Chapter 10 Vocab

Question 1

Aristotle and classical Greek learning

Answer 1

Some works of the Greek philosopher Aristotle (384-322 B.C.E.) beginning in the eleventh century, medieval thought was increasingly shaped by a great recovery of Aristotle’s works and a fascination with other Greek authors

Question 2

Byzantine Empire

Answer 2

Surviving eastern Roman Empire during the medieval centuries; named after the ancient Greek city Byzantium, on the site of which the Roman emperor Constantine founded a new capital, Constantinople, in 330 C.E.

Question 3

Caesaropapism

Answer 3

A political-religious system in which the secular ruler is also head of the religious establishment, Byzantine Empire.

Question 4

Charlemagne

Answer 4

Ruler of the Carolingian Empire (r. 768-814) who staged an imperial revival in Western Europe.

Question 5

Christianity, Eastern Orthodox

Answer 5

Developed in the eastern part of the Roman Empire ; noted for the subordination of the Church to political authorities, a married clergy, the use of leavened bread in the Eucharist, and insistence on church councils as the ultimate authority in Christian belief and practice.

Question 6

Christianity, Roman Catholic

Answer 6

Western European branch of Christianity “Roman Catholic”

Question 7

Constantinople

Answer 7

New capital for the eastern half of the Roman Empire, established by Emperor Constantine in 330 C.E. on the site of the ancient Greek city of Byzantium; Constantinople’s highly defensible and economically important site helped assure the city’s cultural and strategic importance for many centuries.

Question 8

Crusades

Answer 8

Modern term meaning “ventures of the cross,” used to describe the “holy wars” waged by Western Christendom from 1095 until the end of the Middle Ages and beyond; Crusades could only be declared by the pope and were marked by participants swearing a vow and receiving an indulgence in return.

Question 9

European cities

Answer 9

Western Europe saw a major process of urbanization beginning in the eleventh century, with towns that created major trade networks and that were notable for the high degree of independence they often enjoyed.

Question 10

Greek fire

Answer 10

Form of liquid fire that could be sprayed at the enemy; invented by the Byzantines and very important in their efforts to halt the Arab advance into Byzantine territory.

Question 11

Guild

Answer 11

An association formed by people pursuing the same line of work that regulated their professions; it also provided a social and religious network for members.

Question 12

Holy Roman Empire

Answer 12

Term invented in the twelfth century to describe the Germany-based empire founded by Otto I in 962 C.E.

Question 13

the West as a “hybrid civilization”

Answer 13

The distinctive path of Western Europe in the centuries following the fall of the western Roman Empire, leading to a society that included elements of ancient Rome, the practices of Germanic invaders who formed new states, Christianity, and elements of pre-Roman culture that still survived.

Question 14

iconoclasm

Answer 14

The destruction of holy images; a term most often used to describe the Byzantine state policy of image destruction from 726 to 843.

Question 15

indulgence

Answer 15

A remission of the penalty (penance) for confessed sin that could be granted only by a pope, at first to Crusaders and later for a variety of reasons.

Question 16

Justinian

Answer 16

Byzantine emperor (r. 527-565 C.E.), noted for his short-lived reconquest of much of the former western Roman Empire and for his codification of Roman law.

Question 17

Kievan Rus

Answer 17

State that emerged around the city of Kiev in the ninth century C.E.; a culturally diverse region that included Vikings as well as Finnic and Baltic peoples. The conversion of Vladimir, the grand prince of Kiev, to Orthodox Christianity in 988 had long-term implications for Russia.

Question 18

natural philosophy

Answer 18

The scientific study of nature, which developed, especially in Europe, in the later Middle Ages.

Question 19

system of competing states

Answer 19

The distinctive organization of Western European political life that developed after the fall of the western Roman Empire in the fifth century C.E. in which the existence of many small, independent states encouraged military and economic competition.

Question 20

Vikings

Answer 20

Scandinavian raiders who had an impact on much of Western Europe in the late eighth to eleventh centuries; their more peaceful cousins also founded colonies, including Newfoundland, Greenland, and Iceland.

Question 21

Vladimir, prince of Kiev

Answer 21

Grand prince of Kiev (r. 978-1015 C.E.) whose conversion to Orthodox Christianity led to the incorporation of Russia into the sphere of Eastern Orthodoxy.