Medieval Europe: 11th-15th

1. UNIT 3. MEDIEVAL EUROPE:
11th TO 15th

2. Remember that the Middle Ages is the
historical period which ran from 476 to 1492
or 1453.
It can be divided into different stages:
– The High Middle Ages (S.V - XI): Byzantine Empire,
Germanic kingdoms, Islamic civilization,
Carolingian Empire. FEUDALISM (from S.IX-X to Early
Modern Period): ruralisation.
– The Late Middle Ages (S. XII – S. XV): resurgence
of cities.

3. 1. THE LATE MIDDLE AGES.
The resurgence of cities.
Urban society.
Political institutions.

4. THE RESURGENCE OF CITIES.
Two processes occurred that brought a
gradual recovery of the urban world:
– An increase in the rural population helped cities
to grow, as many peasants migrated to them.
– An increase of agricultural productivity.
Therefore, agricultural surpluses which were not
needed for consumption by people in rural areas
were sold in the cities. Therefore, cities regained
(recuperaron) commercial importance and more food
was available for people in urban areas.

5. URBAN SOCIETY
• The feudal structure of society was maintained: the king,
privileged class (nobility and clergy) and no-privileged class
or the third state (commoners and peasants).
• The nobility and the clergy continued to be the privileged
classes, but inhabitants of cities enjoyed more freedom
than peasants.
• There were big differences within the urban population.
– The great merchants and bankers were among the richest
classes. Their wealth was based on the possession of goods and
money.
– Below them were small traders and craftsmen. They were
joined by professionals related to the arts and the law.
– The largest social class was formed
of workers and peasants who worked the land surrounding the
city.
– Finally, the most disadvantaged social class included
many beggars (mendigos) with no resources.

6. New social class: bourgeoisie
“Burguesía”
• This term was used initially to identify the social
class composed by the inhabitants of the "burgs“
(“burgos”): primitive walled settlements inhabited by
merchants near castles and bridges.
• This social class is characterized by not being
feudal lords nor serfs and not to belong neither
to the Privileged estates (nobility and clergy) or
the peasantry.
• Their socioeconomic functions were those of
merchants, artisans or practitioners of liberal
professions.

7. GUILDS (GREMIOS)
• Guilds were associations of craftsmen with the same
trade (agrupaciones de artesanos con un mismo oficio).
• They were rigidly hierarchical:
– At the top were a small number of masters (maestros);
– Then the officials (oficiales);
– At the bottom, the apprentices (aprendices).
• Guilds were regulated by strict rules regarding working
conditions, the quality of the products, working hours
and prices.
• Craftsmen belonging to a guild usually lived in the
same street or neighborhood, which were given the
name of the profession: dyers (tintoreros), embroiderers
(bordadores), tanners (curtidores)…

8.  POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS
• There were two institutions that were considered superior to all others:
the papacy and the empire.
• The Pope in Rome was the highest moral authority of Catholicism and also
aspired to hold political superiority above that of kings and emperors. His
aim was to establish a theocracy, a system of government in which
religious power is imposed over civil power. To do this, the popes had
substantial assets and their own territories, the Papal States.
After the fall of the Carolingian
Empire, the Holy Roman Empire was
founded in the easternmost kingdom
in 962. This institution sought to be
the defender of Christianity and the
Pope, so its emperors considered
themselves superior to all other
powers. Emperors were elected by an
assembly of German nobles and
bishops known as the Diet.

9. Another important political institution
The monarchy
• During this period, kings began a process to regain their
authority.
• Monarchs had to confront the feudal nobility to limit its
privileges and strengthen the power of the monarchy. To do
this, they sought alliances with the townsmen, who also
wanted to free themselves from the nobility.
• Monarchs granted cities with specific privileges known
as fueros. Through these fueros, cities achieved
independence from the power of the nobles and the
monarchs obtained taxes in exchange, as well as the
political and military power of the bourgeoisie.

