FeudalismFeudalism::FeudalismFeudalism::

A political and economic system based on loyalty and military service.

The Decline of FeudalismReason #1 Political Changes

England Political changes that would bring an end to

Feudalism started in England in the 12th and 13th centuries (1100’s-1200’s)

It really starts with King Henry II (1154-1189)

King Henry II Changes the Court System

No More Trial by Ordeal Trial by Combat Feudal Lords deciding guilt or

innocence and punishments

Instead A Jury would accuse

people of crimes Cases would be tried before a

Royal Judge Guilt or Innocence would be

based more on the facts of the case

Henry II Fights With The Church 1164- Henry issued the Constitutions

of Clarendon Listed the Rights of the King The BIG one was that if a member of

the clergy was accused of a crime they would be tried in Royal Courts

Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket, Objected!!! The clergy should be tried in Church Courts!! 1170 Becket is killed by 4 knights 1173 Becket becomes a saint, and his

tomb becomes a destination for pilgrimages

King John I Makes A Lot of Enemies John I becomes king when his father, Henry

II, dies in 1199 Lost most of England’s land in France Taxed the nobles Ignored the rights of the nobles Fought with the church Heavily taxed church lands

King John I And The Magna Carta 1215- The Magna Carta (Great

Charter) is signed by King John I Nobles forced John I to sign the

Magna Carta King must ask the nobles

before he raises taxes All free men must have a trial Property cannot just be taken

Why would King John I sign a document that took away some of his power? If he did not agree…..He would

be overthrown!!

King Edward I 1295 Edward I started the Model Parliament,

to help govern England Included lots of different people

Commoners Lower Clergy Nobles High ranking Clergy

So How Did This Stuff Help End Feudalism?1. Strengthened the power of the King2. Weakened the power of the Nobles3. Gave more power to Common People4. Magna Carta gave people rights that could

not be taken away5. Improved Court System6. Model Parliament gave regular people a say

in the government

The Decline of FeudalismReason #2- The Bubonic Plague AKA “The Black Death”

What is the Bubonic Plague? Most famous form of Plague Caused by a bacterial infection Spreads through flea bites

(Rarely through the air) Without treatment……50%-100% Lethal Bubonic Plague probably

started in China or Mongolia Today Bubonic Plague is

curable with the use of proper antibiotics (3,000)

Symptoms of the Bubonic Plague 1st Flu like symptoms

Sneezing, Aches, and Fatigue 2nd Swollen lymph glands

Armpits, Groin, and Neck Swollen glands develop into Buboes, which eventually rupture

and bleed

3rd Coughing Once coughing starts the plague has become airborne

4th Pain, Bleeding, Decaying of Tissue and Death….in 3-7 days

The Bubonic Plague spreads to Europe

Fleas spread along trade routes Spread along the Silk Road Also spread to Europe on ships First outbreaks of the Bubonic

Plague would occur in port cities and towns

Spreading the Plague in Europe Starts in modern Turkey and Italy Poor sanitation encouraged the

spread of the Plague Plague infected rats and fleas feed

on garbage, dead animals, and human waste

Most people did not change their clothing

Most people did not bath regularly

People did not know what caused the Plague, or how it spread

Impact of the “Black Death” Approximately half of the people in China died 24 million Europeans died, about 1/3 of the population Trade and The Economy were destroyed

Rebuilt with an emphasis on Common people Power shifted from the Nobles to the Commoners

So many people had died that workers were in short supply Workers could demand more money and more rights More people moved away from feudal manors and into

towns and cities to look for better opportunities Peasant rebellions began to break out

The Decline of FeudalismReason #3- The 100 Years War (1337-1453

Off and On for 116 years

Background King of France dies with no successor King Edward III of England is a distant relative, so he claims

the French throne The war was very back and forth Eventually France would win and the English would be

driven out of France

New Weapons (Battles of Crecy, Poitiers, and Agincourt)

Battle of Crecy English Army Outnumbered 3-1 Not many armored knights,

mostly peasant soldiers LONGBOWMEN

Battle of Crecy French Army 3 times more troops Mounted armored knights CROSSBOWMEN

Joan of Arc 1429- A peasant teenage French

girl who hears voices telling her to drive the English from France and crown Charles V King of France, rallies France to victory

May 7, 1429 Joan of Arc leads a French army to victory at the Battle of Orleans

July 17, 1429 Charles V is crowned King of France

A year later, Joan of Arc is captured by the British Tried in Church Courts for Heresy

and witchcraft Burned at the stake

Impacts of 100 Years of Warfare English and French Kings Gain Power

(Especially French) Nationalism grows in France and England Armored knights and Chivalry have been replaced

with Peasant armies and Longbowmen Nobles and Knights lose power and become less

important, while Peasants become more important

??Questions?? about the Church People start to resent the wealth and power of the Pope and the Church Start to question the teachings of the Church

