The Middle Ages

1066 - 1485

William the Conqueror

   Defeats and kills the last Anglo-Saxon king at the Battle of Hastings.

Inventories every piece of property in England, first property tax Brings FEUDALISM – a property, military, and social system based on religious hierarchy.

Knighthood and Chivalry

      Main duty of men above serf (peasant) class was military obligation to their lords.

Boys were trained early to be warriors.

1 st 2 nd stage – page stage – squire 3 rd stage – knight Chivalry – knight’s code of conduct

Women

     Were always subservient to a man (father, husband, brother) Had no political rights No property rights Treatment depended on rank and social standing of man in her life.

Chivalry dictated that women be protected and treated with courtesy.

Courtly Love

    Idea that by revering a worthy lady and acting in her name, a knight would be braver and better.

Knight’s lady would be idealized or “put on a pedestal” Knight might wear her colors into battle or glorify her in poetry or song Ideally, courtly love was non-sexual

Society

   Medieval society centered around a feudal castle As time period continued, more people began living in cities and towns.

A middle or merchant class began to emerge.

The Crusades

   In 1096, Europe wanted to reclaim Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the Muslims. Conquered but failed to hold Jerusalem.

Benefited from contact with Eastern cultures: mathematics, astronomy, spices, horticulture (plants, like roses)

The Magna Carta

    Document is the basis for English constitutional law Signed by King John in 1215 under pressure from barons.

Gave barons greater voice in national affairs.

Movement toward democratic society.

The Hundred Years War

   1337 – 1453, war between England and France.

Beginning of English national identity.

Rise of the YEOMAN class – small landowners who fought in the war.

Wars of the Roses

   1455 – 1485 Conflicts between two branches of the English royal family, the Lancasters and the Yorks, for the throne.

Ended by Henry VII, of the Lancaster line, who defeats Richard III, an unpopular York king, then marries Richard’s niece, uniting the families and creating the Tudor line.

The Black Death

      Bubonic Plague First strikes England in 1348-1349.

Highly contagious.

Spread by fleas from infected rats.

First outbreak reduced the population by 1/3.

Labor shortages gave lower classes more political leverage, contributed to the decline of feudalism.

Martyrdom of Thomas Becket

King Henry II appointed Becket Archbishop of Canterbury, thinking his friend would side with him over the Pope.

 Thomas showed fierce loyalty to the Pope, to the great frustration of Henry.

  Four of the king’s knights murdered Becket in the cathedral at Canterbury after Henry had exclaimed in a rage, “Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?” Result was the cult of St. Thomas the Martyr, a reaction against the king.