Post on 30-Dec-2015
Language and Literature Thrive
• Latin = language of educated people
• vernacular = everyday spoken languages (French, Italian, and Spanish all derive from Latin vernaculars)
• troubadours = traveling singers; wrote poems about love/chivalry
Types of Literature
• Romance stories• Most famous = King Arthur and his
Knights of the Round Table• fabliaux = French comic stories• fables = stories about animals• National epic = long poems about
hero• The Song of Roland (France)
• Drama = miracle plays
Dante Alighieri
• Born in Tuscany in 1265• Father of Italian language• The Divine Comedy
• Goes through 3 realms of Christian afterlife - Heaven, Hell, Purgatory
Geoffrey Chaucer
• Born in England in 1340• Politician and soldier• The Canterbury Tales
• About 30 pilgrims traveling to the shrine of Thomas Beckett at Canterbury
• Pokes fun at the Church and Clergy
Education
• Teachers and students form guilds• Called universitas
• 1000s-1200s = 4 universities• Paris and Oxford = Theology/Lib. Arts• Bologna = Civil and Church Law• Salerno = Medicine
• By 1400s there are many universities• Bachelor of Arts• Master of Arts --> admitted into teachers’
guild
Philosophy
• Scholasticism = attempt to bring faith and reason together
• Peter Abelard - taught in Paris• Showed conflicts between Bible, popes,
and church writings
• Thomas Aquinas = Dominican monk• Greatest medieval philosopher• Science and reason conflict w/ faith• Rational proof of God’s existence
Architecture
• Church-centered• Romanesque = old style --> dark,
domed roof, stone walls• Gothic = new in 1100s
• People originally didn’t like it• Tall spires, pointed arches, flying buttresses• Everything pointed towards heaven• Cathedral of Notre Dame construction begins
in 1160s (continues for about 100 years)
The Hundred Years War
• Edward III of England claimed the French throne --> WHY??
• France refuses to give in Edward brings army into Flanders Hundred Years War begins
• English raid and pillage French countryside
• 116 yrs --> small periods of peace
More about 100 Years War
• Battle of Agincourt (1415) = Eng. Wins Longbow, cannon, gunpowder English control most of N. France
• Joan of Arc = peasant girl Rallies French and leads to victory Dissension over who should be king
• Charles VII of Orleans crowned Joan captured by English
• Tried for sorcery and heresy
Outcome and Consequences
• Loss of life and land --> esp. France• House of Commons gained more power in English
Parliament Gets to consider new taxes before House of Lords
• War of the Roses = civil war in Eng. House of York vs. House of Lancaster (white vs. red) Henry Tudor (Henry VII) defeats Richard III of York
• 1461 Louis XI --> harsh efficient gov’t France becomes unified country
Spain
• 1479 - united under Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile
• Defeated Moors --> Reconquista
• Two options: convert or leave Most Jews and Moors leave Many merchants and scholars leave Spanish Inquisition
Holy Roman Empire
• Divided into regions ruled by princes/knights Feudal lords had all the power
• Emperor elected by group of rulers Charles IV changes this --> only 7 electors
• 3 archbishops, 4 German priests
• 7 electors became more powerful
• Elections based on bribery and political favors
Habsburg Rule
• Habsurg family comes to power Arranged marriages with powerful families
• Emperor Maximilian I Marriage brought Netherlands, Luxemburg, and
Burgundy under Habsburg control
• Still no unity in Holy Roman Empire
Church Power WeakensChurch Power Weakens
Shift of power from Church to Monarch Pope loses worldly power
Strong central governments influence power shift
People questioned church practices Wealth, raising money, etc.
Shift of power from Church to Monarch Pope loses worldly power
Strong central governments influence power shift
People questioned church practices Wealth, raising money, etc.
Babylonian CaptivityBabylonian Captivity
Philip IV of France vs. Pope Boniface VIII Elected Clement V as pope
Moved headquarters of church to Avignon, France --> period known as Babylonian Captivity (1309-1377)
Lost respect = people thought popes were being controlled by French kings
Pope Gregory XI moves papacy back to Rome
Philip IV of France vs. Pope Boniface VIII Elected Clement V as pope
Moved headquarters of church to Avignon, France --> period known as Babylonian Captivity (1309-1377)
Lost respect = people thought popes were being controlled by French kings
Pope Gregory XI moves papacy back to Rome
Great SchismGreat Schism
Gregory XI dies Cardinals elect an Italian pope, and later a French
pope who lives in Avignon = 2 popes Until 1417, church had 2-3 popes
Time known as Great Schism Council of Constance --> ended Great
Schism Martin V as only pope
Schism discredited the papacy and brought more criticism
Gregory XI dies Cardinals elect an Italian pope, and later a French
pope who lives in Avignon = 2 popes Until 1417, church had 2-3 popes
Time known as Great Schism Council of Constance --> ended Great
Schism Martin V as only pope
Schism discredited the papacy and brought more criticism
More Problems AriseMore Problems Arise
University of Paris - 2 teachers write Defender of the Faith Claims pope was head of church, not state Pope should be stripped of political
authority Foreshadowing of early modern politics
University of Paris - 2 teachers write Defender of the Faith Claims pope was head of church, not state Pope should be stripped of political
authority Foreshadowing of early modern politics
John WycliffeJohn Wycliffe
Priest and teacher at Oxford University Attacked wealth of church, immorality of
clergy People should interpret scripture themselves Promoted translation of Bible to English Accused of being a heretic
Banned from teaching, forced to retire Supported by the monarchy
Priest and teacher at Oxford University Attacked wealth of church, immorality of
clergy People should interpret scripture themselves Promoted translation of Bible to English Accused of being a heretic
Banned from teaching, forced to retire Supported by the monarchy
Jan HusJan Hus
Supporter and reader of WycliffeTeacher at University of PragueCriticized abuses of church
Gets excommunicated Burnt at the stake for heresy
Hus and Wycliffe set the stage for later reformers
Supporter and reader of WycliffeTeacher at University of PragueCriticized abuses of church
Gets excommunicated Burnt at the stake for heresy
Hus and Wycliffe set the stage for later reformers