Its rulers had to contend with the rising power of the Mongols.
Eastern Europe had always been the entry point for attackers who came from Asia, such as the Huns, Magyars, and Bulgars. These groups tended to settle eventually in central and eastern Europe and become integrated into the existing society, with the Huns in southern Russia, the Magyars in Hungary, and the Bulgars in Bulgaria. However, in the 13th century the Mongols invaded and rapidly took control of territory in Russia, Poland, and Hungary. Infighting among the Mongols led to a respite in the war, allowing Russia and Poland to emerge as powerful successor states. The Mongol tribes retreated eastward, with few of them taking up permanent residence in eastern Europe. This excerpt from The Dictates of the Pope helps give shape to many details of Gregory VII's position in his conflict with Henry IV during the Investiture Controversy. It is clear from lines 3, 4, 13, and 25 that Gregory sought to use his power over the transfer and dismissal of bishops as a way to assert his ultimate authority over the appointment (investitures) of bishops, who were often appointed by temporal rulers like Henry. Lines 12 and 26 show that the punishment for going against the pope in relation to the appointment of a bishop was excommunication or even deposition, as the pope had control over those who purported to rule with church approval. However, temporal powers who had been excommunicated or deposed could, by expressing repentance, be brought back into the church or reinstated to power, as shown in lines 18 and 27, illustrating that a temporal ruler's obligation to the pope was direct and personal. As line 9 shows, he could not pledge loyalty to ("kiss the feet of") a bishop, who might be an ally, but only to the pope himself. vassals; contest; In the eleventh century, the Catholic Church entered into a reform movement that sought to separate religious authority from secular power and to focus greater attention on spirituality. During the ninth and tenth centuries, high church officials had become increasingly entangled in the lord-vassal relationships of the feudal hierarchy. Bishops and abbots began to hold their offices as fiefs of feudal lords, especially of the kings of Germany whom the pope crowned as Holy Roman Emperors, rather than from the church itself. This had several consequences. Lords claimed the right to appoint their own men to these high church offices and expected them to perform administrative and even military services. As a result, the church lost control of the selection and activities of its bishops and abbots. In fact, lords often chose powerful men who cared little about their spiritual responsibilities.
This reform began as reform-minded secular lords established monasteries dedicated to the ideals of Benedictine spirituality. By the eleventh century, the ideals of spiritual reform and the separation of church and state had reached the papacy. The papal reform focused on several issues, but one of the most important was the elimination of lay investiture. Lay investiture was the practice of allowing lay people (especially feudal lords) to appoint and install clergy into their offices. Reformers believed that ending this practice would ensure the freedom and independence of the church. However, because feudal lords relied upon bishops and abbots as administrators, this reform initiative led to a great struggle (the Investiture Controversy) that pitted Pope Gregory VII against King Henry IV of Germany. This contest was not resolved until after their deaths, with the Concordat of Worms in 1122. The Franciscan friars are the focus of this cluster. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226), later canonized Saint Francis, was the son of a wealthy merchant family. But he abandoned this commercial life and embraced a life of absolute poverty, simplicity, and charity, which he preached to a growing group of followers. This vision of poverty and preaching was based on contemporary understandings of the Gospels. Jesus and the apostles had no possessions and begged for their food as they spread his message. Imitating these aspects of the lives of Jesus and the apostles became central components of Christian spirituality during this period.Upper rightThe Dominican friars are the focus of this cluster. Dominic de Guzman (1170-1221), later canonized as Saint Dominic, was an intellectual Spanish priest who dedicated himself to fighting heresy. He believed that the church needed a new religious order of well-educated preachers, dedicated to poverty, who could travel through Europe and dissuade people from heresy. He sent many of his brightest followers to universities.Lower leftRelics are the focus of this cluster. The belief in relics was closely related to the importance of the cult of saints. Relics were generally the bones of a saint or objects closely associated with a saint. During this period, people of all levels of society believed that relics possessed the power of the saint and could thus perform miracles. For example, the body of Saint Thomas a Becket, the martyred archbishop of Canterbury, was one of the most well-known relics in England and became a popular pilgrimage destination. Thousands of pilgrims came to ask the saint to cure their illnesses, and the clergy overseeing the tomb maintained a record of miracles that occurred at the shrine. The church also promoted the veneration of relics by granting indulgences (remission of time in purgatory) to people who visited and venerated relics.Lower rightThe Cistercians are the focus of this cluster. A small group of Benedictine monks founded the Cistercian order in 1098 after they had become dissatisfied with the lack of discipline at their Benedictine monastery. The name Cistercian comes from the name of their first monastery, which was founded at Citeaux in southern France. They believed that the Benedictines had strayed from the ideals embodied in the Rule of Saint Benedict. For example, these monks believed that the Benedictines spent too much of their time performing religious services and not enough time performing manual labor or in silent prayer, as Saint Benedict had written in his monastic rule. Event
Significance
Norman conquest of EnglandLeads to end of Anglo-Saxon dynastyIn 1066, William, the Duke of Normandy, invaded England and won a decisive battle against the English king Harold at Hastings. This ended Anglo-Saxon rule in England and established William as ruler on both sides of the English channel, tying together the English and French domains for the next several hundred years. England's half-millennium-long Anglo-Saxon history was suppressed by the Normans and largely replaced by French customs and language.Third Crusade beginsChristian leaders fail to retake JerusalemAfter the Muslim leader Saladin took Jerusalem in 1187, a crusade was organized with leaders from France, England, and Germany. Despite initial successes, the army had to withdraw before it got to Jerusalem, leaving that city to remain in Muslim hands.Continental Spain mostly under Christian rulePeriod of religious warfare in Spain draws to an endIn 1248, the Christian "reconquest" of the Spanish mainland from Muslim rule was nearly completed. Only the small Muslim kingdom of Granada, on the southern tip of Spain, remained. However, Granada would not surrender until 1492. In the meantime, Christians, Muslims, and Jews in Spain enjoyed periods of relative tolerance. 3rd Edition•ISBN: 9781319022723Robert W. Strayer232 solutions
8th Edition•ISBN: 9781457628931 (2 more)Eric Hinderaker, James A. Henretta, Rebecca Edwards, Robert O. Self470 solutions
8th Edition•ISBN: 9780135702727Marc Jason Gilbert, Michael Adas, Peter Stearns, Stuart B. Schwartz323 solutions
9th Edition•ISBN: 9781319065072Eric Hinderaker, James A. Henretta, Rebecca Edwards, Robert O. Self961 solutions
