The Middle ages
David Tshisekedi
feudal system
the kings used to own all of the land. the king would give portions to his favorite subjects; nobles, barons, earls, and knights. nobles divided land among many serfs who worked on the land in return for food, shelter, and protection. the knights would take land in return for service/protection.
http://honorshistory-me.weebly.com/q2--chapter-8--9.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zdvdmp3/revision
advanced weapons in the middle ages
the Counterweight Trebuchet was one of the strongest and most devastating siege catapults to arrive in the Middle Ages. Trebuchets launched projectiles weighing up to 350 lbs into or at enemy fortifications.
cannons account for any piece of artillery powered by gunpowder to propel projectiles. They were first invented in China, with the advent of gunpowder, and would come to replace siege engines and reign in a new era of combat that is still used today.
The single greatest development in Middle Ages warfare, and probably all of warfare in history, is undoubtedly gunpowder. For over 1,000 years, the growth of weapons and ballistics in the world has hinged on gun-powders discovery.
gunpowder
knights and soldiers/serfs
There were two types of armed men during the Medieval era who used different weapons according to the rank and status - the Knights and the foot soldiers. The foot soldiers held weapons according to their status and position which was determined by the Feudal system. The weapons, weaponry, armor and horse of the Knight were extremely expensive and therefore out of the reach of peasants. The weapons used by peasants were therefore often adapted from farming tools. Lords and nobles were expected to provide soldiers who were trained in a variety of Weapons. Knights were supported by their soldiers and the Medieval Weapons used by the lower classes included the Polearm, Battle Axe, Mace, Billhook, Caltrop, Flail, Halberd, Longbow, Bow and Arrow, Crossbow, Pike, Poleaxe, Quarterstaff, Spear and the War hammer. The Knights themselves used different Weapons riding on their warhorses - every knight had spent their whole lives gaining expertise in the use of the lance, swords and daggers and all the other weapons which were suited to his status.
role of church
The Roman Catholic Church became increasingly involved in secular (nonreligious) society during the Middle Ages (A.D. c. 450–c. 1500). It played a significant role in medieval European life through the activities of the clergy (church officials). Missionaries converted many of the Germanic tribes, and the church was influential in civilizing the so-called barbarians (non-Christians). Churches throughout Europe housed travelers and served as hospitals for the sick, while monasteries and cathedrals became centers of learning.
the plague
The Black Death arrived in Europe by sea in October 1347 when 12 Genoese trading ships docked at the Sicilian port of Messina after a long journey through the Black Sea. The people who gathered on the docks to greet the ships were met with a horrifying surprise: Most of the sailors aboard the ships were dead, and those who were still alive were gravely ill. They were overcome with fever, unable to keep food down and delirious from pain. Strangest of all, they were covered in mysterious black boils that oozed blood and pus and gave their illness its name: the “Black Death.”Blood and pus seeped out of these strange swellings, which were followed by a host of other unpleasant symptoms–fever, chills, vomiting, diarrhea, terrible aches and pains–and then, in short order, death. The Black Death was terrifyingly, indiscriminately contagious: “the mere touching of the clothes,” wrote Boccaccio, “appeared to itself to communicate the malady to the toucher.” The disease was also terrifyingly efficient. People who were perfectly healthy when they went to bed at night could be dead by morning.
multi flow map
life as a serf
the daily Life of a serf is extremely difficult. us serfs are never guaranteed FREE land, there are always terms and conditions that we have to work through in order to receive this land. the daily life of a serf is dictated by a lord and the needs of his manor. depending on the lord we work for we get taxed severely and are forced to work to the lords content. the only reason that the lords don't burden us to much i because they fear losing our labors.