![]() ![]() At the same time religious reformers, first in Germany and then in the Netherlands and Scandinavia, were leading a movement against the practices of the Roman Catholic Church. ![]() The power of the Holy Roman Empire had dwindled, and princes (noblemen who ruled states)-particularly in the more than two hundred principalities of Germany-were seeking independence. As the Renaissance moved north of Italy in the fifteenth century, northern and central Europe was even more fragmented. Numerous wealthy city-states competed for trade rights around the Adriatic and Mediterranean Seas, and the Italian Wars (a conflict between France and Spain for control in Italy) raged for sixty-four years (see " Italian Wars dominate Renaissance" in Chapter 2). In the south, the Italian peninsula was turned into a battleground. The result was absolute chaos, as leaders of states vied for more power and larger territories. When the Renaissance began in the mid-fourteenth century in Italy, Europe was divided into hundreds of independent states, each with its own laws and customs. A middle class, consisting of merchants and bankers, was taking power away from noblemen.Īlthough feudalism had been replaced by a new economic system, social and political structures were still based on the fief. Serfs started escaping to urban areas in search of work. The growth of the new economy posed threats to the feudal system. The cities replaced fiefs as population centers. Capitalism brought about the rise of cities, which were built as hubs in a network of trade routes throughout Europe. Under feudalism there were few cities, and most communities consisted of small towns and rural areas clustered around castles, which served as centers of government and social life (see "Castle as center of community" in Chapter 1). Capitalism is considered one of the major contributions of the Renaissance. Other religious establishments of the Roman Catholic Church were also considered fiefs.įeudalism began to decline in the eleventh century with the rise of capitalism, an economy based on investing money and earning profits from business ventures. Land occupied by churches, monasteries (houses for men called monks, who dedicated themselves to the religious life), and At the bottom were serfs (peasants), who farmed the fiefs but were not given land of their own. Below the lords were vassals (knights), who held smaller amounts of land awarded to them by lords. ![]() Beneath them were lords (noblemen) and clergymen (church officials), who were granted tracts of land called fiefs (pronounced feefs) by the king. ![]() At the top were kings, who owned the land. Under feudalism, which was based on an agricultural economy, distinct social classes were dependent on one another through a complex system of pledging loyalty in exchange for goods and services. (See "Feudalism" in Chapter 1.) Eventually feudalism (a term derived from the medieval Latin word feudum, meaning "fee") spread throughout Europe and served as a unifying institution for all aspects of life. This social and economic system had emerged during the ninth century in the Carolingian Empire (pronounced care-eh-LIN-jee-ehn), which was centered in the region that is now France. One of the most significant developments in the three centuries leading up to the Renaissance period was the collapse of feudalism. The Rise of Monarchies: France, England, and Spain ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |