Impressionism

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The Middle Ages
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Feudalism and Knighthood

• Based on the religious concept of hierarchy, with
  God as the supreme overlord.
• William the Conqueror stood firmly at the top of
  the pyramid and appointed barrons over portions
  of his land.
• Barrons would take an oath to pledge allegiance
  to their King

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Knights
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• Boys were trained from early on to become
  warriors
• Knighted
• Training took place in a home other than their
  own and was strict.
• At completion of training he was dubbed or
  ceremonially tapped on his shoulder (originally,
  it was a hard blow)
• Recognized as a man and carried the title sir
  and the full rights of the warrior caste

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Women in Medieval Society

• No political rights in a system that was
  primarily military.
• Status depended solely on father or husband-
  subservient to man.
• Their job was to serve their man day and night

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Peasant Women vs. Noble Women

• Peasant women continually pregnant, involved in
  housework, and hard fieldwork.
• Noble women continually bearing children,
  supervising housework, and would manage entire
  estates in the absence of their men.

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Chivalry and Courtly Love

• Chivalry is a system of ideals and social codes
  governing the behavior of knights.
• women and children come first in the chivalric
  code

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Courtly Love

• In its ideal form was nonsexual.
• Promoted the idea of acting in the name of a
  lady.
• A knight might wear his ladys colors in battle
• Glorify her in words and be inspired by her.
• She always remained pure and out of reach
• She was set above her admirer

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Drama for poets and storytellers

• Chivalry brought about an idealized attitude
  toward women
• Did little to influence their status, but
  inspired poetry and great stories Sir Gawain
  and the Green Knight.

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New City Classes

• Feudal system started to deteriorate and a class
  system began to form
• Example in Chaucers Canterbury Tales- definite
  class system of lower, middle and upper classes
• Eventually power shifted to cities where more
  people began to inhabit

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Other Highlights

• October 1066 the Norman Conquest began with
  William the Conquerer (Middle Ages 1066 -1485)
• Anglo Saxons contributed democracy and artistic
  elements
• Normans contributed administrative ability,
  emphasis on law and order and cultural unity

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More highlights

• The Crusades in Canterbury Tales we meet a
  knight who comes from heathen places (1095
  1270) A series of wars waged by Eurpoean
  Christians against the Muslims, with Jerusalem
  and the Holy Land as the prize.
• Christian Europe was exposed to the Middle Easts
  sophisticated civilization.

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Great Happenings

• Thomas Becket
• Shrine in Canterbury Tales
• A Norman and chancellor (prime minister) under
  King Henry II- Archbishop of Canterbury
• Sided with the Pope on more than one occasion
  against King Henry II.
• Four of Henrys knights murdered Becket in his
  own cathedral.
• Public devotion led to a backlash against the
  king and left the monarchy struggling in Rome

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Final Years

• Magna Carta
• Signed in 1215 by King John
• Basis of the English constitutional law
• Established trial by jury and legislative
  taxation
• Hundred Years War
• 1337-1453
• First national war England vs. France
• Formation of yeoman small landowners
• Dominant force in forming class society
• Chivalry no longer existed except in stories

• Black Death
• 1348 1349 (Bubonic Plague)
• Spread by fleas and rats
• Reduced population by 1/3
• Gave the lower classes more leverage
• Heightened awareness of death
• Peoples faith was weakened