Week 1 History 1B

8/6/2019 Week 1 History 1B

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UCLA: History 1B Week 1 Notes

Professor: Dr. Susan Mokhberi

Summer Sessions

Warning: The following notes do not cover completely of the lecture

materials. This is mainly to help guide you to decide whether youshould choose this class or not. However, if you happen to miss a

lecture or more, the following notes should likely suffice for you to

catch up. I apologize for any spelling error. If you happen to have

Dr. Susan Mokhberi as your History 1B professor, please do not use

the following notes as an excuse to miss her lectures. Please respect

her and the classmates around you by attending the lectures. Thank

you and hope the notes help.

______________________________________________________

Introduction: Fall of the Roman Empire and to the Carolingian

Empire

Fall of the Roman Empire:

y Empire gradually collapses

o 395 ± empire divided into Western and Eastern halves

o Causes:

Influx of Germanic tribes in the 4th century, especially in

the West Economic deterioration

Germanic tribe invasion

Nobles retreat to country estates

All sides were hitting Rome because Rome was at

its weakest point

Heirs to Roman Empire

y Byzantine Empire

y Islamic Empire

y Western Kingdom

y Common ideas: all actually claim to be the next Rome, all believed

to be descendants of Rome, they look up to Rome

Byzantine Empire



y Surviving eastern half of Roman Empire

y West: attacked by all tribes

y Split from Rome in 4th century and lasted until 1453

y 1453: the Ottomans take over the empire

y Constantinople was the capitaly Damascus and Alexandria were other large cities

o You could see them from far away

o Had domes, quite metropolitan and urban

y Orthodox theology

o Persecuted non-orthodox

o Even non-Eastern Christian orthodox were persecuted

o Wanted to protect ³Roman´ culture

o Anti-Germanic

o Had festivals to celebrate Roman virtues and cultures

o Patriarchal society (women were subjected to men)

A male-dominating society

Justinian (527-565)

y Launched many military expeditions

o Many to cover Rome, and taking back the land from Germanic

tribes

o Destructive wars, caused lots of death, unsuccessfuly Imposed orthodoxy

o Heretics would be exiled or persecuted

y Famous for the Law Codes and Digest

o Uniformity of law

y Great builder

o Hagia Sophia

Goal to project religion

Sign of power and authority

Reconstruction of Constantine church

Imported marble

Troubles

y All of the buildings and wars caused financial burden on the empire

y People are overtaxed



y 532 ± major riot that last nine days

o Justinian almost escaped, but they recovered

o It was a scare

y 6th century ± Byzantine territory shrank

y By 627 ± Sassari Persia took Damascus and Egypt

Byzantium and Christianity

y Emperors as powerful religious and political figures ± head of state

and church hierarchy

y Bishops served as judges and has collections

y Monks and Monasteries power institutions

y Icons: images of Holy People (Christ, the Virgin, saints)

Islamic Empire

y Pre-Islam:

o In Arabian Peninsula, Bedouin tribes, Desert, with a few cases

of water

o Traditions transmitted orally

o Commercial centers, ie: Mecca

o Nobody fight

Mohammad (579-632)y Born in Mecca

y Trader, merchant

y Married, had four daughters

y Recite words of Allah

o Qoran (Holy Book of Islam) means ³recitation´

y Converted family and friends

y Emphasis on immediate family and wider community of believers

called ³ummah´

o Important to Mohammad teachings

y At first: insulted and harassed

y 622 ± leaves Mecca, Hijra ³migration´ to Medina

o Followers in Medina

o Religion issues are tight politics in that era



Spread of Islam

y 624 - attack on Meccan caravan loaded with goods ± Battle of Badr

(killed 49 people and took prisoners)y idea of Jihad ³striving´ of Islam or ³holy war´

y Consolidated position in Medina and draws out Jewish population

y 630 ± entered Mecca with 10,000 men and took over city

Five Pillars of Islam

y Fast of Ramadan during ninth month of Islamic year

y Haji ± pilgrimage to Mecca

y Worship five times a day

y Profession of Faith ³There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his

messenger´

y Zakat ± tax on possession used for alms

Successor: who is to replace Muhammad?

y Death of Muhammad on 632

y First caliphs came from his close uncle

y Third caliph, Uthman from Ummayad family, aroused discontent

y Followers of Ali (Husband of Fatiana, Muhammad¶s only survivingchild)

