The Black Death and the Hundred Years’ War Chapter 8; Section 5
The Black Death One in three people would die Epidemic outbreak of rapidly spreading disease Spread by rats Rats were a common thing in cities, they were everywhere
Effects on Society No way to stop it, some turned to magic and witchcraft Others plunged into wild pleasures, believing they would die anyway Others saw the plague as God’s punishment
God’s Punishment? Would beat themselves with whips to show they were repenting Christians blamed Jews, saying they had poisoned the wells Thousands of Jews were slaughtered because of this false accusation
Economic Effects As workers and employers died, the economy suffered AS the cost of labor soared, inflation, or rising prices, broke out Landowners and merchants wanted laws to limit wages, landowners converted crops to sheep raising which required less labor Caused revolts from bitter, angry workers
Upheaval in the Church John Wycliffe, an Oxford professor, attacked Church corruption He insisted that the Bible, not the Church, was the source of all Christian truth His followers began translating the Bible into English so that all could read it, not just clergy
Response of the Church Jan Hus, did the same in Czech Republic The Church responded by persecuting Wycliffe and his followers Hus was found guilty of preaching heresy and burned at the stake
Hundred Years’ War
Hundred Years War 1337-1453 War was over English rulers controlling French lands War started when Edward III of England claimed the French crown
New Weapons English victories were common in the beginning Most of this was because of the longbow six feet long and took years to master
Longbow Could discharge 3 arrows in the time a French archer could fire just one Its arrows could pierce the heaviest armor
Joan of Arc 1429 17 yr old girl appeared at the Court of Charles VII and told him that God had sent her to save France
Joan of Arc She persuaded the desperate king to let her lead his army against the English Would lead the French to several victories She would pay for her success with her life
Accused of Witchcraft English captured her and tried her for witchcraft, was convicted and burned at the stake Would be declared a saint years later by the Church Her execution rallied the French who now viewed her as a martyr
Another New Weapon With a powerful new weapon, the cannon, they attacked castles English now only held the port of Calais, the French had won
Effects of the War Set England and France on different paths War created a growing sense of national feeling in France and allowed French kings to expand their power Loss of French lands shattered English dreams of a continental empire, and they soon began looking at other trading ventures overseas
More Effects Other changes included the invention of the longbow and cannon, which undermined the armor of knights Castles were doomed to disappear because of this Large armies were now needed