Progress During the Middle Ages

1
Progress During the Middle Ages
2
The Dark Ages

• Fall of the Roman Empire caused Western Europe to
  go through a cultural economic decline
• Characteristics
• Violence
• Brutality
• Lack of intellectual activity
• Feudalism
• Religious Dominance

3
Transition

• Eventually, progress returned to Western Europe
• Advances were made in agriculture technology
• Trade Expanded
• A new legal system was created
• Philosophy mixed with religion

4
Agricultural Changes

• Farmers had no knowledge of crop rotation
• Three Field System
• 1 Field Winter Crops
• 1 Field Summer Crops
• 1 Field Unused to regenerate fertility
• Great Famine (1315-1322)
• Trouble growing crops
• Many across Europe died

5
Technological Advances

• Better Watermills
• Windmills
• Mechanical Clocks
• Improved lives

6
Expansion of Trade

• Trade not possible during Dark Ages
• Shifted to fairs located inside castle walls
• Eventually trade routes became safe were used
  again
• Cities along trade routes grew

7
Magna Carta

• 1215 English nobles rebelled against taxes
  forced loans collected by King John
• King John forced to sign agreement
• Guarantees
• Only applied to free men
• Trial by jury
• Council of Nobles must approve new taxes

8
Justinian Code

• Emperor Justinian collected existing Roman Laws
  organized them into a single code
• Listed all laws opinions on each subject
• Had special laws relating to religion
• Required all to belong to Eastern Orthodox
  Christian faith

9
Monasticism

• Def. Way of life in convents monasteries
  where nuns monks withdraw from the world its
  temptations.
• Monks nuns lived by strict rules
• Monks Males that worked in church Clergy
• Nuns Females that worked in church Not clergy
• Had to withdraw in order to live Christian life
• Served God through fasting, prayer, self-denial

10
Scholasticism

• Def. Medieval philosophy attempting to bring
  together faith reason.
• Medieval philosophers tried to make Aristotles
  ideas work with ideas of church
• Aristotle placed importance on human reason
• Church writers placed importance on faith
• Eventually it was shown that these philosophies
  conflicted