- Europe was not unified
- There was no state called:
- Germany
- Spain
- Russia
- Italy
- The British Isles are not united
- Who was in charge? The Pope or the local/regional kings?
- Debated for a looong time
- Feudal System
- A network of obligations between liege-lords and vassals
- The "bigger shield" is the liege-lord and the vassals are his followers
- Liege-lords are those with more power than others
- The king is the highest liege-lord
- Network is fluid and unstable
- Can be several layers deep
- The Feudal Contract
- Liege/Lord
- Provides land and protection
- Vassal
- Provides loyalty and military service
- Life for most people in the dark ages:
- Most people didn't read, only if you were connected to the church
- What do you do for a living?
- Do you live in the city or the country?
- 98% of the population live in the countryside because very few lived in the towns
- If you are a serf, you are not part of the feudal system (you have to be a warrior to be in the feudal system)
- You cannot leave the manor (farm owned by your lord)
- Lord provides protection
- You provide the food and labor
- You aren't a slave, but you have limited rights
- The "High" Middle Ages (1050 - 1350)
- Things get a lot better over time
dec 4 2015 ∞
dec 4 2015 +