The origins of the Black Death are still not entirely clear. Was this a genuine and unified push by Christians to regain lost land from the Arab conquests? Or was this an elaborate political scheme by the Catholic church to redirect the violent nature of Feudal monarchs toward an outside threat? The true motivations of the Crusading armies and Papacy are something that is still debated to this day by historians. "Taking the cross" and embarking on this holy war could absolve even the most wicked and vile person of their wrongdoings according to Papal doctrine. The Crusades were sold to Medevial Europeans as a way to atone for their sins. Despite the disorganized and chaotic approach of the Crusading armies, they were able to capture both Antioch and Jerusalem from the recently fractured Seljuk Turks.
The First Crusade was a resounding success. Many nobles from France, England, and the Holy Roman Empire set out to establish a Christian Kingdom within what today is Isreal, Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon. Crusades An illustration of a priest on horseback riding into battle alongside the Crusading armies.īeginning in 1095 AD Pope Urban II called upon all Christian nations to take up arms and join a holy crusade against the Muslim powers that controlled the Holy Land. Cities that were in key geographical locations soon found themselves at the crossroads of lucrative international trade routes.
As cities grew and expanded their industries trade became easier and more frequent. By no means rich, they often lived lives that were slightly more comfortable and profitable than their rural brothers and sisters in the countryside. This relative stability gave some the opportunity to move to places such as London, Paris, or Cologne to work a trade.Ī notable class of skilled craftsmen and merchants formed at this time. As governments became more centralized and consolidated power in their nations, small-scale wars and raids were much less common. While the society of the High Middle Ages was certainly dominated by an agricultural lifestyle, the once desolate and empty cities began to grow. Many people fled to the countryside in search of refuge and work. Since the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE, many of the large cities in Europe experienced a significant population decline.
0 kommentar(er)
