- The document discusses major economic, social, and political changes in Europe between 1000-1500 CE, including the rise of cereal agriculture, rise of towns and trade, development of feudalism and manorialism, growth of the Catholic Church and establishment of universities, and the Crusades. Key developments were the growth of agricultural productivity through cerealization, rise of towns and guilds, spread of feudal political structures, founding of universities, and religious Crusades against Muslims and heretics.

1. Chapter 13

2. • “Cerealization” refers to broad changes in
agricultural technique that resulted in more land
under cultivation & larger crop yields.
• Farmers realized planting the same crop, year
after year, in the same spot depleted the soil of
nutrients
• They began using more sheep, horses, & cows
in farming; added iron tip to wooden plow
• Farmers used water mills to grind grain, cutting
wood, sharpening & polishing iron

3. • B/t 1000 & 1340, Europe’s population grew from 40
to 75 million people  cerealization 
specialization of labor
• Market towns appeared and the number of towns
and cities increased  urban populations began to
depend on the “market” for food rather than
growing their own (like our grocery stores today)
• Urban artisans created guilds to protect their
interests – butcher, baker, tailor, shoemaker,
blacksmith, etc. – they decided who could be in the
guild
• If you weren’t a part of the guild, you couldn’t
participate in that particular trade  guilds would

4. • Slavery almost disappeared as more people became
serfs; most serfs lived in settlements around a castle or
church
• The castle/church/serfs were protected by the lord’s
knights
• Feudalism = weak centralized rule; many countries had
Kings but their power was limited b/c they were only as
strong as their army  most nobility under them had
equally strong armies  kings only controlled the land
immediately around them
• 11th & 12th centuries, land owners gave large tracts of
lands to various monasteries (which didn’t pay taxes); no
one dared violate church land for fear of punishment by

5. • Universities began in Paris, France and Bologna, Italy
• Before the rise of univ., Latin was the language of edu &
administration of church and state
• Edu was based on the liberal arts – dialect (logic),
grammar, rhetoric (ancient Greece & Rome), arithmatic,
astronomy, geometry, music theory (Trivium &
quadrivium)
• The highest level subjects were theology, church law,
medicine
• Bologna became the center for the study of law
• Greek texts & paper were introduced to Western Europe
by the Islamic world

6. • Scholasticism – prevailing method of instruction in
Europe b/t 1100 & 1500 that held students could arrive at
correct answer if they used their power of reasoning &
consulted the appropriate sources
• Fibonnaci’s textbook would prompt the replacement of
Roman numerals with Arabic numerals
• Modern degrees have their origins in the diff steps to full
membership in the guild of university teachers – student,
bachelor, master
• Most students didn’t study long enough to receive master
status but concentrated on improving command of Latin
• With these skills, many young men received employment
as literate bureaucrats work for a noble or the clergy.

7. • Part of the broad movement to “spread” Christianity; w/in
Europe, the movement targeted Jews & Muslims & other
non-Christian groups
• The economic surplus of cerealization financed a series
of expeditions to Muslim-governed Jerusalem
• Europeans would encounter new ideas & commodities
that they introduced to Europe on their return home
• For the first time since the Roman Empire European
armies marched beyond the borders of Europe – est. a
precedent of establishing colonies in distant foreign lands
• Pope Urban II addressed leaders of Church of Byzantine
Emperor’s request to help against Seljuq Turks

8. • If the Crusaders died in route, the Pope promised they
could be certain that God would forgive them of their sins
b/c God forgave all pilgrim sins
• European Christiains, convinced of superiority, also
attacked perceived enemies w/in Europe
• 13th Century, the Pope est. a special court called the
Inquisition – used anonymous informants, forced
interrogations, and torture to identify heretics
• 1212 – Reconquista of Spain & Portugal to drive out
Muslims