Chapter 1 FEUDALISM The Middle Ages also called the medieval mehd-evil period began when the Roman Empire lost power in Europe in 476 and lasted until about 1450 a period of almost 1,000 years The end of the Roman power in the West led to a chaotic period in Europe in which roaming bands of barbarians terrorized the countryside To protect against this a new system of governance called feudalism arose Potatoes Again Huh Yep 4
FEUDALISM 1 In feudalism powerful lords would provide land to peasants and offer protection in the event of attack In exchange the peasants called vassals would turn over to the lords a portion of what they grew on the land 2 When a lord granted land to a vassal there was a ceremony to make it official Instead of a lease the tenant was given a symbolic clod of dirt called a seisin 3 In some parts of Europe individual towns that grew rich from trade built impressive buildings to showcase their wealth An Italian town called Pisa built the famous Leaning Tower in 1173 Although it seems like with all that money they could have fixed the tower Hmm something Seems a Little off 5
Chapter 2 CASTLES & WARFARE Fairy tales and fantasy stories have given us romantic notions of magical palaces with glittering towers and spires In reality medieval castles were military fortresses built primarily for defense against hostile invaders Constant warfare was a reality of life in the Middle Ages so a castle needed to be large enough to protect all of the villagers under its control and strong enough to hold out against long sustained attacks who Goes there 6
CASTLES & WARFARE 4 Warfare was common in Medieval Europe and many wars dragged on for generations The Hundred Years War between England and France actually lasted 116 years from 1337 to 1453 STRIKES Medieval TIMES PLAGUE MEDIEVAL HUNDRED YEAR 100TH YEAR WAR ENTERS 5 Much of what we know about medieval warfare comes from works of art from the period The Bayeux Tapestry which is on display in Bayeux France tells the story of the Battle of Hastings in England in 1066 6 Sometimes flaming arrows were shot at a castle to try to set a fire In one such siege in 1136 there was no water and the fire had to be put out with wine 7