10. 2. THE CRISIS OF THE 14th CENTURY AND
THE END OF THE MIDDLE AGES
A. THE CRISIS OF THE 14TH CENTURY
• RELIGIOUS CRISIS: Within Catholicism, there was a confrontation that led
to the Western Schism.
– This schism was a period of rupture within the Church, from 1378 to
1417, during which there were two popes: one in Rome and the other
in Avignon (France).
• POLITICAL CRISIS: The Hundred Years’ War took place. This was a serious
conflict between the most powerful monarchies of the time, France and
England, and it spread to other kingdoms.
• DEMOGRAPHIC CRISIS: The population of Europe fell by over a third
during the 14th century. The causes were hunger caused by many years of
bad harvests, almost constant wars and the Black Death. The Black Death
was a highly contagious disease that regularly proved a danger to people
from 1348.

11. • SOCIAL CRISIS: Feudal society experienced a crisis that was
reflected in many different social conflicts.
– In the countryside: Peasants revolted against their lords to free
themselves from the abuses of the rigid manorial system. In
addition, there were clashes between nobles which affected
the serfs who lived in their fiefdoms.
– In the cities: The poorest people and the lower levels of the
craft guilds revolted against the urban oligarchy. There were
also disputes within the urban oligarchy to control municipal
power.
– Mass revolts: The masses, terrorised by the Black Death and
hunger, and influenced by fanatical preachers,
violently pursued Jews, foreigners, the wealthy or anyone who
they believed was responsible for their situation.

12. B. THE END OF THE MIDDLE AGES
• During the 15th century a new cultural movement, called the Renaissance,
appeared. This is characterized by the recovery of the thought of Greco-Latin
antiquity (Greece and Rome). The previous theocentrism ended and put man at the
center of thought (anthropocentric), this was called humanism.
• These ideas were born in Italy and spread rapidly thanks to the invention of the
printing of movable types in 1450 (until that time the books were copied by
hand).
With the fall of
Constantinople in
1453 we moved
from the Middle
Ages to the
Modern Age.
In Spain is used
like final date
1492.

13. 3. THE IBERIAN PENINSULA FROM 11th TO 15th CENTURY.
• In the Cantabrian Mountains, the Astures and Cantabri defeated the Muslims in Covadonga in 722.
Their commander was the Visigothic nobleman Pelayo. This was the origin of the Kingdom of
Asturias (this kingdom also included Galicia and Cantabria). Its capital was in Oviedo. In 914, King Ordoño II
moved the capital to León and changed the name of the kingdom. At the end of the 10th century,
the Kingdom of León dominated the Submeseta Norte.
• Castilla was a county that was dependent on the Astur-Leonese kingdom. It was a heavily fortified
area as it was more exposed to attack due to its geographical conditions. In the 10th century, Count
Fernán González gave Castilla its independence from León and established its capital in Burgos.
• Navarra was a kingdom formed by the Vascones when their chieftain Iñigo Arista took power. After
getting rid of the Carolingians, it reached its peak in the early 11th century under Sancho III el
Mayor (992–1035). Once freed from Frankish dependence after the 9th century, the counties of
Aragón, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza were formed in the central Pyrenees. In the 10th century, they
became part of the Kingdom of Navarra during the reign of Sancho III.
• The Catalan counties were found in the area of the eastern Pyrenees, which had a strong Frankish
influence. The County of Barcelona, led by Count Wilfredo el Velloso, was the most powerful from
the second half of the 9th century.
• The Muslims’ response to this Christian expansion was to carry out expeditions against the
Christian enclaves in order to plunder and loot the land.
Before starting, it is necessary to understand …
The origin of the peninsular Christian kingdoms (8th to 10th)

14. THE IBERIAN PENINSULA
11TH TO 15TH
• POLITICAL SITUATION FROM 1031 TO 1085

15. • AL-ANDALUS. The most important taifas to emerge in 1031 were those of
Sevilla, Toledo, Badajoz and Zaragoza. The Christians took advantage of the
differences between the Muslims to conquer territory and collect taxes
paid in gold coins, known as parias.
• HISPANIC CHRISTIAN KINGDOMS. The division of the lands of Sancho III el
Mayor after his death in 1035.
– Aragón: This was inherited as a kingdom by Ramiro I, a son of Sancho III el
Mayor. This monarch added the counties of Sobrarbe and Ribagorza to the
Kingdom of Aragón.
– Navarra: Although this was the heart of Sancho’s power, it was difficult to
expand towards the south. It was ruled by the kings of Aragón between 1076
and 1134.
– Castilla: The Kingdom of Castilla was formed when Sancho III bequeathed this
county to one of his sons, Fernando I. During his reign, as he was married to a
Princess of León, the Kingdom of Castilla was linked to the Kingdom of León.
– The Kingdom of León, which was the oldest in the peninsula, was overtaken in
importance by the Kingdom of Castilla, which was more militarily active and
had greater social mobility. However, both kingdoms maintained links after the
death of Fernando I and underwent periods of unity and separation
throughout the 12th century.
– Alfonso VI, King of Castilla and León, took Toledo in 1085. This city had a high
symbolic value, as it was the centre of a powerful taifa and had been the
capital of the Visigothic Kingdom.

