Feudalism: socio- political economic system

Feudal system: SYSTEM OF OBLIGATIONS that bounded lords and subjects developed from the needs
of military protection and food production.
It was a CLASS SYSTEM in which the status held in society depended on the amount of land controlled.
At the TOP WAS THE KING who had lands and granted them to nobles in exchange for support and at the
bottom were the peasants who worked the land for masters.
It began in the EIGHTH CENTURY, with the policies of rulers such as CHARLEMAGNE.
(He sought support of nobles by granting them states. They guard the property and king’s realm by giving
parcels of land to lesser lords who served as knights in time of conflict. These vassals contracted peasants
to work their land, growing rich from tolls, taxes and produced generated from the labor of their serfs and
using it to acquire the armor and mounts necessary to serve their king.)

TWO DEVELOPMENTS ENHANCED THE ECONOMIC SUCCESS OF THE SYSTEM: the moldboard plow (turn
the heavy northern soil efficiently) and the horse collar (allowed horses to pull plows faster than oxen).
Faster cultivation meant more grain production, important for trading goods.

Feudalism provided an effective MILITARY ORGANIZATION and security, but it thrived on

INEQUALITY. Aristocrats enjoyed wealth and leisure on the backs of serfs who usually owed to their
masters and rarely worked their way out of bondage. They were watched over to make sure they
fulfilled their service and obligations.

William, I organized England under the Feudal System

He was careful in giving lands to his nobles. They received lands as a reward for duty but owned
separated small pieces in different parts to avoid rebellions. He gave larger states along the
troublesome borders with Wales and Scotland. He kept enough land to make sure he was stronger
than his nobles. England was different because there was one powerful family instead of several
powerful nobles.

Two basic principles to feudalism: every man had a lord, every lord had land. When a noble died his son took
over his state if the king gave him permission and made a special payment. If he were still a child, the king
would take the land until he was old enough. If all the family died, the land returned to the king who gave
it to another noble.
 The Crusades (1095 - 1291)

Were military campaigns against the Muslims preached by the Roman Catholic Church to recover the holy
places for Christendom. The Church granted remission of sin to those who vowed to become Crusader.
Palestine was regarded by Christians as the Holy Land. Muslims took it in the 7th century;
pilgrimages were still allowed until Seljuk Turks (Muslims) took over Palestine in the 11th
century.
In 1095 Pope Urban II called for a holy war to regain the Holy Land launching the first of several
crusades, “The Peoples Crusades” which was defeated and massacred by the Turks.
First Crusade and Second Crusade:
In 1096 to 1099 (The Frankish Slaughter) a more disciplined force managed to capture Jerusalem, this
First Crusade strengthened the church’s influence and confidence of Europeans.
A Second Crusade was launched 50 years after the first, but it failed to hold the territory.
Third Crusade:
Under the leadership of Saladin, the Muslims recaptured Jerusalem in 1187 and the Third Crusade
could not regain it. Saladin showed mercy to the Christians in Jerusalem, allowing them to leave in safety
for a ransom. This crusade involved England and Richard I, they are believed to have shown great respect
for each other as leaders. Before leaving, Richard negotiated a treaty with Saladin, by which Christian
pilgrims would be give safe passage by the Muslims.
Diseases sweeping Europe impeded expansion into the Holy Land.
Fourth Crusade: In the Fourth Crusade the attention from the Holy Land was diverted to the Byzantine
empire. Western Christians turned against Eastern Christians of Byzantine Empire and sacked
Constantinople.
In 1204 Constantinople itself was captured and its holy places desecrated, a Latin state was established
there.
Lesser but equally unsuccessful crusades followed until Europeans lost interest and concentrate on
political and economic matters in their homelands.
In 1291 Muslims destroyed the last Crusader stronghold in the Holy Land, “ending” the Crusades.

