*Nobles- Many nobles would go and train to become knights. By the 1100s, some even owned sprawling stone castles with high wall, towers, and drawbridges over wide moats. Both noblewomen and noblemen played important roles in war.
*Charlemagne- Charlemagne was the emperor in the early Middle Ages, who brought much of what is today the nation of Germany under his rule. After his death, Germany dissolved into a patchwork of separate states ruled by a number of powerful counts and dukes.
*Leif Erikson- Leif Erikson was a Viking who set up a short lived Viking colony on the continent of North America in about the year 1000. This showed how great the Vikings were at exploration.
*Serf- Serfs were peasants who were bound to the land of their lords. Serfs were not slaves who could be bought and sold. Still, they were not free.
*Excommunication- Excommunication was a severe punishment if someone refused to obey Church laws. To people who believed in the tortures of hell, such a punishment was truly terrifying.
*Steel Plow- By about 800, peasants were using new iron plows that carved deep into the heavy soil of northern Europe. These were better than the old wooden ones because the wooden ones were made for light soil while Europe had deep heavy soil.
*Feudal system- The feudal system was a loosely organized system of rule in which powerful local lords divided their large landholdings among the lesser lords. The vassals, in exchange pledged loyalty.
*Black Death- Which regions most devastated? % population died? Result? - The regions which were most devastated were Europe, Asia and North Africa. 1/3 of the population of Europe was killed. The results of the Black Death were the blaming of Jews and the dropping in the economy.
*Magna Carta- The Magna Carta was signed by John, which affirmed a long list of feudal rights. King John was forced to sign this document because he had angered his own nobles with heavy- handed taxes and other abuses of power.
*Concordat of Worms- Concordat of Worms was a treaty which was accepted in 1122 by the Church and the emperor. The treaty said that the Church had the sole power to elect and invest bishops with spiritual authority.
*Chief goal of/ and result of the Crusades- The chief goal of the crusades was to conquer the Holy Land. A result of the Crusades was increasing trade.
*Reconquista- Reconquista means reconquest, which took place when the crusaders reconquered Spain from the Muslims. The reconquista was driven by some tiny Christian kingdoms which survived in the north.
*Early jury system- The early juries decided which cases should be brought into trial and they were the ancestors of today's grand jury. Later, another jury evolved that was composed of 12 neighbors of an accused.
*Conflict between emperors and popes- The conflict between emperors and popes was that Pope Gregory�s ban brought an angry response from the Holy Roman emperor, Henry IV. He argued that bishops held their lands as royal fiefs.
Short Answer
A. 5 reasons late Middle Ages was a time of decline.- Five reasons that the late Middle Ages were a decline was because the Black Death which killed 1/3 of Europe�s population. The second reason was the economic results of the plague, which plunged the economy of Europe very low. The third reason was the fact that most priests and monks died during the plague, which made it hard to find replacements. The forth reason was the Church still faced more problems because of moral authority weakened. The fifth reason was the Hundred Years� War which was long and destructive lasting from 1337 to 1453.
B. 3 long term effects of the crusades- Three long term affects of the crusades was the increase in trade, helped to increase the power of feudal monarchs and they encouraged the growth of a money economy.
