WH Unit 6
Do you agree or disagree with the basic message of Machiavelli's "The Prince"? Discuss using specific examples.
"The Prince" was a book written by Machiavelli, a diplomat, that took a critical look at politics in Renaissance Italy. The book stated that rulers should do whatever is necessary to keep power and protect their city, even if they had to lie and kill. I do not agree with this message. Lying to others just to stay dominant over a kingdom would not do any good for any ruler. Killing innocent people would make a ruler look evil and cruel (because killing people is evil and cruel). If a ruler is cruel and evil, the ruler will be hated by its people and would probably be overthrown by the people. The book also states that is is safer to be feared than loved as a king. I disagree because if I was a king, I would rather be loved. If I was a loved king, more people would like and agree with me. No one would want to rebel against me. This is why I disagree with Machiavelli and "The Prince".
Explain how Italy developed a different type of society than other European countries.
. The birthplace of the Renaissance was Italy. As Italy became more urban, Italians began to develop a different type of society. Italy became a different type of society because they had large city populations, which led to more discussion among people. Strong economics also developed. There were more customers for a new kind of art as well, art flourished in Italy because Italian cities had become very wealthy. and people could pay painters, sculptors, and architects to produce many works for them. Italy was also a collection of city-states and did not have a single emperor/king ruling over them. These are all reasons how Italy differentiated from other European societies.
How did the feudal system provide for the security of the people of medieval Europe?
Feudalism provided a specific job for everyone. This made a very organized system. Knights were given land and food from the King and in return, provided security for Europe. They pledged to be loyal to the Lord and always fight for Europe. This established a good, loyal security system where everyone did their job and no one rebelled against the King. This also made Europe's army very strong, since they had lots of loyal knights that fought for Europe.
What is humanism? What effect did humanism have on society?
Humanism was a Renaissance cultural movement that was based on Greek and Roman laws. Humanism gave importance to the individual and to human society. It encouraged people to be more active in society and to develop their talents. Humanism impacted society greatly. Humanist scholars were curious about biology, medicine, astronomy, and math. Leonardo da Vinci was a leading Renaissance scientists, artist, inventor, and engineer. He drew and brainstormed about inventions such as parachutes, flying machines, and other mechanical inventions that were far ahead of their time. Overall, Humanism challenged the worldview of the Middle Ages and led to new attitudes towards art, philosophy, and government.
Were the Crusades caused primarily by religious devotion or by the desire for political and economic gain?
I think that the Crusades were caused primarily by religious devotion. Christians and Muslims were fighting for power over Jerusalem, the Holy Land. The Pope was the leader of the Christians during the Crusades. He encouraged the Crusaders to start fighting. Without the Crusaders, he said that the Church would be destroyed along with its people. To get Christians to help save the Church, he explained that all of their sins would be forgiven, if they helped fight for the Holy Land. This caused 100,000 men to join fighting. The Crusaders believed that this was God's call for them and this is what God wanted them to do. This is why I believe that the Crusades were caused primarily by religious devotion and why the Christians decided to support the Crusades.
Describe the manor system.
Manorialism, the manor system, was the economic side of feudalism. A lord would use the manor system to organize his lands. Manorialism was a largely self-sufficient system in which the lord's land was farmed by his serfs. Serfs paid high rents to the lord to use his land and work on it. Serfs were not allowed to leave the manor, they had hard work to do. There was not just serfs on the manor, though. There were artisans, a chapel usually in the center of the manor, a forest for hunting, three farming fields, a castle, and pastureland/meadows for farm animals.
Describe the social and economic impact the Black Death had on medieval Europe.
The Black Death was a deadly disease during the 14th century that wiped out one out of every three people in Medieval Europe. 30-50% of Europe's population was killed. Serfs, priests, and doctors were hit the hardest. Serfs already did not have good sanitation, so when the plague came around lots of them died. Doctors and priests were constantly around the sick, causing them to get the plague as well. The doctors, priests, and serfs dying and the overall population decline were all social impacts the Black Death caused. The economic impact of the Black Death was that there were higher wages for serfs. With so many sick serfs, a demand for serfs grew. This let serfs demand higher wages, and better working conditions. A large population used to keep wages from rising, but with the population declining, wages grew higher. This also led to another social impact on the serfs because they were given a higher standard of living when they started to be paid more.
Discuss the effects of the Crusades.
The Crusades were a series of holy wars between Christians and Muslim Turks over Jerusalem, the Holy Land. Some of the effects of the Crusades were that they brought Western Europeans into contact with Byzantines and Muslims and new knowledge was gained. They learned how to build domes, create mosaics, build better ships, make more accurate maps, and how to use a compass. Wealthy people in Europe also began to demand Eastern goods. Some negative effects of the Crusades is that the Crusades weakened feudalism- nobles who joined the Crusades sold their lands and freed their serfs, which reduced their power. The Crusades caused bitter feelings between Christian Western Europe and the Islamic World.
Discuss each of the five consequences of the Germanic invasions of Europe.
The Five Consequences were the Disruption of Trade, the Downfall of Cities, Population Shifts, the Decline of learning, and the loss of a common language. The Disruption of Trade wad caused after invasions from the sea and land led to businesses collapsing. The breakdown of trade destroyed Europe's cities as economic centers. Money became very scarce. With the fall of the Roman Empire, cities were abandoned as centers of administration. Nobles and city dwellers retreated to rural areas and cities were left without strong leadership after Roman centers of trade and gov. collapsed. The population was mostly rural. Germanic invaders couldn't read or write, and only Roman church officials continued to be literate. Knowledge of Greek was almost lost and few people could read Greek literature, science and philosophy. the Germanic tribes had a rich oral tradition, no written language. As German-speaking people mixed with the Roman population, Latin began to change and was no longer understood from region to region. by the 800s, French, Spanish, and other Romance Languages had evolved form Latin.
Explain the relationship between a lord and a vassal.
The Lord grants all vassals land. A vassal is anyone who has been given land by the Lord for loyalty or military service. A knight is a vassal when given land, and in return offers military service. Nobles offer loyalty to the Lord after given land. Serfs work on the land of nobles or knights. The land they farm on was given from the Lord, so they are also technically vassals. the serfs give the Lord their loyalty and some of the crops they produce.
What four things did the signing of the Magna Carta accomplish? Why is Magna Carta considered one of the most important documents in history?
The Magna Carta (Great Charter) was a document written by nobles to make better restrictions on the king and his rule so he made fair choices that were in favor of the people. The Magna Carta placed limits on the king's power, forced the king to uphold the rights of freemen, including trial by jury, relied on the feudal idea that the king and his noble vassals had certain rights and duties, and strengthened the idea that all people have rights and that the power of the government should be limited. The Magna Carta is considered one of the first steps taken in England towards establishing parliamentary democracy and created a right to a fair trial for all subjects.
To what extent was the Roman Catholic Church the most dominant force in Medieval Europe? In addition to religion, think about political, economic, cultural, and social factors.
The Roman Catholic Church was the most dominant force in Medieval Europe. They had power over the religion, political leaders, economy, culture, and social factors. They had power over the religion of Europe because they were the head, or leaders, of Christians that everyone looked up to and followed. Politically, The Church had more power over the Kings because everyone looked to the Church not the Kings. The Church could excommunicate Kings and entire kingdoms. Economically, they could collect taxes for the Church from their devoted followers. Culturally, they built monasteries, schools, libraries and so much more for their people and the kingdom. In accordance to the social factors, they made the Pope very high up on the Social ladder, and other religious leaders. This is how the Church impacted Medieval Europe.