16. POLITICAL SITUATION FROM 1085 TO 1212

17. • AL-ANDALUS. After the Christian conquest of the Kingdom of Toledo (1085), the Taifa kings were forced to
seek help from the Almoravids, Muslims that had established an empire in North Africa. Their arrival
stopped the Christian advance and achieved the reunification of the Andalusian territory until the early
12th century.
• ARAGON. This kingdom experienced strong growth with kings like Alfonso I (1104–1134). In 1118, Alfonso I
of Aragón and Navarra conquered Zaragoza, occupied part of the Ebro valley and reached the Sistema
Ibérico mountain range. In 1137, the marriage of Ramón Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona, and Petronila,
the young Queen of Aragón, led to the union between the Catalan counties and Aragón (forming the
Crown of Aragón). Although each region kept its own laws and institutions, Ramón Berenguer IV provided
a vast heritage in the Midi (Southern France). He and his son Alfonso II continued the expansion of the
Crown of Aragón towards the south.
• LEON AND CASTILLA. The kingdoms of León and Castilla united by the monarch Alfonso VI, had been
strengthened by the conquest of Toledo. This opened up opportunities for expansion throughout the lands
of the Tajo. This expansion took place during the reign of Alfonso VII, although these kingdoms separated
on his death in 1157.
• PORTUGAL. This was a county belonging to the Kingdom of León that was given as a dowry to Henry of
Burgundy when he married Alfonso VI’s daughter. Their son declared it independent in 1128 and it was
established as a kingdom in 1143. The borders of the Kingdom of Portugal extended to the banks of the
Tajo after the conquest of the city of Lisbon in 1147.
During the second half of the 12th century, the Christian kingdoms faced the Almohad invasion.
The Almohads, who took advantage of the territorial fragmentation of al-Andalus, managed to unite the
Andalusian territory in 1172 and established their capital in Sevilla. This empire hindered the expansion of
the Christian kingdoms, mainly in the areas between the Tajo and the Sierra Morena, until the Christians’
victory in the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa (1212).

18. THE POLITICAL SITUATION FROM 1212 TO 1250.

19. • The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa (1212) was a major victory for
the Christian kingdoms and made the occupation of the
Guadalaquivir valley possible. In this battle, the kings of Castilla
(Alfonso VIII), Navarra (Sancho el Fuerte) and Aragón (Pedro II)
fought together.
• Portugal reached the southern coasts of the peninsula in 1249 with
the conquest of Faro, bringing the end of its expansion.
• The definitive union of Castilla and León came with Fernando III
in 1230. This king conquered the two great Islamic capitals, Córdoba
(1236) and Sevilla (1248). In addition, he took Murcia in 1243.
• Navarra turned to France, with whom it had the closest ties from
that moment. In 1234, a French dynasty occupied the throne of
Navarra, bringing a series of fiefdoms located in France.
• In 1250, there was only one Andalusian kingdom, the Kingdom of
Granada, ruled by the Nasrid dynasty.
• Aragón lost nearly all its land in the Midi after the defeat by the
French in the battle of Muret (1213), in which Pedro II died. His
successor, Jaime I of Aragón, conquered the Islas Baleares (1235)
and Valencia (1245), which were added to the Crown of Aragón as
kingdoms.

