四级八级复习指导资料－欧洲文化入门六

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　　Lecture Four
　　The Middle Ages
/ n& D4 I' k2 o" M& j2 ^& ]　　1. A General Survey of the Middle Ages
- S% m/ x8 [0 ?　　(1). The Definition of Middle Ages: 91★ ★ ★
　　n Middle Ages: The period in European history between the collapse of Rome and the Renaissance, from 476 CE to about 1450. It is so called because it came between ancient times and modern times.
　　n It is also known as the medieval period, and as the Dark Ages. As during the Middle times there was no central government to keep the order, and the Christian church shaped people’s ideas and lives by taking the lead in politics, law, art, and learning of Europe, it is also called “Age of Faith.”
, h, F/ f: i4 `# m; I% Y　　Organization of Church: 95-6
, w$ u) {; |4 Q/ e- @' I　　n Pope of the Roman Catholic Church罗马教皇、教宗
　　n ↓
　　n Archbishops大主教、红衣主教（province ）
" i# r% s, w: {　　n ↓
$ L. q& H$ A5 v% t　　n Bishops主教（主教管区diocese）
% E' b! s* J! S% g2 ]　　n ↓
　　n Priests牧师、教士（堂区parish， part of a diocese）
. q0 }8 p6 ~& B- H/ U/ k3 P# z; B　　n ↓
( Z- z  Q3 b1 v　　n Lay member of church 非神职人员
1 ^6 n4 `; |: K' u/ Z　　(2). Emergence of Nations in Middle Ages
4 u% O% \4 K9 f$ o/ a0 t　　n Qin & Han dynasties →the Huns westward→ barbarian Germanic tribes, such as the Angles, Saxons, Franks, Visigoths and Vandals, crossed the Danube river into the territory of the Roman Empire →establishment of many Germanic kingdoms, which developed into nations as England, France, Spain, Italy, and Germany.
　　n Between 5-11 centuries, Europe suffered frequent wars and invasions. Political unity (that of Roman Empire) gave way to widespread destruction and confusion. There was no central government, and it was Christian church that seemed to unite Europe and kept the order.
4 z) {' d) ]3 g: I2 t* {+ l8 d　　(3). New Institutions of Europe ★ ★ ★
$ g7 r9 [% j# u: V$ ~　　n In the isolation and chaos of the 9th and 10th centuries, European leaders no longer attempted to restore Roman institutions, but adopted whatever would work. The result was that Europe developed a relatively new and effective set of institutions. The most well-known of the institutions were manorialism (the organization of the peasants庄园制度), monasticism (the organization of the churchmen修道院制度), and feudalism (the institution of the aristocracy封建制度).
　　2. Feudalism ★ ★ ★
　　n The term "feudalism” derives from the Latin “feudum,” a grant of land.”
　　(1). Why did feudalism become a necessity?
8 m( ^. h/ Q) Q3 e* p/ b9 |1 V　　Feudalism came to be initially a system of local defense against the constant dangers and uncertainties of a rather primitive existence in northern Europe after the relative order of the Roman Empire disappeared.
　　(2). Three elements of feudalism : 92-4 ★ ★ ★
　　n Feudalism is defined by three elements that existed and characterized the medieval period: lords (封建领主), vassals (封臣) and fiefs (封地, 采邑).
　　n A lord was a noble who owned land. A vassal was given land by the lord. The land was known as a fief. In exchange for the fief, the vassal would provide military service to the lord. The obligations and relations between lord, vassal and fief form the basis of feudalism.
: s! g$ v  P4 `2 H4 k1 }+ ]　　Further reading: meaning of “fief”
　　It came from the German vieh, or "cow," the measure of wealth among the early Germans, a term that gave rise to the medieval word fief. "Fief" simply meant "something of value." In the agricultural world of the time, "something of value" was usually land. But the sixteenth-century lawyers pictured this land as having been under the control of a powerful king who distributed much of it to his followers
　　Further reading: how did feudalism begin?
0 Z4 _9 n1 U) `6 I) y- w! M8 Q$ F6 W" i　　n As the northern tribes migrated into Europe, each man wanted to have his own land and used whatever force was necessary to obtain it. The strongest of these men made himself king and took the largest portion of the land he had conquered. The remaining land was divided among his chief followers, with the condition that they pay him taxes and fight for him. In turn, these men divided the land they had been given by the king among other men with the same conditions they had agreed to. The dividing continued down to the smallest landholder.
' C' z% a7 M5 v& t' }4 |　　n As a result, every man (except the king) owed something to a stronger man. The stronger man was the lord, and the weaker man was his vassal. The lord might also be the vassal of a yet more powerful lord.

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