Islam Spreads

y Mohammad¶s successors attacked Byzantium in 640s

y Invaded Sassari Empire (Persia) and controlled entirely by 661

y Islamic soldiers spread from Spain to India

y Why so successful? Good warriors and faced weakened neighbors

Ummayad Empire

y Capital at Damascus

y Imposed Arabic to unite lands

y Hired Byzantine and Persian officials

o Creates new energy

y Issued coins



o Printed money

y Christians and Jews were free to worship but they paid tax

y Revolution and split in empires ± (Abbasids rule empire but Spain

still ruled by Ummayads and North Africa ruled by Fatimids)

o Ruled the entire empire except for Spain

Islamic Renaissance (790 ± 1090)

y Baghdad new capital ± sophisticated, urban, center of learning,

scientific capital of world)

y Research libraries are built, universities

o Translated and studied

y Achievements in Math and science ± ie. Algebra, Physics, Medicine

y Ibn Sinna (known as Avicetina in West (wrotebooks on logic,

natural)

Cordoba, Spain

y Ummayad Court at Cordoba was most dazzling and contained

largest collection of books in the world

o Great architecture

Western Kingdoms

y Francia was the main political unity Franks dominated Gaul (old term for France)

y 7th century ± Frankish kingdom reached eastern borders of present

± day France, Luxemburg, Belgium, Switzerland, and subjugated

people beyond the Rhine River

y Clovis ± founder of Merovingian Dynasty

Merovingian Kings (485-791)

y Gained power through tribal war leadership, access to plunder; took

over Roman institutions although not very efficient

y Maintained power through alliances with local aristocrats and

church authorities

y Marriage used to control affairs

y Fighting between sons of kings over territories, wives, money



Britain

y Germanic people (Anglos and Saxons) invade 5th and 6

th centuries

y They drive indigenous Celts into Wales, Scotland, and Irelandy Rural culture, little trade, no cities, little state organization

y Anglo-Saxons eventually became Christian

Italy

y Lombard Kingdom

y Pope: spiritual leader but also subordinate to Byzantines

y Pope Gregory the Great (590-604) laid the foundation for power of

papacy

y He became greatest landowner in Italy, made treatises, and

oversaw court cases

Carolingian Empire (750-1050)

y Charles Martel ± mayor of the Palace under Merovingian

o A new dynasty born

Charlemagne (768 ± 814)

y Charles ³le magne´ ± great in old French y Most powerful Carolingian ruler

y Einhard, courtier and scholar at his court, described him as a model

Roman Emperor

o Propagandist

o Described Charlemagne as David

y Actuality: Charlemagne was illiterate

y Alcuin compared him to David the old Testament King

y Charlemagne crowned Emperor and Augustus of Rome in 800

Charlemagne¶s Conquests

y Conquered new territory

y Invaded Italy and took Lombard crown

y Fought the Saxons and converted them into Christianity

y No standing army; men mobilized for each expedition



o Had to get military support ± the men provide their own

armor and support

Had to believe Charlemagne is great, etc

y Soldiers provided own equipment and took booty as payment as

they won battles

Charlemagne¶s Gov¶t

y Issued law in form of capitularies- summaries of decisions made at

assemblies with chief men of the realm

y Governors called "counts" carried out laws, mustered armies, and

collected taxes

o Not efficient

y King gave land as payment

o Prize, perhaps for a good knight

o Award

Division of Empire

y Louis the Pious (Charlemagne¶s son) ruled the empire

o When the king and there are too many sons, the sons would

argue for rule of land

y Empire a conglomeration of territories

y At Louis¶ death, fighting between three sons resulted in division of empire

y Three parts: West (France), East (Germany), Middle (Italy,

Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg)

