Middle Ages
Vassal
(n.) a person under the protection of a feudal lord to whom he or she owes allegiance
Charlemagne
800 AD crowned by the Pope as the head of the Holy Roman Empire.
Longboat
A boat with a shallow bow and a trademark dragon or scary face on the tip of the ship that was used by the Vikings.
Monk
A man who devotes his life to a religious group, often giving up all he owns.
Feudalism
A political system in which nobles are granted the use of lands that legally belong to their king, in exchange for their loyalty, military service, and protection of the people who live on the land
Crusades
A series of holy wars from 1096-1270 AD undertaken by European Christians to free the Holy Land from Muslim rule.
Bayeux Tapestry
A tapestry that recounts the Battle of Hastings, A piece of linen about 1 Ft.8 in. Wide by 213 ft.long covered with embroidery representing the incidents of William the conqueror's expedition to England.
Middle Ages
Also known as the medieval period, the time between the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth century AD and the beginning of the Renaissance in the fourteenth century.
Holy Roman Empire
An empire established in Europe in the 10th century A.D., originally consisting mainly of lands in what is now Germany and Italy
Fealty Oath
An oath of loyalty, a vassal promised loyalty and military service to the lord.
Pope
Head of the Roman Catholic Church
Lord
In feudal Europe, a person who controlled land and could therefore grant estates to vassals
Manor
In medieval Europe, a large, self-sufficient landholding consisting of the lord's residence (manor house), outbuildings, peasant village, and surrounding land.
Vikings
Invaders of Europe that came from Scandinavia
Pope Urban II
Leader of the Roman Catholic Church who asked European Christians to take up arms against Muslims, starting the Crusades
Coat of Arms
Personal symbols on banners and shields for a knight, which became hereditary
Excommunication
When a person is banned from the church by the pope or Patriarch
Serfs
Workers who were tied to the land on which they lived
Knight
a man, usually of noble birth, who after an apprenticeship as page and squire was raised to honorable military rank and bound to chivalrous conduct
Bubonic Plague
disease brought to Europe during the Middle Ages. It killed 1/3 of the population and helps end Feudalism. Rats, fleas.
Fief
land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for loyalty and service
Peasants
people who worked the land or served the nobles
Magna Carta
the royal charter of political rights given to rebellious English barons by King John in 1215