Who is really the head of the Church? How should the clergy live? Do common people even really need the clergy? By the way, often times the people who asked these questions were

put on trial for heresy and burned at the stake All of this questions showed that the power and influence of the Church

was declining

Impact on the End of Feudalism Kings now had more power than the Pope Church is having problems with transferring

power, and actually running itself Common people begin to question the Church Common people begin to resent the wealth

and power of the Church Church splits: Roman Catholic and Eastern

Orthodox

The Decline of FeudalismReason #4- The Crusades

The CrusadesHistory’s Most Successful FAILURE

Background

During the Middle Ages the Catholic Church had risen in

power

After the fall of Rome, the Eastern portion of the Empire

became known as the Byzantine Empire

Background- Causes Jerusalem was a holy land for the

Christians and each year many come to visit (pilgrimages)

The Seljuk Turks (Muslims) controlled that land and the amount of visitors grew too much that they began not allowing visitors

It was also believed that the increase in Muslim power would threaten the Byzantine Capital of Constantinople

Jerusalem

Pope Urban II and his call 1093- Byzantine Emperor

Alexius wanted help to save Constantinople from Turks asks Church

1095- Pope Urban II issues a call for a “holy” war or Crusade to capture the Holy land (Palestine) back from Muslims Pope assured that those that

die in Crusade will have a place in Heaven

GOAL:Crusades recapture the holy land from Muslims

Map of Crusades

1st Crusade- 1096 Crusaders capture Jerusalem

1187- Jerusalem falls back to Muslim rule

Crusade # 2 Fails to recapture city

Third Crusade Led by Richard the Lionhearted- King of England

Despite war, eventually they came to a truce with Saladin, leader of Muslims Christians (unarmed) would be allowed in city

The Crusades = 7-8 total The next 4 were unsuccessful in recapturing

city. But there were other crusades….

Children’s Crusade - 1212

20,000 – 30,000 children went out

Most died of disease, starvation and others were sold to slavery

Spanish Crusade- The Inquisition 1400 kick Muslims/ non Christians out

of Spain Reconquisita- Re –conquering of Spain

Inquisition – court used to suppress heresy (anyone different from teachings of Church)

Like a witch hunt against those not Christians

Why did the Crusades fail? After the 1st attempt, each attempt was weaker

with less emphasis on winning

People soon became about making money and getting goods

Stealing from Byzantine and Islamic

Effects of Crusades

Showed power of Church Increased trading between East and West

Merchants increased

will lead to massive Cultural Diffusion Kings become more powerful Constantinople (Istanbul) eventually falls to Turks Increased trading helped business flourish Muslim bitterness and hatred toward Christians

The Decline of FeudalismReason #4- The Great Schism (Conflict in the Church)

Western vs. Eastern ChristianityRoman

CatholicismEastern Orthodoxy

Leadership Pope Patriarch

Power Source Pope over rulers; appointed bishops

Patriarch led church with emperor influence

Language Latin Greek

Priests & Divorce Could not marry; divorce not permitted

Could marry; divorce with stipulations

Major Holiday Christmas Easter

Kings and Popes Compete Big Incident (1300-1303) King Philip IV (France) says that

the clergy in France have to answer to the King

Pope Boniface VIII says that kings must always obey popes.

Philip the IV has the Pope held prisoner, he is later rescued, but dies shortly thereafter

The power of the Pope over Kings was now completely gone

More then 1 Pope ?!?! Pope Urban VI

Chosen by Italian Cardinals because he was Italian

Lived in Rome Excommunicated Clement VII

Clement VII Chosen by French Cardinals

because he was French Lived in France Excommunicated Urban VI

There is actually a 3rd Pope at the same time!

Who the heck is in charge of the Church?

The Great Schism (Split in the Church)

So who is Pope? 1414 The Council of Constance tries to

figure this mess out Was able to force all 3 Popes to quit 3 years later they choose a new Pope,

only 1 this time, Martin V

Recap There are 4 main reasons why Feudalism fell…

Political Changes Changed the court system, More rights for the people, more power for the King

Bubonic Plague More power for the common people because their labor was even more important

now 100 years War

Growth of Nationalism, End of Chivalry, Common people continue to gain power and importance

Great Schism Church loses power, people begin to question and resent the Church

Crusades Church loses power, people begin to question and resent the Church

2 Final Thoughts Kings and Common people were gaining more and more power, while the

Nobles and Church were losing it People were sick of all this turmoil and really wanted things to change