4. The Church and Christianity
Pope Boniface VIII (r. 1294-1303)
Limits of Papal Power
– King Philip taxed French
clergy Boniface VIII
protested
King’s response: economic
pressure
– Philip arrested bishop for
treason Boniface
outraged
King’s agents invaded
papal palace
Boniface died soon after
– Papacy now weaker than
monarchs
5. The “Babylonian
Captivity” (1309-1377)
– French pope elected to
papacy
– Moved to Avignon (1309)
French popes
Corruption?
– Many unhappy Christians in
Western Europe
– Papacy returned to Rome
(1377)
The Avignon Papacy, also known as the
Babylonian Captivity, was the period
from 1309 to 1376 during which seven
successive popes resided in Avignon (then
in the Kingdom of Arles, part of the Holy
Roman Empire, now in France) rather than
in Rome.
6. The Great Western Schism (1378-1417)
– Returning pope died (1378)
– Turbulent election new, Italian pope
– Dissatisfaction schism
Two popes!
Spiritual and political crisis!
– Council of Pisa (1409)
Deposed both popes, elected new one
Unsuccessful 3 popes!
7. The Church and Christianity
Late Medieval Heresy
– JOHN WYCLIF (ca. 1330-84)
Advocated state role in
church matters
Bible!
Criticized transubstantiation
– Lollards
– JAN HUS (ca. 1370-1415)
Influenced by Wyclif
Preacher
Critical of church hierarchy
and “abuses”
8. The Church and Christianity
The Council of Constance
(1414-17)
– Summoned by emperor
– Response to Heresy
Hus tried, condemned
(1415)
Wyclif’s remains destroyed
– Schism resolved
Three rival popes deposed
Martin V elected
Execution of Hus
9. The Church and Christianity
Roettgen Pietá
Early 14th cent.
Late Medieval Mysticism
– Mysticism: spirituality
seeking intimacy with God
– Very common among
women
– Increased devotional
literature
– Increased focus on Passion
of Christ, devotion to Virgin
Mary
10. The Church and Christianity
The Seven Sacraments
– Essential to salvation
– Performed by clergy alone
– The Sacraments
Baptism
Confirmation
Penance
Eucharist
Ordination
Marriage
Last Rites
12. Society and Economy
Population growth overpopulation
(14th cent.)
– Less land to cultivate
– Wages decreased
– Famines
13. Society and Economy
The Black Death
(1347-1350)
– Deadliest disaster of
Late Middle Ages
– Nature of the plague
Epidemic
Spread rapidly,
contagious
Noticeable, painful
symptoms
Very quick death
14. The Plague’s Origins
– Began in Far East, traveled westward along trade routes
– Carried by fleas on infected rats
– Arrived in Europe at Mediterranean ports
15. The Black Death
– Cause debated
– Why???
– Aftermath
Death of up to 1/2 of
Europe’s population
Obsession with death
Recurred until 18th
century
The Black Death was a bubonic plague
pandemic occurring in Afro-Eurasia from
1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal
pandemic recorded in human history,
causing the death of 75–200 million people
in Eurasia and North Africa, peaking in
Europe from 1347 to 1351
16. Society and Economy
Economics in Italy
– Trade
Location focal point
Contact between
Europe and East
– Banking
Lots of bankers
MEDICI
– Florence
– Bank founded 1397
Medici Bank
17. Society and Economy
The Hanseatic League
Northern Economics
– Numerous financial
centers
– Hanseatic League
Competition for Italians
Conglomeration of
100+ northern
mercantile cities
– Wool industry
19. Political Issues
The Fall of Constantinople
– Byzantine Empire
threatened by Turks
– Siege of Constantinople
(1453)
Walls breached
City taken May 29, 1453
Became Istanbul
– Ottoman Empire: threat to
Western Europe
Siege of Constantinople
20. Political Issues
The Hundred Years War (1337-1453): Causes
– Last Capetian monarch died (1328) – who succeeds?
English king was a relation
Philip VI elected by French nobility
Neither candidate conceded claims war!
– English claims to French lands
21. Political Issues
The War: Initial
English Success
– Strategy: raids
– New technology
Longbows
Cannons
– Territorial gains!
– English king: new heir
to throne (1420) Battle of Créçy (1346)
23. Political Issues
Ferdinand and Isabella
Spain: Ferdinand and
Isabella
– Unified Spanish crown
Ferdinand: heir of
Aragon, Catalonia
Isabella: heir of Castile
– Married (1469)
– Completed
Reconquista (1492)