Name:______
Date: ______Period: ______
Feudalism Chapter 15-2 (pages 522-531)
Directions: Reading for Accuracy Reading the section and completing the activity below will help you learn more about feudalism in medieval Europe. Use your textbook to decide if a statement is true or false. Write T or F in the blank, and if a statement is false, rewrite it correctly on the line.
_____ 1. During the A.D. 800s, the power in government transferred to nobles instead of kings.
______
_____ 2. At the center of a feudal territory was usually a city.
______
_____ 3. Lords granted land called a fief for service in their army.
______
_____ 4. The invention of metal armor allowed knights to ride horses
______
_____ 5. Serfs were the lord’s slaves.
______
_____ 6. Serfs could become free if they ran away and lived in towns for more than one year.
______
_____ 7. The invention of the oxen collar improved farming because oxen could plow much faster than horses. ______
_____ 8. The city of Venice built a large fleet of trading ships and became a major trading center. ______
_____ 9. Both men and women could be citizens of medieval towns.
______
_____ 10. Pollution was a problem in medieval towns.
______
_____ 11. Women ran the household, raised children, managed the family’s money, and sometimes helped husbands with their trades. ______
12. Define Feudalism (page 523)- ______
13. Define Vassal (page 523)- ______
14. Define fief (page 524)-
______
15. Define knight (page 524)-
______
Life of the Knights
At the time that hundreds of manors were being developed in Western Europe, many weak nobles were seeking protection from more powerful nobles. We call the system of protection, that slowly developed among the nobles feudalism or the feudal system.
Feudalism did not begin or end in the same time everywhere. In some places it began in the 9th century, in other places it developed later. By the 12th century, however, Feudalism was very well established in most of Western Europe. It provided a way of governing and a means of fighting wars at a time when kings were weak and could not keep order.
Under feudalism each level of society had duties to the groups above and below it. Circle the group in the diagram that served as vassals to the lords and ladies? What is this chart and example of? Write the answer in the margin to the left of the diagram.
Warfare between nobles (lords)
Though it may have helped protect some people, feudalism did not do away with war in the Middle Ages. When so many nobles had feudal armies, they often challenged each other to battle over the smallest argument. The wars were usually small ones however. Perhaps fifty men fought sixty, or seventy- five fought one hundred. The kings did not approve of these neighborhood wars, but many nobles (lords) had larger armies and were more powerful than their kings. As a result kings could not prevent wars between the nobles. Warriors fought on horseback. A steel helmet with slits for the eyes covered the head and face. The warriors suits of armor were made of steel plates or links of chain called chain mail. Each man carried a sword, a long lance, and a shield.
TRUE OR FALSE
1. True or False- Some of the wars between nobles involved less than 300 men.
2. True or False- The kings with their strong armies were able to stop most of the wars between the nobles.
3. True or False- Often nobles went to war over small arguments.
Armor $249.00!
Styles in the armor worn by both soldiers and knights varied from country to country. Protective armor grew more elaborate as the Middle Ages went on. Ordinary soldiers, peasants or farmers, were protected by little more than a heavy leather vest. 1. During wars of this time peasants most definitely suffered the most. Why?
______
The Knights, however, wore more protection. They first put on a padded or quilted undershirt and then a “hauberk,” a coat or a shirt made of chain mail. The hauberk might reach mid-thigh or below the knees. Made of steel links fastened together, chain mail was relatively light and flexible. A shirt of the finest chain mail might weigh less than 20 pounds; a crude one could weigh three times as much! 2. What was hauberk?
______
As weapons became more deadly, knights began to wear full suits of armor made by a skilled armor maker. Armor was made of increasingly heavier—and clumsier—steel plates. Late in this period, a knight needed help from his squire in getting into his armor. If he was knocked off his horse during battle, the heavy armor made him clumsy and vulnerable, like a turtle on his back. A suit of armor was very hot. Knights sometimes died from heatstroke or drowned when they fell into a stream in full armor. 3. How did armor change in the late Middle Ages?______
4. If you’re going into battle which one of these weapons will keep you safest and why? There are no wrong answers as long as you back up your answer with specific details.
______
Some Nobles Became Knights
Nearly every nobleman’s son hoped that someday he would become a knight. The training for knighthood was longand hard. The son of a noble usually began his education as a page when he was seven years old. He was taught to dance, to sing, to play the lute or harp, and to read and write a little.
At about fourteen, the page became a squire or assistant to a knight who became his master. He had to be near the knight at all times during the hunt or a fight to help him if he was hurt. He kept the knight’s armor in good condition. He learned the duties of a knight and practiced using a sword, lance, and shield so that he could learn to fight well.
1. Name the two stages of becoming a knight:
a. ______from age 7 to 14 a nobleman’s son was taught good manners, reading, writing, singing, and dancing.
b. ______from age 14 to 21, a nobleman’s son was taught the duties of a knight and practiced using a sword, lance, and shield so that he could fight well. Before a squire could become a knight, he had to perform an act of bravery. If he did so, the day was set for him to be knighted.
“In the name of God, I dub thee knight. Be brave, be courteous, be loyal.” The new knight was entitled to be called “Sir.” As a knight, he vowed, or promised, to protect the weak, to fight for the Church, and be loyal to his lord. After the ceremony, the guests came forward to congratulate him.
Tournaments were mock battles…Medieval Times!
*when you see this you must boisterously say MEDIEVAL TIMES!
The people of the middle ages liked mock battles called tournaments. A tournament took place on a long field called the lists at*. There were seats on either side for those who came to watch at*. Banners, shields and brightly colored awnings made the list look gallant at*. So did the women dressed in tall hats and flowing dresses at*.
One group of knights, in full armor and on horseback, lined up at one end of the lists at*. Another group was at the other end. At the sound of the trumpet, they galloped toward each other with streamers hanging from their upraised lances. Each man was ready to strike his opponent’s face from his head! Just kidding! Each man was ready to strike his opponent’s shield from his hand and unhorse him at MEDIEVAL TIMES!
MEDIEVAL TIMES VS. MODERN TIMES
1. ______
2. ______
3. ______
Life in the Middle Ages
DIRECTIONS: Decide if the following statements are true or false.
______1. Most people died before they reached forty years old
______2. Men lived longer than women.
______3. Many children died between the ages of two and six.
______4. Children were often let in the woods to die
______5. Children began working in the fields at the age of eight or nine
______6. Most of the work done by farmers was manual labor (using few tools)
______7.Toothbrushes were made out of sticks with pig’s hair.
______8. Blindness was very common.
______9. Few people took baths.
______10. Most people only ate bread and thin soup.
______11. Few people drank water because it was usually contaminated (polluted).
______12. Most medicines were made from plants.
______13. Holes were sometimes drilled into skulls to release “demons” inside a
person’s head.
______14. Some people believed that diseases were caused by evil spirits.
______15. Garbage and sewage were thrown into the streets.
______16. Most people were knights who lived in castles.