The Crusades came at a time when knighthood had reached its full expression in Europe.
Crusades failed in their intended purpose of liberating the Holy Land, but Europe benefited.
Contact with highly advanced civilizations stimulated them. Exposure to goods form the East
opened trade routes.
The reasons to go on crusades were: To obey the pope’s call to free the Holy Land and ensure access for
pilgrims; to be forgive for past sins; To see the world and prove bravery; To get land overseas; To gain
wealth.
 The Hundred Years War (1337 - 1453)

The war was between France and England and all the battles took place in France, it lasted 116 years.
Main Causes:
1. 1337 - Edward III challenged Philip’s right to the French Throne saying he had a superior claim
since his mother was Philip the Fair’s daughter. (In 1340 he assumed the title of the king of France)
2. Economic conflict - French monarchy collected taxes from coins in northern France, and their
population provided support to England and Edward
3. Factional Conflict - By the 14th century the European nobility had men who entered there because
of wealth. The older nobles were losing income and joined forces with mercenaries to maintain their
power, position, and status. Nobles began to join factions against other factions, they have their own
armies, and symbols of allegiance. Started to form small states within a state and this contributed to the
violence and to the need of the monarchs to keep their nobility under constant surveillance.
English victories were followed by French victories. But after the battle of Agincourt in 1415, won by the
English under Henry V, England controlled most of Northern Europe and seemed that it would conquer
France until there were defeated in the Battle of Orleans.
Consequences:
1. After losing Normandy, England decided to explore beyond Europe.
2. New weapons appeared such as the longbow.
3. Decline of Feudalism: the war led to the decline of the power of feudal lords and knights increasing
the power of monarchs and common people.
There was no devastation for England as result of the wars.
Facts:
 The war of the Roses left England in no position to wage war in France, and so it ended. Calais
remained in English possession until 1558 and the title of king of France was claimed by the British until
1801.
 War had become an expensive proposition. Larger, healthier, and better trained armies were
needed so governments began to rely on paid mercenaries to do their fighting for them. They were
expensive to obtain and retain and as they had no allegiance and fought for the highest bidder.
 Joan of Arc was a peasant girl that believed she had heard the voices of Saints who told her she had
to rescue France. She led the French troops liberated France in the battle of Orleans. She was captured and
condemned as a heretic and a witch. She was burnt at the stake by the English and is now considered a
Saint.
 Its significance:
*It was a time of Rapid Military Evolution. Weapons, tactics, army structure and social meaning of war
changed in response to the costs and through the advancement in technology and lessons that warfare
taught. *After the invention of the longbow, heavy cavalry (knights) was no longer the most powerful unit
in an army. Hobelars or lightly armored mounted troops were used
*The nobility declined as a political force
*Stimulated nationalistic sentiment. Accelerated the process of transforming grace into a centralized state.
France had the first regular standing army organized in 1445
*The use of French language in England which had served as language of the ruling classes and commerce
fell in around 1362.
*England was bereft of its continental possessions (except Pale of Calais) leaving it an island nation on the
periphery of Europe, this affected the English mindset. And came just as the Age of Exploration was about
to begin. They took advantage of its location and seafaring abilities to explore and conquer the remaining
world.
 The Black Death (1348 - 1350)

The plague, known then as the Great Pestilence, appeared in the middle of the 14th century and reached
every part of Britain during 1348 and 1349.  1 / 3 of the population died and few than one of ten people
who caught it managed to survive.
Whole villages disappeared and towns were deserted until the plague died out.
It was believed that God was delivering an awful punishment to his people. There was something rotten in
the heart of humanity and particularly in God’s church. It seemed the Last Day had come.
Nature
It was a bubonic plague (so called after the hard-black buboes that appeared in the groin and armpits)
transmitted by the bites of fleas carried by black rats. It originated in Central Asia and spread via
the trade routes to Europe.
In 1348 the illness crossed the Mediterranean lands and reached England.
By 1350 it had devastated France, Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, and Central Europe.
In 1361 a second pestilence appeared which killed mostly young and healthy.

The *dramatic fall in population* was not entirely a bad thing. After the Black Death there were so
few people to work on the land that they could ask for more money for their labor. They could and
*asked for more money* and ended serfdom.
Because of the shortage and expense of labor landlords returned to the practice of letting their lands to
freeman farmers to avoid losses. Few landlords had home farms at all.  The smaller farmers who rented
the manorial lands became a new class: *yeomen* and became an important part of the agricultural
economy. *Peasant life became more comfortable as they had money to build better houses.
Economic changes: England’s main export changed from wool to finished cloth because of the high prices
Merchants had to pay for wool in Flanders, it was much more profitable to buy it at England and sell
finished cloth.

