Political Units of Western Europe 1000-1400

England – 1000s In 1066, the Anglo-Saxon King died without an heir; led to a power struggle with rivals claiming the throne William of Normandy (descendent of the Vikings) raised an army and won the backing of the Pope; the Battle of Hasting was fought on Christmas Day and William the Conqueror won the throne of England As a feudal monarch, he granted fiefs to the Church and lords; he monitored closely what was done in his kingdom 1086 – a census was taken and the Domesday Book was compiled which listed every castle, field and pigpen in England ~Why do this? this info helped William and successors create an efficient tax collecting system

The development of the law system in England after William the Conqueror Common Law - laws that were common or the same for all people Jury – a group of men sworn to speak the truth. Early juries determined which cases should be brought to trial and were the ancestors of today’s grad jury in our government today. Another jury was developed made up of an accussed person’s neighbors – this is similar to our trial juries. What did the development of common law and the jury system do for England during the 1100s? Helped to unify and strengthen the gov’t

England 1200s During the 1200s an important monarch came to power named King John. Ever since William the Conquer, the monarchs of England were gaining power. What institution would be unhappy about this? John then battled with Pope Innocent III over the selection of a new archbishop of Canterbury. When John attacked the Church, he was excommunicated and England was placed under interdict. In order to save himself and his crown, he had to hand England over as a fief of the Papacy and pay a yearly fee to Rome Who else would become angered by the growth of the monarch’s power? John also angered his nobles with heavy taxes and other abuses of power. In 1215, nobles cornered John and forced him to sign the Magna Carta or great charter. In the document, the King had to acknowledge that nobles had certain rights and the monarch must obey the law. The king also agreed not to raise new taxes without 1st consulting his council of lords. By the end of the 1200s, the council evolved into Parliament. Parler is a French word meaning to talk. Parliament helped to further unify England. It would evolve into two houses: House of Lords (nobles and top clergy) and House of Commons (knights and middle-class)

The Magna Carta “No king is above the law” “nobles had certain rights”

France’s Government during the High Middle Ages How did the monarch’s power on France compare to England in the late 1000s? Monarchs in France did not rule over a united kingdom like William the Conqueror in England. Instead the successors of Charlemagne had little power over a patchwork of territories ruled by feudal nobles. Overtime, however, the French monarchs would gain sufficient power while working with the nobles Like the English formation of Parliament, the French developed their own parliament called the Estates General. This body represented all 3 estates (classes) – clergy .5% of pop, nobles 1.5% of pop and townspeople 98% of pop. It was established in 1302, but DID NOT develop the same effectiveness as the English Parliament. It never gained the right to consult about taxes nor did it serve as a check on royal power By 1300, where was it better to be a noble and why?

The Hundred Years’ War – an long event in the late Middle Ages 1337-1453 – a series of conflicts between England and France As you know, England had control of some French territory. The French monarchy simply wanted to extend their own power in France Once the war started, economic rivalry and a sense of national pride made it hard for either side to give in At 1st the English had won a series of battles because of the use of the longbow – a new weapon that was 6 feet long and took years for archers to master; it discharge 3 arrows in the time in took the French to fire one from the crossbow; it also pierced the heaviest armor Joan of Arc- 1429, a 17 year old peasant woman convinced the French King to lead an army against the English. Joan inspired the defeated French troops and won several victories. Joan paid for success with her life; she was captured by the English and burned at the stake. The French saw her as a martyr and the Church named her a saint After Joan’s death, the French took the offensive with a powerful new weapon – the cannon In the end, the war put England and France on different paths. The war created a growing sense of nationalism for France and French kings gained power while in England, monarchs had to continually go to Parliament to gain funds for the war. England ended up losing their lands in France and by 1453, began to looking at new trade overseas

Holy Roman Empire In the early Middle Ages, Charlemagne brought much of which is today the nation of Germany under his rule. After his death in 814, Germany dissolved into a patchwork of separate states ruled by a number of nobles By 962, the Holy Roman Empire emerged and had the potential to be the strongest monarchy in Europe. However, emperors clashed with vassals and conflicted with the power of the Church The Holy Roman Empire would continue until the late 1700s when Napoleon conquests it.