Humanities Assignment 3
MIDDLE AGES (THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD) 8
The Middle Ages is the period from around the fi fth century to the fi fteenth century. The time period was named the Middle Ages because it occurred between the Roman period and the Renaissance period. There are not exact dates to mark the end of the Roman Empire. Bryce Lyon, a western European author, argues that the medieval civilization was infl uenced by Muslims in Spain and the Middle East and by the Byzantine Empire in southern Europe. There were many architectural and cultural developments made during those 1,000 years, even though some books refer to this period as the Dark Ages.
The reason some people call this period the Dark Ages may be because there were some groups of single-minded people who stifl ed many of the thinkers of their day. For that reason scientifi c advancement was at a stand still. There was less law and order since there was no longer a strong Roman central government. The Roman system of laws that had protected the citizens had nearly vanished, and the safety of the public was in jeopardy. Barbarians were invading the area from the regions of the Danube and the Rhine. Guilt or innocence was not determined by trial but rather by ordeal. For example, under this system, the accused might place his hand on a red-hot iron, and if his hand healed quickly he was considered innocent (World Book Encyclopedia).
Barbarian invasions wrought havoc on the trade routes that had been estab- lished by the Romans, and eventually the road system broke down. The economy was destroyed, and most people were forced to make a living by moving to the country and living off the land. Later, a class of hundreds of vassals developed. The individuals who led the vassals were princes, barons, dukes, and counts, and they became independent rulers of their own fi efs. That would then develop into a system called manorialism (World Book Encyclopedia).
The noblemen collected taxes and fi nes and acted as the judge in legal disputes. They also maintained the army for their own territory. A nobleman was a nobleman merely because he was born into the noble class. The various positions at that time of feudalism were nobleman, knight, vassal, and lord—all at the same time. He was a nobleman because he had been born into the noble class. He became a knight when he decided to spend his life as a professional warrior. He became a vassal when he promised to serve a king or other important person in return for a fi ef. Finally, he became a lord when he gave part of his own land to persons who promised to serve him (World Book Encyclopedia).
The feudal states during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries in some of the central European countries helped to establish some peace and security for their people. However, in Italy and Germany that system of government was not able to unite their countries. The Church became the driving force to help unite
138 Timelines and Chronology
the masses. Led by clergy, Christians built monasteries and church structures in the centers of their towns. The power of the Church can be seen today in the large Romanesque and Gothic architectural structures that remain in regions of France, Germany, and Italy.
Monks wrote down chants, which were used in the church services. The written notations were called neumes; they are the equivalent of modern-day notes. The language during the Middle Ages was Latin, and the compositions that were part of the service were called plainsongs or chants. They developed from the chants found originally in Greek music and from Hebrew verses. Plainsongs would have been sung in unison, which means that only one melody is sung at a time. In musical terms, that music was referred to as monophonic.
Spiritual and educational strength was an important commodity for the Church to sell to the medieval townspeople. Local church leaders had to raise money, and one way to do that was to build a shrine at their church to attract visitors. Many of the cathedrals began to gather reliquaries (decorative objects that contained one or more relics). It was important to try to have the body of a saint, or at least a portion of one. For example, even a bone fragment from a disciple of Jesus Christ or one of the saints would help attract more visitors to the church. Many visitors believed that they could be healed or blessed if they made a pilgrimage to see a reliquary. Pilgrims often made donations to the churches that they visited. This helped the churches raise money for their building projects.
During the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the church became the most stabiliz- ing force in Europe. Centers of commerce, banking, and manufacturing emerged. Guilds, organizations of workers in a particular craft, also developed during this period. As the organizations grew, so did the population in the cities. New farming techniques emerged and some cities began to prosper. Cities began to compete with one another to build great cathedrals. Morality plays were performed in the city to show the townspeople how to be good and to portray the struggle between good and evil. Plays that were about themes from the Bible were called mystery plays.
Large monasteries developed and became powerful in the Church. Two of the important monastic orders were the Cluniacs and the Benedictines. The members of the Cluniac order expressed their beliefs by composing music and writing illuminated manuscripts. Many of the churches and monasteries became stopping places along the pilgrimage routes that were traveled by thousands of penitents in search of salvation (Parrottt 100).
