Kevin
Putnam
Per.
3, Haskell
MIDDLE AGES STUDY GUIDE
*peasant- Poorer
people who usually were serfs in manors.
*usury- lending
money at interest. It is the profit
that merchants and traders made.
*capital-
money for investment. When merchants
needed money to buy goods for trade, they were in need of a capital.
*tithe- a
tax equal to a tenth of ones income.
Churches used tithes as a way to help the poor.
*fief- an
estate. Vassals were granted fiefs
by the lords
*chivalry- specific
code of conduct. It required
knights to become true to their word and be brave.
*charter- A
written document that set out the rights and privileges of the town. Charters were set by the king to protect interests
*troubadour- Wandering
poets. They adopted the view of
protecting and cherishing women.
*manor economy- In the medieval economy, manors included one or more villages and the land that surrounds it. The
majority of the people that lived in medieval times,
lived in a manor.
*how monks and nuns lived- Monks and Nuns lived their lives devoted to their spiritual
beliefs and goals.
*Why was church reform desired?-
The success of the Medieval church
brought many problems many big problems. This problem and corruption of the
church led to the reform.
*new agricultural technologies- Peasants invented the iron plow. This helped them farm and
grow crops much easier and faster than they used to .
*defense of castles- castles built moats to help protect them selves in
battle. People on top of the high rock walls could fire projectiles such as
arrows through tiny holes in them.
*Battle of Tours- In 732, a Muslim army was defeated by Frankish warriors
led by Charles Martel. Christians took the victory as a sign from god telling
them he was on their side.
*vassals- Lesser
lords. Vassals pledged loyalty and
service to higher, greater lords
*peasants- people that lived in the Empires who were much poorer than
the rest of the population.
*knights-
Mounted warrior. Nobles trained to
become knights to fight for the king of their Empire.
*lords- People
who were under the monarchs in the Feudal system, but Above
the lesser lords, knights and peasants. .
*why did the church have great power over the people?- there were no
public schools, hospitals, or social programs so the churches provided these
things for the people.
*Cluniac reforms- A monastery set
out to end abuses in the early 900s. Then more monasteries copied the Cluniac reform program spreading Abbot’s reform across
*merchant guilds- These associations of merchants were called guilds. In some places,
guilds rivaled and had riots and revolts.
*clergy - The
body of people ordained for religious service.
*nobles – Nobles
trained to become knights, or fierce warriors of their Empire.
*Charlemagne is
the grandson of Charles Martel who built the empire that reached across Germany
France, and part of
*Leif Erikson was a Viking who set up a short lived Viking colony on
the North-American continent.
*serf-
Peasants on a manor. Serfs were
not free nor were they slaves. They had some privileges.
*excommunication or exclusion from the Roman Catholic church
as a penalty for refusing to obey church laws. These people could not be buried
in the sacred land and were bad people.
*steel plow- The
steal plow was invented for plowing the soil. This made farming and growing
crops much easier and peasants could grow more crops faster.
*feudal system- A system where Monarchs are at the top, then the lords, then lesser
lords, then the knights and at the very bottom is the peasants.
*Black Death- which regions most devastated population
died? result? - the black death or
bubonic plague spread through the population killing many.
*Magna Carta- the magna carta
was a great charter. This document gave a long list of feudal rights.
*Concordat of Worms the treaty that finally ended the 50 year struggle. It said that popes
could be elected by the church and they could have spiritual authority.
*Chief goal of/ and result of the Crusades – The crusades or holy war, was started by Philip II. This crusade
was against the Albigensians in southern
*early jury system- a jury is a group of men sworn to speak the truth. These first early
juries determined which cases should be brought to a trial. This started what
are juries are today.
*conflict between emperors and popes in about the 1100 and 1200’s Frederick II embroiled in
Short Answer
A. 5 reasons late Middle Ages
was a time of decline.
Five reasons the late middle ages
was a time of decline.
1. The black death/bubonic
plague
2. The Hundred years war
3. The Crusades
4. struggles between Popes
and Emperors
5. Upheaval in the Church
B. 3 long term effects of the
crusades
Three long term effects on the Crusades
1.
Divided up the captured land into four small states.
2.
The conflicts between the Muslims and Christians
3.
In the fourth crusade, the crusaders were diverted from fighting muslims to Christians.