Peasants Revolt

Richards advisers implemented the Poll Tax, a payment for every person over 15 years old and this tax
was enforced again two years later and then again in 1381 but its amount had increased. The poorer parts
did not rebel, but in the richer areas people had become more aware and confident of their rights and
power and started to revolt.
Landlords were trying to force the peasants back into serfdom because it was cheaper than paid labor.
Wat Tyler, leader of the revolt introduced the idea that God had created all people equal. Peasants
marched to London where they destroyed the house of Richard’s advisers (His uncle John, and the
Archbishop of Canterbury)
Richard met with a group of rebels including Wallingford, they asked him to dismiss some of his advisers
and abolish serfdom. Richard agreed and some went home, but others went to the Tower of London and
beheaded the Archbishop. Richard met with Tyler who refused to accept Wallingford’s deal and demanded
less harsh laws and the distribution of the money of the Church to the poor, and equality for all people.
The Lord Mayor of England attacked Tyler, who as he died ordered his army to attack; but Richard
stepped forward and promised the abolition of serfdom, the peasants trusted him and went home.
Richard did not keep his promise and the revolts were put down by his army
Peasants demands were that all men should be free and equal; for less harsh laws; and a fairer
distribution of wealth.
The War of The Roses (Between Lancastrians - red rose, and Yorkists - white rose)

Henry Lancaster had taken the throne when Richard II was deposed.
Discontent nobility was divided between those who remained loyal to Henry VI and those who supported
the duke of York (son of the earl of March).
In 1460 the duke claimed the throne and after his death in battle, his son took up the struggle and won in
1461.Henry fled into exile and was captured by Edward in 1465.
The Earl of Warwick switched sides and restored Henry to the throne in 1470.
Edward returned from exile and destroyed the Lancastrian forces in 1471, imprisoned Henry VI in the
Tower of London, who was murdered shortly afterwards.
When Edward IV died in 1483 his sons Edward V and his brother were too young, were put in the Tower
by Richard of Gloucester (Edward’s brother) who took the crown and became Richard III. The two princes
were murdered.
The Reformation
In October of 1517, MARTIN LUTHER, a Catholic Scholar, wrote a letter to his archbishop where he listed
95 theses critical of church practices. He also nailed them to the door of All Saints Church, and they
became public thanks to the newly invented Printed Press. Luther’s intention was to prompt an academic
debate about church corruption and authority, instead he started a RELIGIOUS REVOLT.
Four theses:
1. It is nonsense to teach that a dead soul in Purgatory can be saved by money.
2. Money causes greed – only God can save souls.
3. A Christian who gives to the poor or lends to those in need is doing better in God’s eyes than one
who buys ‘forgiveness’.
4. The main treasure of the church should be the Gospels and the grace of God.

Lutheranism and other dissenting Christian creeds spread through northern Europe in the movement
known as PROTESTANT REFORMATION.
Luther was not the first: John Wycliffe had criticized the church’s wealth and hierarchy of clergy in the
1300s.
For years, the church’s financial policies had disturbed even its supported. It raised money for its
administrative structure, levied taxes on almost all services and Church position could be bought. Popes
pursuit power and luxury, spending on wars, improvements for the Vatican and other pleasures.
Churches founded on LUTHER’S TENETS OF FAITH was the first of Protestant denominations. He
preached that SALVATION WAS A GIFT FROM GOD that could not be bought or sold and did not required
intercession of church officials. SIMPLIFIED CHURCH DOCTRINE AND RITUALS, called the CHURCH
LEADERS “MINISTERS”, they preached from the Bible and CONDUCTED THE SERVICES IN THE LOCAL
LANGUAGE.
Different interpretations to biblical passages led to the formation of Protestant Sects:
In 1520s, Zwingli leader of the Reformed Church in Zurich created a church that BANNED THE
CATHOLIC MASS AND FORBADE THE USE OF MUSIC IN WORSHIP. A more radical sect that OPPOSED
INFANT BAPTISM broke away from Zwingli’s church: ANABAPTISTS. They disagreed radically with civic
authority and refused to hold office or bear arms, for this they were persecuted by Catholics and
Protestants.