Carolingian Renaissance

y Peak in scholars, there is a renaissance, few people

y Charlemagne recruited leading intellectuals

y Royal courts became centers of learning

y Monasteries centers for manuscript production

o Not widespread, few scholars gather at the court

y Renaissance is not like your average Joe reading or writing

Alcuin

y A scholar at Charlemagne¶s court



y Alcuin of York was the leading architect of cultural reform

y Carolingian Minuscule and Latin restored as literary language

y Revised church liturgy and the Bible

y Schools attached to monasteries

Conclusion

y Three heirs to Rome

o Byzantine, Islamic, Carolingian

o All tried to emulate Rome, Rome model for empires

o All monarchies and imperial

o All faced regional pressures

o In West, break up into smaller units: lordships; family and

kinship ties

o Age of smaller political units

Europe in the year 1000

y Charlemagne¶s Empire divided up

y Treaty of Verdun 843

y Famine; Europe "empty"

y Barbarians: Saracens, Magyars, Vikingso Not army, problems strike

Invasions of 800s

y More destructive than previous invasions

y Saracens ± Arab pirates set loose by the political turmoil in

caliphate of Baghdad

o Abbasid in turmoil

Series of pirates moving from Baghdad into the West

y Magyars or Hungarians or Ogres

o Coming from Eastern Europe

East: famine, political turmoil

y Vikings or Norsemen ± Scandinavian pirates who come in ships

and loot and burn

o No intention to set up a new empire



y These, groups, especially the Vikings, terrified the Europeans

o Terrorized much of Northern Europe

o They sail up rivers

y They do settle, though, and merge with Christianity

o But more looking for booty and looting

Treaty of Verdun, 843

y Charlemagne¶s empire divided up and collapses

y Vacuum of power

y Europe cannot defend itself against barbarian invasions

o People are left on their own

y Famine is general, widespread, destructive on the population

o Bad weather destroyed crops, villages, etc

y INSECURITY: no law, no order or justice

o You¶re on your own

Life in Europe Difficult in 1000

y 1000 is not an exact figure (during this period of time)

o See above

y Europe was heavily forested

y People were ³scarce´

y Population dropped from 25 million in Rome to 15 million underCharlemagne

o Very few people living in these places

Not good

You want more people, trade, protection, etc

y Famine common

o Bad weather

o Not enough people to farm

o You need people to raise crops

o Terrible hunger in 1032-1033 due to poor tech, bad weather,

and lack of people

Leading to hunger

Year 1000

y Turning Point!!!



y Nobody would bet on Europe in 1000

y Backward compared to Muslim neighbors and China

y By 1050, a new European World emerged

o Out of this turmoil, we see change and it leads to a new

Europe and a new beginningo Would be unimaginable when looking more into the past

Year 1000: Why?

y Luck: no more Barbarian Invasion after 1050

o These groups stopped attacking

y Feudalism: small political units function better

y A new smaller, better functioning unit emerges

y Encourage security which leads to agricultural innovation

o Security protection means people can innovate

o If you're struggling to survive, you cannot innovate

o People now can concentrate on how to improve society and

innovate

y Christianity accommodates and acculturates barbarians

o The barbarians do stay, they are Christianized

Important to changing people, not rigid, will absorb

ideas

Exchange with the barbarian cultures Easier for the barbarians to adapt

o Monasticism keeps Christianity alive

Also keeps learning, culture, and scholarship alive

Population Grows after 1050

y Why?

o Better climate; Europe gets warmer

y Peasants adopt new agricultural techniques

y Agriculture becomes more efficient; more food with less labor

y Cities can reappear

o When you have more security and no more invasions

o Better agricultural techniques and climate

o Cities are dependent, take crops from the countryside

y Commerce resumes



o Crucial for growth

Once you have security, food, crops, people began to

trade

End of Invasions: How?y Saracens: 972 William count of Arles drives them out of their

Mediterranean strongholds

o New waves are no longer coming

o You just have to build up

y Hungarians: Otto of Saxony defeats them in 955

y 1005 Otto¶s daughter marries their leader and converts them to

Christianity

o Saxons merging/marrying into their family

y Vikings are Christianized and settle down; they become Normans,

which become the ancestors of the English

Christianity

y Christianity accommodates Barbarian influences

y Christianity's syncretism makes it a powerful acculturating force

o Not the rigid system of today, no solid ideas yet at this time

y Monasticism sustains Christian doctrine, but Christian doctrine

also absorbs and accommodates barbarian cultures

Feudalism

y Local nobles & petty warlords and their bands of warriors prove

better able to defend Europe than large, cumbersome empires

o Smaller political units worked better than political empires

y Decentralization & local points of power better defenders

y Helps Europe progress and grown

Monasticism

y Benedict of Nursia (528) creates a rule that encourages self-

sufficiency, harmony

y Benedictine communities are designed to survive in the most hostile

territory

y These islands of Christianity keeps Christianity alive



Year 1000: Why?

y Vestiges of Antiquity disappear with the collapse of the Carolingians

y New resilient features that make medieval civilization resilient:

Feudalism and Monasticismy Europe begins to climb to prominence

What is Peasants?

y A happy person attuned to the rhythms of nature?

y An oppressed person victimized by the system?

y What does Dennis think?