20. EXPANSION TROUGH REPOPULATION
• Repopulation consisted of the occupation by the Christian
population of the lands that had been taken from the Muslims.
There were several systems:
– Presura (presura in Aragón and aprisio in Cataluña). It meant that if
someone could take a piece of land and cultivate it, ownership was
granted to them.
– Concejos. The concejos were settlements concentrated in a certain
area to which the king granted a fuero. They led to cities with a large
dependent territory, known as an alfoz, such as Salamanca, Soria,
Segovia and Ávila in Castilla and in León; or Calatayud, Daroca,
Albarracín and Teruel in Aragón.
– Repartimiento. This involved the division, or repartimiento, of land,
and each settler was granted a plot. In the Guadalquivir valley, this
included cereal and olive fields. The dangers in this border area caused
many beneficiaries to pass on their plots to the nobility and the clergy,
who had more chances of defending them.
– Capitulaciones. This was a treaty which allowed the Muslim
population, known as the Mudéjar, to remain, respecting their
property and religion. These capitulaciones were granted due to the
lack of Christian settlers and were practised in the Ebro valley and in
Valencia.

21. THE IBERIAN PENINSULA DURING 14TH AND 15TH CENTURY

22. • The 14th and 15th centuries were marked
by conflicts between Christian kingdoms and civil
wars caused by rivalry between the nobility and
the monarchy.
• On one hand, nobles sought to protect and
increase their privileges. On the other
hand, kings, usually with the support of the
towns, wanted to restrict the power of the
nobility, although they still needed their military
support. In the end, kings reinforced their
authority, but in exchange had to grant financial
concessions to the nobility.

23. CASTILLA AND ARAGON: THE MOST IMPORTANT
KINGDOMS DURING THIS PERIOD
THE KINGDOM OF CASTILLA
• Isabel I de Castilla (Isabel La Católica)
• In 1468 Henry IV (Isabel´s brother), a man of weak and indecisive character,
recognized the princess Isabel like heiress to the throne in the pact of the
Bulls of Guisando.
• 1492: Cristobal Colon discovered America and reoncquered of Nasrid
Kingdom
THE KINGDOM OF ARAGÓN
• Fernando II de Aragón (Fernando el Católico).
• 1475: Concordia de Segovia. "Tanto monta, monta tanto, tanto
Isabel como Fernando". They both signed all the documents as
The king and the qeen.
• 1479: Tratado de Alcáçovas, recognised Isabel and Fernando
kings of Castilla.

24. Important institutions: “CORTES ESTAMENTALES”.
• All Christian kingdoms had Cortes Estamentales. The first were
those of León, constituted in 1188. Now as the Cortes of Castilla,
their major development took place during the 14th and 15th
century, when the representatives of cities were an important
counterweight to the privileges of the nobility and the clergy.
The Cortes of the states of the Crown of Aragón were especially
relevant as the king could not pass laws without their consent.
General Councils, or Generalidades, were also formed in the Crown
of Aragón. These were administrative bodies responsible for
carrying out and managing agreements made in the Cortes, such as
collecting taxes. This model of government based on the sharing of
responsibilities between the king and state institutions is known
as pactismo.

25. SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATIONS
• In the 14th century, Spanish kingdoms suffered a serious demographic
crisis brought on by hunger, wars and the Black Death. This demographic
crisis had an economic impact. In Castilla, agricultural production declined
and many fields were left abandoned. On the other hand, in the Crown of
Aragón, many merchants and craftsmen were ruined.
– Social conflicts added to the demographic and economic problems. Confrontations
between different groups brought to light the crisis of the feudal system, which tried to
adapt its structure to the economic transformations taking place. There were different
clases:
– Between nobles. Clashes between different factions of nobles were typical during this
era. This created a situation of insecurity which adversely affected peasant and
bourgeois economies alike.
– Against the lords. To reinforce their privileges, the nobles strengthened manorial rights
over their serfs. This made the situation more difficult for peasants. For this reason,
there were frequent uprisings against the lords, such as the Irmandiño revolts in Galicia
and that of the Rebellion of the Remences in Cataluña.
– In the cities. Power struggles between the urban oligarchy and craftsmen were at their
height in Barcelona. Therefore, the textile artisans formed the Busca political block and
the major merchants and bankers formed the Biga.
– Religious. The most significant religious clashes were the assault on Jewish quarters and
massacres of Jews in 1391. This happened in cities of the Crown of Castilla, such as
Sevilla, Córdoba and Toledo, and the Crown of Aragón, such as Valencia, Mallorca and
Barcelona.