Early Middle Ages

1. The Early Middle
Ages

2. Middle Ages
The years between CE 400s and 1500s
are called the Middle Ages
 Also called the Medieval period
This period is seen as a transition in the
development of western culture
 Took place in Europe

4. Foundations of Early Medieval
Society
Classical heritage of Rome
Christian beliefs
Customs of Germanic tribes

5. Background Information
The decline of Roman influence in
Western Europe left people with
little protection against invasion, so
they entered into feudal
agreements with land-
holding lords who promised
them protection.

6. Feudal Agreements
As we have seen repeatedly,
when power falls, chaos often
follows.
 With the decline of the Western
Roman Empire (the power),
western Europe fell into complete
chaos.

7. Germanic Invasions shattered
Roman protection over the Empire.

8. Germanic Invasions
In 476, the last of the Western
Roman Empire vanished.
One of the major reasons for the
decline and fall of Rome was the
Germanic Invasions

9. Those invasions
continued into the
Medieval period, also
known as the Middle
Ages.
These invaders were the
Angles, Saxons,
Magyars and Vikings.
Germanic Invasions

10. Germanic Invasions
They greatly
influenced the
development of
Europe.

11. Germanic Invasions
Angles and Saxons came from the
European continent (current day
Germany) and settled in England

12. Anglo Saxons

13. Germanic Invasions
Magyars came from Central Asia
and settled in what is now
Hungary

14. Germanic Invasions
Vikings were raiders
that would make raids
into Europe, steal
everything they could,
and then go back to
Scandinavia. They
rarely settled.
 Later they migrate to
Russia.
Known for their ship-
building and navigation
skills

15. What was the Result of
these Invasions?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
Q_KWEMmbHjM&index=6&list=PL
F78AEA66545C9BCE
Invasions disrupted trade
Towns declined
Strengthened the Feudal system

16. Rise of Feudal
Agreements
Roman protection is gone
Roman towns are in decline,
losing population rapidly.
Remember, Roman towns
developed to support trade with
the Roman legions stationed at
forts, protecting the borders.

17. From This
To This

18. Rise of Feudal
Agreements
Without any central government, those
towns started to die and people drifted
away.
Add to this mix, the Germanic barbarians
wandering the countryside causing
trouble.
These people had no written laws and
elected kings to lead them.

19. Rise of Feudal
Agreements
People were
looking for
leadership and
protection.
Local strongmen
who commanded
small armies
often provided
that protection

20. Rise of Feudal
Agreements
The agreement part came when
people agreed to work the land of
the local strongman in return for
protection.
 “I’ll farm for you and you won’t let
the bad guys get me.”
Each side had responsibilities and
benefits.

21. Medieval Society
Three social classes grew
out of this initial chaos and
reorganization:
 Nobles
 Clergy
 Peasants

22. Nobles
Ruling class, top
of the pyramid,
the strongman
Kings, lords,
vassals, and
knights were all
types of nobility.

23. Clergy
Clergy – Church
officials
 Priests, monks, nuns,
the Pope.
Could come from the
nobility or the peasant
class.

24. Clergy
Obviously, clergy that
came from nobility were
ranked higher in the
church than peasant
clergy.

25. Peasants
Lowest class,
also the largest
Approximately
95% of the entire
population of
Europe at this
time were
Peasants.

26. Peasants
Three guesses as to what peasants
did for work…..

27. Peasants
FARM!!!

28. Farming
Unlike the Mediterranean land which had
dry soils the land in Western Europe had
nutrient rich soil
Also had plenty of timber, underground
mineral deposits and seas for riches.
Could trade through large rivers and
mountain streams could turn water
wheels.

29. Peasants
Peasants had
no power
They lived
dirty, difficult,
short lives of
unending
work, mostly
farm work.

30. Peasants
Although they mostly farmed Peasants
performed chores around the manor
house
Many went hungry in winter months
Disease killed many and few peasants
lived beyond the age of 35
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIfDhHIy
-Wo

31. Peasants
Two Types of Peasants
1. Serfs – People who were tied to
the land, could not leave the
land of their lord. The lord had
complete power over the serf.
 Similar to a slave, but could not be
sold off the manor (lord’s land)

32. Peasants
Two Types of Peasants
2. Freemen – only 2% of the
peasant population were
freemen. They were frequently
skilled laborers who would be
hired to do work for the lord.

