationships that developed is called feudalism. In exchange for
military assistance and other services, one lord granted land to another noble, who became his vassal.
The lord-vassal relationship was cemented by a solemn ceremony in which the vassal pledged loyalty to
the lord. In return for his pledge, the vassal received the feudal lord’s protection as well as the grant of
land. The peasants who lived on the land also were included in the lord’s grant. They raised the crops
that supported the vassal and they, too, expected protection in time of trouble. Feudalism became the
main political arrangement in Europe after the breakup of Charlemagne’ s empire.

Frequent warfare shapes medieval life – Because they lived in violent times, feudal lords were primarily
warriors who fought to protect and extend their lands. They built castles that were encircled by massive
walls and guarded by watchtowers. Young nobles were trained to be knights. Gradually a code of
behavior called chivalry grew up for knights and lords. It demanded loyalty, bravery, respect for women,
and devotion to the Church.

In some parts of medieval Europe, women could inherit land and the power that went with it. The world
of most women, however, was limited to the castle. Noblewomen supervised their households, tended
the sick and wounded, and ran the estate when the lord was away.

Life centers on the manor – The wealth of feudal lords came from the labor of the peasants who lived on
their lands. Most of these peasants were serfs who owned no land and were not free to leave the lord’s
estate. They lived in cottages in a small village on the lord’s estate or manor. From the lord the serfs
received housing and land to farm. In return they worked together to farm the lord’s land and perform
other tasks on the manor.

Almost everything needed for daily life was produced by the farmlands, mills, and workshops on the
manor. Serfs rarely left the lord’s lands, for travel was difficult and dangerous. Peasants lived, worked
and died on the lord’s estate and were buried in the village churchyard. They knew almost nothing of the
outside world.

Medieval Europe at its Height

By the middle of the 11th century, medieval civilization was at its height. The High Middle Ages (1050-
1270) witnessed an agricultural revolution, an increase in trade and commerce, the rebirth of towns, and
the rise of an enterprising middle class. Kings began to create strong central governments that provided
greater security.

Advances in agriculture bring population growth – During the Middle Ages, the food supply increased
greatly because of new inventions and more efficient ways of farming. In some parts of Europe anew,
heavier plow made it possible to bring large tracts of land under cultivation for the first time. The water
wheel and the windmill made it easier to grind grain. As food production rose, the number of deaths from
starvation and malnutrition decreased, and the population grew.

Trade and commerce revive – Because the growing population needed more products, trade expanded.
By the High Middle Ages, several city-states in Italy controlled the profitable Mediterranean trade. Other
trade routes opened up in northern Europe and along the rivers between the Baltic Sea in the north and
the Black Sea and Constantinople to the south.

The increase of trade led to changes in ways of doing business. Merchants pooled their money to raise
money for large-scale trading expeditions. Banking practices developed when moneychangers began to
lend money and provide letters of credit and other services for merchants. Still another commercial
development was the appearance of merchant and craft guilds. The guilds protected their members from
outside competition and regulated business in a town. Through the apprentice system, young workers
learned a craft or trade.

Towns grow and middle class develops – Expanded trade and an increased food supply encouraged the
growth of towns. Townspeople gained the right to set up their own laws and establish their own system
of taxes. Many European towns became self-governing city-states, the first since Greco-Roman times.

A new social class grew up in the towns. Master artisans, merchants, and their families made up this
growing and prosperous middle class, who had no obligation to a lord.

Medieval universities are found – As towns grew and prospered, there was a revival of learning. To gain
an education in fields such as law or medicine, young men were sent to study with scholars who were
famous for their learning. These meetings of students and teachers eventually developed into
universities. The curriculum of these schools was based on Latin translations of ancient Greek works.

England becomes a strong unified state – As towns grew and trade expanded in the High Middle Ages,
kings became stronger and more able to establish central authority. The first state to become unified was
England, after its conquest by William of Normandy in 1066. William (often called William the Conqueror)
set up a strong and efficient central government. He kept a sixth of the land for himself and divided the
rest among the Norman feudal lords, who became his vassals.

William’s successors made changes that strengthened royal rule. Under Henry II, in the 12th century, a
common law for the whole kingdom was established by the royal courts. The system of trial by jury also
was begun.

The Magna Charta and Parliament limit royal power - The power of the monarch grew steadily until it was
challenged by the English barons. In 1215 they forced King John to grant them certain rights in the Magna
Charta. Some of these rights became a basic part of the British system of government. They were (1) the
consent of the people’s representatives to levy taxes; (2) right to trial by jury; and (3) the monarch’s duty
to govern according to law.