“Women, especially those from aristocratic homes, were able to commission psalm books called psalters. There was an increase of literacy among certain women and some of the women were privileged to become patrons of the arts. A well-known religious woman of the twelfth century was the German mystic, Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179). She composed music to accompany hymns and wrote Latin poetry and treatises on herbs and medicine” (Parrott 100).
A church that exemplifies the Romanesque style of architecture is Sainte Marie Madeleine at Vézelay. Like most Christian churches, it is oriented with its apse to the east and the main entrance to the west. This expresses the idea that the church building is a metaphor of the Christian world, with the Holy Land in the east and Europe to the west. The church at Vézelay was also involved in supporting the Crusades. The church actively encouraged the first two of the eight Crusades against the Muslims that were undertaken by the Church between 1095 and 1291 (Parrott 100).
Middle Ages (The Medieval Period) 139
Middle Ages Period The Middle Ages developed innovations in architectural structures. The use of the Roman arch was utilized in the construction of the Romanesque churches, castles, and monasteries. Some still exist today for us to see and visit.
The use of the Latin cross as a floor plan is noticeable in both Romanesque and Gothic church plans. This was done for symbolic reasons. The Gothic cathedrals became taller than the Romanesque style. The Gothic style had pointed arches and they used a support system referred to as “flying buttresses.” These flying buttresses can be seen since they appear as extensions coming out of the sides of the building. Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris was one of the first Gothic cathedrals to add this system due to cracking. However, it became more common in other Gothic construction to help increase the height of the building. Gothic architecture also utilized the stain glass win- dow which was made with colored glass pieces assembled together into a window of a “glass picture” or work of art. These images would be a subject or story from the Bible to help worshippers understand the religion.
The floor plan of the Gothic cathedrals were of the Latin cross which has one stem longer than the other.
The Byzantine style of architecture was in the more eastern area of Europe and in other parts more towards modern-day Greece and Russia.
This construction utilized paintings of saints and Jesus along with mosaics. The floor plan was a Greek cross which has stems of the cross the same length. In
the interior of the church were paintings and mosaics of subject matter to tell worship- pers about the Bible and beliefs of the Orthodox beliefs.
The paintings have flat areas of gold paint behind the images of the figures of saints or the works of Jesus. There are also icons throughout the cathedral which are sacred images to the believer of that faith.
The Byzantine cathedrals have domes constructed on pendentive.
Source: https://www.britannica.com/technology/pendentive
Characteristics of Middles Age Construction (Architecture) Romanesque Architecture Characteristics 800-1100 C.E. approximately
Clear small windows, round use of the arch, small clear windows, cut precise stone, Latin cross-shaped floor plan, use of the barrel vault system construction
Gothic Architecture Characteristics 1100-1300 C.E. approximately Big stained glass windows, pointed arches, flying buttresses, tall structures, Latin cross- shaped floor plan
Byzantine Architecture Characteristics 600-1600 C.E. approximately Domes used on pendentive, Greek cross-shaped floor plan, icons, mosaics Source: http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/byzantine.htm
140 Timelines and Chronology
Terms to Consider Byzantine characteristics—domes, mosaics, icons, shape of a Greek cross Romanesque characteristics—rounded arches, small clear windows, heavy use of
stone work Gothic characteristics—pointed arches, stained glass windows, fl ying butteresses,
very tall structures
QUESTION
Question to Contemplate
Why did Rome fall?
Accomplishments of Middle Ages During the 1200’s people in towns used cobblestones in their streets and stopped throw- ing garbage in the streets. Stone and brick began to be used in architecture in towns instead of wood in order to prevent fi res in towns. The church built huge cathedrals which housed hundreds of townspeople and served as the religious and social center of the town. The monks wrote down manuscripts for religious services and wrote them down. Monks copied down chants that were written down with images called neumes which are similar to what we now call notes. There were accomplishments in architec- tural work such as stone masonry and stained glass windows. Developments were made in agriculture improving the tools such as the plough.