Chapter 10

Question 1

Middle Ages

Answer 1

the period in western European history from the decline and fall of the Roman Empire until the 15th century

Question 2

Vikings

Answer 2

Seagoing Scandinavian raiders from Sweden, Denmark, and Norway who disrupted coastal areas of western Europe from the 8th to the 11th centuries

Question 3

manorialism

Answer 3

system that described economic and political relations between landlords and their peasant laborers during the Middle Ages; involved a hierarchy of reciprocal obligations that exchanged labor or rents for access to land

Question 4

serfs

Answer 4

peasant agricultural laborers within the manorial system of the Middle Ages

Question 5

side note

Answer 5

Postclassical western Europe was hard hit by the Roman collapse. However, after about 900, agriculture and trade revived, while political development advanced under the influence of feudalism and the Catholic church

Question 6

moldboard

Answer 6

heavy plow introduced in northern Europe during the Middle Ages; permitted deeper cultivation of heavier soils; a technological innovation of the medieval agricultural system

Question 7

three-field system

Answer 7

system of agricultural cultivation by 9th century in western Europe; included one-third in spring grains, one-third fallow

Question 8

Clovis

Answer 8

Early Frankish king; converted Franks to Christianity c. 496; allowed establishment of Frankish kingdom

Question 9

Carolingians

Answer 9

royal house of Franks after 8th century until their replacement in 10th century

Question 10

Martel, Charles

Answer 10

(686-741) Carolingian monarch of Franks; responsible for defeating Muslims in battle of Tours in 732; ended Muslim threat to western Europe

Question 11

Charlemagne

Answer 11

Charles the Great; Carolingian monarch who established substantial empire in France and Germany c. 800

Question 12

Holy Roman emperors

Answer 12

Emperors in northern Italy and Germany following split of Charlemagne’s empire; claimed title of emperor c. 10th century; failed to develop centralized monarchy in Germany

Question 13

vassals

Answer 13

members of the military elite who received land or a benefice from a feudal lord in return fro military service and loyalty

Question 14

William the Conqueror

Answer 14

invaded England from Normandy in 1066; extended tight feudal system to England; established administrative system based on sheriffs; established centralized monarchy

Question 15

Magna Carta

Answer 15

Great Charter issued by King John of England in 1215; confirmed feudal rights against monarchical claims; represented principle of mutual limits and obligations between rulers and feudal aristocracy

Question 16

parliaments

Answer 16

bodies representing privileged groups; institutionalized feudal principle that rulers should consult with their vassals; found in England, Spain, Germany, and France

Question 17

three estates

Answer 17

The three social groups considered most powerful in Western countries: church, nobles, and urban leaders

Question 18

Hundred Years War

Answer 18

Conflict between England and France from 1337 to 1453; fought over lands England possessed in France and feudal rights versus the emerging claims of national states

Question 19

Urban II

Answer 19

Called First Crusade in 1095; appealed to Christians to mount military assault to free the Holy Land from the Muslims

Question 20

Gregory VII

Answer 20

Pope during the 11th century who attempted to free church from interference of feudal lords; quarreled with Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV over practice of lay investiture

Question 21

investiture

Answer 21

practice of state appointment of bishops; Pope Gregory VII attempted to ban the practice of lay investiture, leading to war with holy Roman Emperor Henry IV

Question 22

side note

Answer 22

Christian culture dominated European philosophy and art, but it generated both change and some conflict

Question 23

Abelard, Peter

Answer 23

(1079-1142) Author of “Yes and No”; university scholar who applied logic to problems of theology; demonstrated logical contradictions within established doctrine

Question 24

Bernard of Clairvaux

Answer 24

(1091-1153) emphasized role of faith in preference to logic; stressed importance of mystical union with God; successfully challenged Abelard and had him driven from the universities

Question 25

Aquinas, Thomas

Answer 25

(1225-1274)creator of one of the great syntheses of medieval learning; taught at University of Paris; author of several “Summas”; believed that through reason it was possible to know much about natural order, moral law, and nature of God

Question 26

scholasticism

Answer 26

dominant medieval philosophical approach; so-called because of its base in the schools or universities; based on use of logic to resolve theological problems

Question 27

Gothic

Answer 27

an architectural style developed during the Middle Ages in western Europe; featured pointed arches and flying buttresses as external supports on main walls

Question 28

side note

Answer 28

While merchant capitalism gained ground in western Europe, other economic values predominated

Question 29

Hanseatic League

Answer 29

An organization of cities in northern Germany and southern Scandinavia for the purpose of established a commercial alliance

Question 30

guilds

Answer 30

sworn associations of people in the same business or craft in a single city; stressed security and mutual control; limited membership, regulated apprenticeship, guaranteed good workmanship; often established franchise within cities

Question 31

Black Death

Answer 31

Plague that struck Europe in 14th century; significantly reduced Europe’s population; affected social structure

Question 32

side note

Answer 32

Key characteristics of western Europe began to shift after 1300, with new problems of overpopulation and disease