Test Review

• medieval period- AD 476- AD 1453
• New society has roots in:
• classical heritage of Rome
• beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church
• customs of various Germanic Tribes

5th Century Germanic invaders

• overrun the western half of the Roman Empire
• causing:
• disruption 
• downfall of cities
• population shifts to rural areas 

Effects of Invasion 

• Decline of learning 
• tribes had oral tradition, songs, but couldn't read Greek or Latin 
• Roman languages evolve (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian)
• few besides priests were literate 
• Germanic warriors' loyalty is to the lord of the manor he provides them with food, weapons, treasure
• Result:
• no orderly government for large areas
• small communities rule
• Clovis rules the Germanic people of Gaul, known as the Franks (which is where "France" comes from)
• in 496 he has a battlefield conversion- he and 3000 of his warriors become Christians 
• In 520, Benedict writes rules for Monks:
• vows of poverty (live simply in monasteries)
• chastity (no marital relations)
• obedience (listen to church superiors)
• His sister Scholastica writes similar rules for nuns 
• they operate schools, maintain libraries, copy books 
• church revenues are used to help the poor, build roads, and raise armies
• theocracy- a government run off of one dominate religion 
• Gregory's spiritual kingdom (Christendom) extends from Italy to England, from Spain to Germany 
• Clovis' descendants include Charles Martel, known as Charles the Hammer
• Hammer defeats a Muslim raiding party from Spain at the Battle of Tours 732 
• Charles Martel's son is Pepin the Short 
• son #2 is Charles, known as Charlemagne, meaning Charles the Great 
• became the most powerful king of all time
• his son- Louis the Pious- was ineffective
• Louis' three sons- could figure out who to be king- split up kingdom at the Treaty of Verdun in 843 AD