In 1540’s JOHN CALVIN, a French preacher, founded a strict church that advocated and enforced thrift,
sobriety and hard work: BACKSLIDERS COULD BE EXCOMMUNICATED. CALVINISTS believed in
PREDESTINATION (that people are elected for salvation by God)

Reasons for the Reformation in England:

In 1534, HENRY VIII declared himself head of the CHURCH OF ENGLAND when the pope refused to grant
him a divorce. This RADICAL variant of the Catholic Church became part of the Protestant movement by
Elizabeth’s time.  Those who believed the church was not reformed enough became PURITANS.
To counter Protestants, the Catholic Church reinvigorated the Inquisition to uproot the Opponents.
Lutherans for the Schmalkalden League which fought pro-Catholic Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. The
Catholic Church finally reformed its worst abuses, but the Protestant Church was here to stay.
The Counter Reformation
The Reformation shocked to the Roman Catholic Church and was induced to reform and reinvigorate
itself.
Church Militant went on the offensive, purging of abuses, laxity, and ill-educated clergy, and sending forth
its soldiers. to strike down those who had raised against the authority of the Pope in Rome.
The Conflict between Protestants and Catholics culminated in the Thirty Years’ War.
Catholic renewal - Reformist teachings of Luther and Calvin across Europe THREATENED THE EXISTENCE
OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. On the pope’s behalf the Holy Roman emperor Charles V fought the
German Protestant princes.
The church sought to renew itself. THE COUNCIL OF TRENT, the main agent of reform, was a body that
met three times between 1541 and 1563 and ISSUED DECREES REGARDING DOCTRINE AND PRACTICE:
ensure the education of priests; celibate; tighter rein was applied on existing religious orders and
new orders (lay and monastic) were established.
THE SOCIETY OF JESUS was founded in 1534 by Ignatius Loyola. JESUITS swore vows of poverty, chastity,
and obedience.
Their task was to fight for God under the banner of the cross, advance souls in Christian life and doctrine
and propagate the faith. It was a powerful institution and leading Catholic missionary body.
In 1542 the Holy See established the HOLY OFFICE a SUPREME SACRED CONGREGATION OF THE ROMAN
AND UNIVERSAL INQUISITION. Its aim was to enforce Catholic doctrine and possessed INQUISITORIAL
POWERS OVER ALL CATHOLICS.
These bodies tried suspected heretics in ecclesiastical courts, the handed them over to secular authorities
for punishment. Those found guilty were burned alive usually in public.
In 1559, the pope introduced, and INDEX OF BOOKS CATHOLICS WERE FORBIDDEN TO READ. Its
damaged scientific advance.
Renaissance 1300 – 1600
Europe experienced a “dramatic rebirth” in which they distanced from the “Middle Ages” or “Gothic” era.
The European cultural flowering was a natural outgrowth of the High Middle Ages.
The FIRST FLOWERING occurred in ITALY from 1300 to 1500, followed by FRANCE, GERMANY and
ENGLAND and the low countries between 1450 and 1600.
The 14th century was a century of disintegration with the Hundred Years War and the Plague that
decimated Europe’s population; the feudal structure crumbled, The Roman Catholic Church vying for
power with the Holy Roman Empire lost its hold on the populace; monarchies and city-states began to
gain power.
Italy began to produce the first great minds of the Renaissance.
HUMANISM Italian ECONOMIC ACTIVITY centered in URBAN AREAS. The country was broken into 250
city-states, most of which were under the control of the HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE, but they resisted the
rulership of emperors and kings and fought for power. Wealthy merchant families (Medici’s and
Borgias) rose to power and became PATRONS OF THE ARTS.
HUMANISM was an intellectual movement that supported the study of the HUMAN NATURE and a
REVIVAL OF CLASSICAL LEARNING.
Until then, all art, learning and worldly matters had carried a religious theme, challenging Christianity
could be dangerous.
HUMANISTS agree with the GREEK PHILOSOPHER PYTHAGORAS who said that “Man is the measure of all
things”.
Writers like BOCCACCIO and PETRARCH were early proponents of Humanism, WRITING ABOUT LOVE
AND LIFE.
KNOWLEDGE OF THE CLASSICS became the basis of education. Latin literacy was reinforced as the mark
of an educated person, and a means of personal advancement.  Studying ancient writers offered
insights into how people should conduct themselves.
These ideas were expressed in poems, essays, histories, letters dealing with the questions of
MORALITY and VIRTUE.
BYZANTINE INFLUENCES Constantinople fell to the Turks in 1453, ending the Byzantine Empire. The
death of that cultural stronghold helped FEED THE FIRES of humanism in Renaissance Europe.
The Byzantine Empire had continued through the Middle Ages the study of civilizations of Greek and
Rome and their literature.
Scholars moved to Italy and other lands with their ideas about VIRTUE and the VALUE OF