The power of the English monarch also came to be limited by a Parliament made up of representatives of
the people. The restraints that the common law, the Magna Charta and Parliament placed on the English
ruler laid the foundations for limited monarchy.

French monarchs strengthen royal power – Rulers in France also created a unified state by adding to the
territory they held as feudal lords. In 1204 Philip II (Philip Augustus) became stronger than any other lord
by taking over most of the territories held by the English in northern France.

Louis IX strengthened royal power by drawing up laws that applied throughout the kingdom, outlawing
private warfare, and establishing royal courts. By the end of the Middle Ages, French kings had created a
state in which the monarch had nearly absolute power.
Italy and Germany remain divided – The power of the Pope, of the city-states and of local rulers kept Italy
divided during the Middle Ages. As was the Germanic custom, Germanic dukes elected one noble as king,
but this ruler had little authority over them.

In 962, the German king Otto the Great convinced the Pope to crown him “Emperor of the Romans”.
German kings who followed him all claimed this title, and the lands they ruled came to be called the Holy
Roman Empire. Later Holy Roman Emperors frequently became engaged in power struggles with the
Popes, for the Church claimed considerable political authority in Europe.

The Crusades contribute to change – Early in the Middle Ages, the Muslim Empire included lands in Spain,
North Africa, and the Near East. With Church support, medieval lords in the 11th century began to war
against the Muslims. In a series of wars known as the Crusades, Europeans tried to take control of the
Holy Land from the Muslim Turks. In the First Crusade, the Christian forces captured Jerusalem (1099),
and set up Christian states in the Holy Land. Despite later Crusades, the Muslims gradually regained these
lands over the next century.

The Crusades marked a period of change for Western Europe. They encouraged the growth of trade,
contributed to the decline of feudalism, and weakened the authority of the papacy. The Crusades also
brought Western Europeans into contact with Muslim culture and the civilization of the Byzantine Empire.
Scholars in these civilizations had preserved much ancient Greek and Roman knowledge, inspiring a revival
of learning in the West.

Art and literature flourish in the High Middle Ages – Medieval art and literature often reflected people’s
religious beliefs. The most dramatic expression of devotion to the Church was the soaring Gothic
cathedrals, which used the pointed arch and flying buttresses to achieve great height and a feeling of
spaciousness. Gothic architecture replaced the earlier more massive Romanesque style.

Important developments in medieval literature included the recording of ancient legends and epics and
the beginning of the use of the vernacular rather than Latin. The greatest poet of the Middle Ages was
Dante Alighieri of Florence, Italy, who wrote the Divine Comedy in medieval Italian. An English poet,
Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales, which painted a vivid picture of everyday medieval life.

The End of Middle Ages

The 12th and 13th centuries were the high point of medieval civilization. In the 14th century, medieval
civilization underwent great upheavals.

Famine and disease cause a drop in population – In the late Middle Ages, the population of Western
Europe declined. As the soil in heavily farmed areas was worn out, famine and starvation became
frequent threats. The bubonic plague known as the Black Death, spread throughout Europe in 1348 killing
between a third and half of the population.

England and France are involved in constant war – The suffering caused by natural disasters was increased
by a series of conflicts between France and England known as the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453).
Fought entirely on French land, the war caused great hardship. France’s eventual victory was due in part
to a young peasant, Joan of Arc, who led French troops to victory at Orleans in 1429. Joan’s example
inspired the French people, and by 1453 they had driven the English from all of France except the city of
Calais. The victory helped to strengthen the French king’s power.

Almost immediately after their defeat, the English found themselves in civil war at home. Disputes over
the throne led to the Wars of the Roses (1455-1485) between the rival houses of York and Lancaster.
The Tudor dynasty was established at the end of the war.

Church authority declines – As the power of the monarchs grew in the late Middle Ages, the authority of
the Pope declined. A conflict between the French king and the Pope led eventually to a situation in
which there were two rival Popes. Such disputes undermined the Pope’s prestige and the unity of the
Church.
During this period many Christians questioned the Church’s active role in political affairs and
criticized its accumulation of wealth. Although Christianity and the Church remained important forces in
people’s lives and in cultural developments, the political power of the Church was diminishing by the
15th century. The Church’s decreased authority, along with the growth of towns and the rise of unified
states were signs that the medieval period was gradually coming to an end.