The Medieval World

THE MEDIEVAL WORLD


1. Explain the meaning of the terms ‘ancient’ ‘medieval’ and ‘modern’ as used in describing periods of time in the chapter.
Ans.: While the story of the growth of civilization in parts of Asia and Europe has been brought up to the early centuries of the Christian era, to the end of the ancient period, the civilizations of the Americas and Africa have been descrived up to a much later period, roughly up to the time of the coming of the Europeans to these continents. The development of civilization mainly in Asia and Europe after the ancient times from about AD 600 to about AD 1500. This peiod between ancient and modern times, usually called the medieval peiod, or the middle ages. However, the term does not include exactly the same years in the history of all those parts of the world .
The Arab civilization became the most advanced in the medieval world. During this period many changes took place all over the world. The political map was altered with the decline of old kingdoms and empires and the rise of new ones. However, more important than the political changes were the changes in social and economic life. These changes were very marked in western Europe.

2. Which of the ancient civilization ruled over most of the territory that became the Byzantine empire in the medival period?
Ans.: The Roman emperor Constantine had established a new capital of the eastern territories of the Roman empire in the ancient Greek city of Byzantine. This city became famous as Constantinople. It was a vast empire and Constatinople was the largest city in Europe while London and Paris were villages. The Byzantine empire had close trade relations with countries farther east. The kind of Christianity the Byzantine emperors followed came to be known as the Eastern or Greek Orthodox. Many Christians in eastern countries are followers of this church. The Byzantines built beautiful churches with lavish decorations. The down fall of the Roman empire resulted in great confusion in western Europe giving rise to a large number of small states. Gradually other kingdoms big and small grew up in other parts of western Europe.

3. Describe the classes in European society under the feudal system. What new class began to develop in the later years of the middle ages ? why ?
Ans.: The new social and economic system that arose in Europe in the medieval times is known as the feudal system. It was essentially a rural system , in which the peasants had to give a part of their produce to the lords in the form of rent or taxes or had to labour for the lords without any payment. As it was based on the exploitation of the peasants, it was spread over many more regions of the world. In western Europe, the absence of central authority led to the emergence of political institution which are considered a major feature of European feudalism.
The feudal society in western Europe soon developed a hierarchy, or graded organization in which every person was allotted a position. At the top stood the king. He bestowed fiefs or estates on a number of lords who were known as dukes and earls. These lords in their turn, distributed a part of their fiefs among a number of lesser lords who were called barons and in return secured their military support. The knights formed the lowest category of feudal lords.
During the early middle ages in Europe, confusion reigned supreme as a result of Arbarian invasions. The later Middle ages however were a period in which Europe created a rich civilization on the foundations of the old Greek and Roman cultures and contacts with the East. Great advances were made in Christian teachings that, in many ways, cleared the way for religious reforms that were soon to come. As a result of the contacts with the East, the study of philosophy, mathematics and the sciences began anew. Europe’s middle ages came to an end when enlightenment won over the old medieval spirit of ignorance and superstition and conservatism.

4. Why did the first centuries of medieval times in western Europe come to be known as the Dark Ages?
Ans.: The early middle ages have often been called the Dark ages, and to some extent they were truly dark. The people led a miserable life. Education was very uncommon. The helplessness of the common man, the arbitrary rule of the kind and the barons and the absence of national unity all these conditions were common in Europe for over a thousand years. The influence of the feudal system was so strong that many countries have not been able to shake off feudal ills even today.

5. Man’s interest in trade and religion have often gone hand in hand throughout history. What examples of this do you find in medival times?

Ans.: During the medival times, great advances were made in Christian teachings, that in many cleared the way for religious reforms that were soon to come. There were great economic changes and trade and commerce began to flourish. Towns grew in size and number; the freedom in these towns allowed a middle class to develop, As a result of trade, study of philosophy, maths and science grew. Religion also played an active role in enhancing trade and thinking in man and bringing about a change in the economic life and creating a new class of people. Trade also encouraged freedom of thought in the area of religion and that led to many changes in the society which started in the medival era and continued in the modern age. Man has always been interested in trading with different countries and this brought about an exchange of ideas and ultimately changes in the very religious thinking of any particular religion.

6. When approximately did the medieval period end the west and in the east? According to what you know about change in man’s progress why is it difficult to say exactly when one period of history ends and another begins?

Ans : The middle ages does not cover a uniform period for all the countries of the world. For Europe and the western world the middle ages are generally considered to be the period between A..D. 500 and A.D. 1500. By about A.D.1500 vast changes had taken place in Europe’s social , economic and political life, and modern times are said to have begun.
In the east, the middle ages may besaid to have continued long after they had ended in the west. Throughout these years great advances were made in the arts. There was much intermingling of peoples and all ;cultures were enriched by this process. The forces of modernization however were to develop later in the east than in many parts of the west. Long after the period had ended in the west, the east was still in its middle ages.
It is highly impossible to pinpoint when one period of history ended to give way to another. Change has always been smooth and man has always been unaware and to exactly on which date the change took place. Various factors have been responsible and have contributed to this change and history is witness to the fact that changes have occurred and it has been difficult to pinpoint exactly on which date one era ended to give way to another.

7. Compare the social and economic system of western Europe with the systems that prevailed in India in the medieval times. What were the similarities and dissimilarities between them?
Ans: The system that developed first in western Europe in this period and later in other parts of Europe is called feudalism. The economic life under this system was predominantly rural and the main division in society was between peasants who worked on the land and the feudal lords who either got a share of the peasants produce or had peasants to work on their lands without any payment. In other parts of the world the changes that took place in the social and economic life of the people were not so marked. For example in some parts of the world, the trade and towns did not decline as they did in Europe. Similarly, the institutions that developed in Europe under feudalism did not generally exist elsewhere. However in spite of differences in specific institutions there were many similarities. The exploitation of the peasantry was the main feature of the social and economic system everywhere. In some societies such as in western Europe it took the form of serfdom. In others, such as in India, Zamindars and the nobility took a large portion of the peasant’s produce though the status of the Indian peasant was not that of a serf. Some scholars consider the social and economic system in asian countries including India, also to be a kind of feudalism though in many respects it was different in the European feudalism. The characteristic feature of the medieval social systems, according to them, was feudalism.