QUESTIONING AUTHORITY.  Italy was steeped in reminders of a classical heritage and it was an area of
active commerce where wealthy people became interested in supporting new ideas and artistic activity.
Its wealth was not equally spread, revolts were common to be crushed by ruling classes. The Wealthy tried
to win the loyalty of the people by making city improvements and providing entertainment.
ART AND ARCHITECTURE The interest in the classics and the emphasis on human form changed painting,
sculpture, and architecture.
Painting and sculpture: Began to change around 1300s. Giotto di Bondone painted sacred subjects
depicting realistic-looking people with strong emotion. The high point of Italian Renaissance art was in
late 1400s early 1500s with Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael.
Da Vinci: painter, inventor, curious about science and left +4000 pages of notes including drawings of
human anatomy, principles of flight, etc.
Michelangelo: The ceiling of Sistine Chapel in Rome, and Sculptures such as “David”. He studied anatomy
which allowed him to recreate the human body in stone as the Greeks did.
Raphael:  his paintings emphasized proportion and harmony. He painted “School of Athens” which
reflects Renaissance worship of classical ideals and his studies of perspective
Architecture: The practical and pointed Gothic style gave way to the more graceful, flowing lines of
ancient Greece and Rome.
SOCIAL THOUGHT The new age provoked a NEW THINKING ABOUT INDIVIDUAL’S ROLE IN SOCIETY. The
Courtier was a paper that established the “ideal gentleman”. (1469 - 1527) Niccolò Machiavelli’s book “The
Prince” was a work of political philosophy that starts with the assumption that people are NATURALLY
GREEDY AND AMORAL, and for a statesman the end justifies the means. Books portrayed women as
decorative, civilizing influences on men but EDUCATION and POWER OF WOMEN IN SOCIETY (wealthy
women) IMPROVED. Aristocratic girls were tutored at home, Rich merchant families set their away to
convent schools. Some played prominent roles: Isabella d'Este ruled Mantua with skill after her husband
was captured and her court attracted artists and scholars; Lucrezia Borgia established a court at Ferrara
that drew some of the best thinkers, poets and artists of the time.
NORTHERN RENAISSANCERenaissance spread; while it decreased in Italy in the 1500s and flourished to
the north.
The DEVELOPMENT OF THE MOVABLE TYPE PRINTING PRESS by Johannes Gutenberg around 1450 was
key to the dissemination of Renaissance. The new way of printing became popular, books proliferated, and
ideas spread rapidly.
Northern Europeans began to sponsor Italian writers and painters. Henry VII invited scholars to England
to TEACH CLASSICAL LITERATURE. Proponents of HUMANIST THOUGHT began to CRITICIZE CHURCH
and SOCIETY in their writings.
Sir THOMAS MORE became a privy councilor under Henry VIII, wrote UTOPIA a fictional work that
imagined an ideal society governed by reason, every individual is equal and prosperous.
Sir THOMAS ELYOT wrote “The Boke Named the Governor” which suggested ways in which men of social
distinction and privilege should devote their efforts to public life.
Desiderius Erasmus who had traveled through Europe and had a thorough knowledge of the classics
wrote “The Praise of Folly” which mocked human tendency to ignore reason and criticized Church
corruption and abuses.
Dutch, German, and French artists combined Italian techniques with their own artistic traditions, painting
realistic portraits and scenes of peasant life.
SHAKESPEARE
William transcended his era; he is a writer of all times. Was first a man of English Renaissance and the
humanist and classical trends can be seen in his plays (Julius Caesar, Antony, and Cleopatra.)
In his attention to human condition, interests in all aspects of the worlds and his joy in his native language
he is a prime example of a RENAISSANCE.
NEW PERSPECTIVES IN SCIENCE
Skeptical energetic attitudes let to ADVANCES IN SCIENCE and TECHNOLOGY in the 1500s.
Copernicus broke faith with the idea of the Earth centered, unchanging universe. He deducted that planets
orbit the sun; this was a controversial observation and he did not publish it until 1543. His work lay the
groundwork for the scientific revolution.
MEDICINE had Paracelsus (German-Swiss physician) took issue with the medieval idea that diseases were
caused by humors and ascribed them to external factors.
HUMANISTS AND THE CHURCH
The new ideas clashed with the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church.
For example, clerics had idealized poverty and humanists proposed a person’s involvement in government
and business was morally defensible. A rich man could enhance society with patronage of buildings and
arts and make life more comfortable.
The devout carried new thinking into their theology, seeking a more spiritual church and more personal
faith. This led to the spiritual crisis known as the REFORMATION.