The End of the Middle Ages

1
The End of the Middle Ages

• WHY???

2
Decline in Church power

• A new middle class arose in towns their desire
  for challenged the teachings of the Church,
  deprived the Church of
• Education became less religiously focused
• Wars in Italy forced some popes to live in France
  for awhile
• From 1347-1353 the plague (Black Death) killed
  1/3 of Europeans they felt like the Church /
  God abandoned them (p. 339)

3
Decline in Church power

• The Great Schism led to the Church having 3 popes
  at once divinely chosen?
• Church abuses made people angry
• Fees were charged for Churchs services
• Simony selling of positions within Church
• Princely lifestyles of clergy
• Led to calls for reform (ex John Wycliffe wrote
  Eng translation of the Bible now any literate
  person could read it / Jan Hus Czech criticized
  corrupt Church officials)

4
Increased governmental power

• As loyalty to the Church declined, people instead
  devoted their loyalty to monarchs
• Also, the peace of High Middle Ages (in some
  locations) allowed kings to start consolidating
  power
• In other, less peaceful places, kings could
  promise protection to the people, as long as the
  new middle class paid taxes to fund militaries
  (most people preferred monarchial rule rather
  than anarchy)

5
How did the Church respond?

• It continued to go after heretics people within
  the Church who held spread ideas that
  contradicted Church teachings
• Heretics were excommunicated denied Church
  membership participation in the sacraments
  (hence, denied salvation)
• If the heretic was a noble continued to rebel,
  the Church issued an interdiction, closing
  churches on the nobles land no Church-blessed
  marriages or burials there