33. Nobility & Feudal Obligation
Remember, there is no
central government
during the early Middle
Ages.
Created a system
called Feudalism

34. Feudalism is a system in which a powerful
noble grants land to a lesser noble – a set
of mutual obligations between a lord and
vassal
 In exchange for land the lesser noble
promised loyalty, military assistance, and
other services
Nobility & Feudal Obligation

35. Nobility & Feudal Obligation
This is called the Lord-
Vassal Relationship
(Feudal Contract).
 Lord – noble man who
granted land
 Vassal – received land,
expected to be loyal,
provide military support
and pay ransoms to free
Lords

37. Nobility & Feudal Obligation
Fief – the lot of land granted to a
vassal by a lord

38. World of Nobles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pygLvy
DdewU&list=PLF78AEA66545C9BCE&ind
ex=2

39. Nobility & Feudal Obligation
Knight – landless
noble (often the
second or third son
of a noble) who was
trained to fight for a
living – professional
warrior

40. Chivalry
Definition: Chivalry is a code of conduct
 A system of rules that dictated a knight’s
behavior toward others
Knighthood
 To be a knight, a boy had to belong to the
noble class and pass training
 Knights were expected to be courageous in
battle and fight fairly
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZrE1mVc
B2k&index=9&list=PLF78AEA66545C9BCE

41. Nobility & Feudal Obligation
A person could be both a
lord and a vassal at the
same time…and often was
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QV7Ca
nyzhZg&index=16&list=PLF78AEA66545C
9BCE

42. King or Monarch
King’s Vassals
LORDS
Vassals to lower lords
Peasants

43. Warfare
For nobles, war was an opportunity for
glory and wealth
Warfare was a way of life
Feudal Justice – trial by battle, oath taking,
or trial by ordeal

44. Manorial system
The Manorial System was
the primary economic system
during the Middle Ages
(rigid class system)
Nobles gave peasants the right to work
land on their manors in return for a fixed
payment (usually 1/3 of the manor land)

45. Manorial system
Manor – a large farm estate with houses,
land, woods, pastures, fields, and villages
Manors were self-sufficient (provided for
themselves!)

46. Medieval Manor
They were totally self-
sufficient, producing
everything they
needed right on the
manor.
During the Middle
Ages, trade was nearly
non-existent.

47. Wheat Field
Fallow Field
Mill
Church
Lord’s Manor House
Well
Blacksmith Shop
Lord’s Oven
Peasant’s Houses
Kitchen Garden
Peas, Oats, Barley,
Beans

48. Life in a Manor
Peasant Life
 Very hard life – spent long hours in the fields
 Little time for leisure activities
 Life expectancy was short due to hunger,
disease, and war
Noble Life
 Lived in castles that served
as a fort for protection
 Not a luxurious life – disease

50. Medieval Manor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J
NQ3EEYRnTc
Manors, often with castles,
provided protection from invasion,
first establishing and then
reinforcing the feudal system of
allegiance for protection.

51. Medieval Manor
Castles were not pretty mansions filled
with luxuries where princesses waited to
be saved by handsome princes.
Castles were fortresses, defensive
fortifications designed to withstand
months of siege and keep out invaders
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oXu
EA5mwIw

52. Noblewomen
Noblewoman had to take over the duties
of her husband on the manor when he was
off fighting
Women had little rights since land was
passed to eldest son of family
If husband dies before the wife retained
land

53. Review Questions
Answer the following questions on a
separate sheet of paper.

54. Review Questions
1. In feudalism what does the Lord grant to
the Vassal?
2. What is the code of conduct that Knights
fought and lived by?
3. Describe life as a peasant.
4. What did the Vassal have to give to the
Lord in the feudal system?
5. What was the manorial system?