So, what is a peasant?

y A person who farms what is almost his own land and for whom the

family is the principle unit of production

y A peasant a slave? No

y A serf? Maybe but not necessarily

How did peasants become peasants?

y An example: Lournand

y Lournand is a place in burgundy

y Happens to be within the domains of an abbey or monastery: Clunyy Lournand has some records: this is a time with very few records

Lournand Before 1000

y Part of the Roman world

o Economy based on slavery

o Slaves settled on land, but did not own land, did not

participate in political stuff, did not have rights

y Large estates or villae

y Tech primitive

y Strong, Roman state

o To control people

o Cities live off countryside

y Under the Carolingian World

o There was slavery, but a big drop (15% in Lournand)



y No strong state to keep slaves working

o In place when there are fewer slaves, estates are replaced by

farms or smaller units such as manse

o Each farmer would have his/her land, protector

Around 1000

y Virtually all inhabitants are free & own a little land

y People are free

y They live in families of about 5 members

o Provided themselves for the most part

y They farm manses or allods (ie. family farm)

y Why Allods? Require little supervision; family farm is self-sufficient

and self-governing

o Works better at this time

y Consequences: peasants are born! But, still inequities (for the most

part)

o Not necessarily true for all Europe

Peasants do become Serfs

y Had to give up certain privileges for security and protection

y Peasants ³alienate´ their land (live on it, farm it, but give over a

sort of ultimate ownership to the abbeyo Beneficial to the peasants

y Abbey contracts to protect the peasants (in the case of Lournand)

y Why?

o Famines in 982, 983, 984

o Violence: in Lournand, conflict between families & peasants

need protection

Peasants become Serfs of the abbey of Cluny

y 970-990 Cluny becomes the protector of the lesser clan

y Cluny drives out Bishop; brings knights under its influence; curbs

some violence

y Cluny can also threaten to excommunicate people from the church

What does Cluny get in return?



y ³Eminent domain´

o Ownership of peasant land

y Cluny gets labor and crops from peasants

o 1/3 to ½ of the harvest

Annual tax for protection for the peasantsy Eventually labor service converted to money payments

The ³agreement´ between Lord and Peasant:

y Is called manorialism or seigneurialism

y (Sometimes called the economic side of feudalism)

o People pay to the state, church

Effects of Seignerualism on agrarian economy?

y Some security for peasants

y People will innovate when they think they will reap the benefits

(won¶t be robbed)

o Innovation comes with security

y Technological progress and greater productivity now possible

o Population will continue to grow, higher standards of living

o Peasants have no state trauma, have no large armies to

destroy their villages, no fears

o People in the 1200s are living better than people in the1500s?

Economic progress begins

y Increase in arable land that is cultivated

y When people need land, you have land cleared and drained

o Deforestation and swamp draining

o Population growth means Europeans start moving into new

areas

y Colonization of Spain & East of Elbe

y New villages

Technological progress

y New harness & plow

o Use animals to do work for them



o Good harness to not hurt your animal

y Triennial rotation: 1/3 as opposed to ½ land lies fallow

(uncultivated)

o Need your fields to rest

o If overused, you will get bad cropsy People began to eat more beans

o Beans replenish the soil

Improves the soil

Beans are healthy

y The shit factor

o More food, more animal, more fertilizer

Can fertilize land more

y Become more efficient

Population growth begins

y France: population doubles by 1300; England population triples

between 1086-1348

y Total European population increased from 38 million to 74 million

(or thereabouts)

y Population growth continues until 1300s

o Growth sustained for 300 years

o Cause for the stall: the 1300s bubonic plague

Why does this happen?

y Manorialism or Seigneurialism (economic side of feudalism)

o Peasants need security to innovate

Are peasants oppressed

y They suffer from prevailing disorder; chaos

y Manorialism benefits them (at this point) because it gives them

some security

Are they poor?

y No! Medieval peasants lived pretty well

o Medieval peasants had: pretty good diet

o A room of their own



6 /21/2011 10:43:00 AM

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