case study 1: king John

Question 1

what was the hierarchy of the feudal system

Answer 1

the King
the nobility
the knights
the peasants (which included serfs and freemen)

Question 2

what moved down the feudal system

Answer 2

land which the King owned but who rent out to nobles and some knights
(the church also owned 25%)

Question 3

what moved up the feudal system

Answer 3

peasants provided labour and loyalty
knights provided military protection and loyalty
nobles provided military protection (from their knights) and loyalty

Question 4

what is vassalage

Answer 4

to owe services or loyalty to another person
(everyone in the country owed vassalage to the King)

Question 5

what is excommunication

Answer 5

total exclusion from the Catholic Church

Question 6

what is an interdict

Answer 6

exclusion from Church activities eg. funerals, morning mass

Question 7

who is Arthur and what happened to him

Answer 7

• Arthur was the son of John’s brother Geoffrey
• Philip II of France supported his claim to the thrown
• John captured Arthur before he could do anything and imprisoned him
• Arthur ‘disappears’ after 1203, he was most likely killed by John

Question 8

what happens in Normandy in 1204

Answer 8

Philip II launched an invasion on Normandy, instead of fighting John fled back to England as he was worried about the loyalty of his barons

Question 9

how many times does John collect scutage

Answer 9

11 times over the span of 10 years

Question 10

what was the royal income by 1208

Answer 10

£150,000 (previously only £25,000)

Question 11

give examples of John’s cruel treatment towards his barons

Answer 11

1208 - makes William de Briouze pay 40,000 marks to reclaim his lands and also takes his wife and son hostage

makes John de Lacy pay 7000 marks to inherit his family lands

Question 12

what happens when John refuses Stephen Langton’s entry to England

Answer 12

he is excommunicated by the Pope and an interdict is issued on England

Question 13

why were the peasants so heavily affected by the interdict

Answer 13

medieval England was a strongly religious society, the peasants believed that they would be awarded for their hard work after they died, without religion they lose their only hope

Question 14

how does John try to fix the relationship between him and the Pope

Answer 14

he grants England to Innocent III as a papalfief and accepts Langton as archbishop

Question 15

what happens in 1214

Answer 15

• John launches a massive invasion on France
• which begins wells until he hears about the rebellion by the Barons
• he panics and leaves back to England
• his final attempt the recapture French land fails

Question 16

when was the Baron’s Revolt

Answer 16

May 1215

Question 17

when does John sign the Magna Carta

Answer 17

June 1215

Question 18

what happens after the signing of the Magna Carta

Answer 18

• the Pope annuls it
• John tears it up and war begins again until 1216
• Barons invite Prince Louis to invade England and promise to declare him King
• John dies of dysentery in 1216
• his son, Henry, becomes a child King at age 9

Question 19

what were some of the key clauses in the Magna Carta

Answer 19

clause 39 gives every free man the right to a free trial
clause 40 prohibits the delay and denial of justice
clause 61 introduces a very early version of parliament (25 barons)

Question 20

what was the short term significance of the Magna Carta

Answer 20

• limitations on the King’s power
• first time that divine right was legally challenged
• showed the legal and written protest was more efficient than violent protest
• introduced an early version of parliament

Question 21

what was the long term significance of the Magna Carta

Answer 21

• petition of rights (1628) written due to King Charle I’s overreach of authority (echoing the restrictions of taxation and need for a fair trial)
• The American Constitution and Bill of Rights includes similar terms of the Magna Carta
• the Declaration of Human Rights (1948) also includes similar terms of the Magna Carta