The Middle Ages
By Aryan Kumar
The Church
Many people trusted the church until the Black Death. After the Black Death, though, people lost trust in the church because it couldn't explain why the Black Death happened. The church soon no longer provided aid.
The Crusades
The Crusades were a series of wars to retake the Holy Land. After the Muslim Turks captured Jerusalem from the Byzantine Empire, they stopped Christians from visiting the Holy Land, Christians were attacked, and the Byzantine Empire was afraid of further battles.
When the Byzantine Empire was afraid, they asked the pope what they should do. Pope Urban II called on the Christians to retake the Holy Land.
Some reasons the Christians went to fight were 1) some hoped to save their souls 2) they wanted to do what God wanted 3) some wanted land and treasure and 4) some wanted adventure.
The only successful crusade was the First Crusade. Many of the fighters were peasants without real weapons.
The Second Crusade was a very bad failure. The Christians were disorganized and fighting ended in a year.
The Third Crusade was also a failure, but Richard I convinced Saladin to allow Christians to visit the Holy Land.
The Fourth Crusade was also a failure. When the Christians couldn't afford the voyage, they sacked Constantinople.
Some results of the Crusades were 1) technology improves 2) Feudalism declines 3) the Christians could visit the Holy Land and 4) trade and travel increase.
Feudalism and Manorialism
The nobles who owned the manor lived in the castle. They would hire knights to protect their land. In return, the noble would give the knight land. The peasants would farm the land. They would not get much in return.
After the Black Death, there weren't many peasants left to farm the land. Soon, peasants started demanding wages for their work. After they got the money, they would buy their freedom and leave. This brought an end to Feudalism and Manorialism.
Advancements
Throughout the Middle Ages, many advances were made, such as cannons, Nationalism, and the long bow.
The cannon was one advancement made in the Middle Ages. Using gunpowder from China, the cannon revolutionized warfare throughout history.
Nationalism was another advancement in the Middle Ages. People held more pride in their country rather than in their manor. This is another reason Feudalism and Manorialism declined.
The long bow was another military advancement in the Middle Ages. It was very big and allowed people to shoot with amazing accuracy and range.
The Black Death
The fleas would bite people, infecting them. The people would die in as little as eight hours, and as much as five days. The disease spread very quickly, killing 25 million Europeans (a third of the population) in four years. It changed Europe in many ways.
Kings and Popes
When King Henry IV appointed a bishop which Pope Gregory VII disapproved of, the king got mad. He said the pope had no authority to challenge his authority. As a result, the pope excommunicated the king, meaning he cast out the king from the church. The king beseeched, and the pope eventually let him back in the church.
The pope had proved the pope had more power than the king. There were many more disputes between popes and kings, though.
Growth of Cities
As the cities grew, they became more popular. Trade increased, and eventually, so many peasants bought their freedom that Feudalism and Manorialism completely fell apart.
The Spanish Inquisition
The non-Christians had three options, which were 1) leave Spain 2) convert to Christianity or 3) die.
Soon, though, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella got paranoid that the "converts" were not actually converts. They started using torture devices, such as the Rack, to make non-Christians admit they weren't converts and to give names of other non-believers.
Eventually, the Inquisition slowed down in the 16th century.