ffi,ffituffi&ffi$& $ruTffiffi ffi&ffiLY ffi$ffiffiilffi effiffis

Seal of khan Tervel. The peace treaty of 716

was evidence of the prestige that Bulgaria
had gained under khan Tervel. lt arranged
for the boundary with the Empire to reach rtlgary wluI ule trtItpt{e .u Iedut t
f
the Maritsa river and Strandia mountainl
{
southwards. Byzantium was obtiged to payl
I
an annual tribute, and the two sfafes agreed
to exchange political fugitives. The treaty was
the first in Medieval Europe to regulate trade
relations between two states.
The ruins of Pliska (aerial photo). Pliska
was built on 23 sg. km and was protected
by three defensive belts. Deep ditches and
high ramparts surrounded the outer city.
The second belt consisted of a 2.5 rnetre-
high stone wall with pentagonal towers and
gates. A brick fort protected the citadel. The
palace of khan Krum was one of the most
remarkable buildings in the capital. lt was
built on 500 sq. m and had a water reservoir,
baths, and secret passages. Under Omurtag,
the wall of the city was finished, and the so-
called Throne hall and many new temples
were built.
11o PAcAN BULcARIA
IN EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE
With the collapse of Old Great Bulgaria, Bulgar tribes
split but their statehood did not perish. At the end of the
7th century, Asparukh, the third son of Kubrat, established
a new Buigarian state which withstood Ryzantine attacks
and has survived until the present day.
THE EMERGENCE OF ASPARUKH'S BULGARIA
-F
Asparukh (680-700) and the tffil n in the
so-called Onglos between the Dnieper and the Danube rivers.
He pushed the Avars beyond the Carpathian mountains and
started to invade Ryzarrtine territory. The Bulgar invasion
worried the Ryzantine Emperor Constantine IV and he
led a strong army and navy northwards in the sufitmer of
680. The Bulgars, however, defeated the Byzantines in
the battle of Onglos and conquered the territory north of
the Balkan mountains. Bvzantium aske-d
for
peace
and in
68 1 was obliged to pay u"
&iffiti\rftfffd:
The Slavs swore
obedience to-Aspu*kit *h6fu-Sffid the rights of their
princes in return. The new state preserved the traditions of
Old Great Bulgaria, but it had similarities with the Barbarian
kingdoms, too.
TERVEL. BULGARIAN KHAN
AND BYZANTINE CAESAR
n pe{si
4*$
t
a
I
t
j
t
I
E
t
$
e-gilffiffiilst6a6 was strengthened under khan Tervel
(700-72T). In 705, he helped the deposed Emperor Justinian
II to regain the throne and in return was honoured with
the title of 'caesar', second in rank in Roman-Byzantine
hierarchy. The region of Zagore in Thrace was given to
BulgarLa, too. In 716, khan Tervel signed a new treaty
with Byzantium. As arr ally to the Empire, he provided
$invaluable military support agaunst the Arabs rn718. This
l
i
event resonated widely in Europe and was considered equal
to the Christtan victory at Poitiers.
ffiiddle of the 8th century, Bulgaria faced a
serious crisis. Struggles for power among prominent
Bulgarian clans facilitated Byzantine aggression. Emperor
Constantine V led nine military campaigns by land and
sea against Bulgaria, but the young state survived. Khan
Telerig (765-777) disposed of his Byzantine
'friends' in
Pliska, while khan Kardam (777-803) waged successful
military campaigns' agarnst Byzantium.
THE STRUGGLE OF COMETOPULI
-
Comita Nikola (Nikola the Comes), Thg brothers.Davrd,
Moses, Aaron, and Samuel startef%u'b-ffi#%ff&H*f+;
towards the eastern Bul ga.rran trands.
IJpon his escape from Byzantine caiitiviiy, Roman
ftt{Ht{q
W6**
;aotrvrtv R
hi
d
his wl1ole family, whom he suspected
tfr-lbbd the life or earon's son.
Ivan
for the Bulgarian state. Samuel took the crown after the
death of Roman rn 997, and the cify of Ohrid became the
capttal of BulgarLa.
LASTYEARS OFTHE DUEL
WITH BYZANTIUM
Wth the peace treay of 927 the Bulgarian Kingdom
was recognised as one of the leading powers in Europe.
However, King Peter had to defend the conquests of
Simeon in a complex environment, attacked by Magyars,
Russiens, and Byzantines. The bright personality of
King Samuel stood out in the duel with the Empire. fn
I0IB, despite its resistance, the Bulgarian Kingdom was
conquered by Byzantiurn.
5. Izlcropus.u qraBrrnpr3ar\ufl.sa9. KJrac
-
anrrmficKr{ e3r,rK
The Basilica of Sf, Acttitles in Prespa.
The ruins of the basilica, which was part of
'
Samuel's palace, are still present on the island
of St. Achilles in the Prespa lake. ln the 20th
a
century, Greek archaeologisfs discovered the
remains of rich funerals in it, presumably of
the Kings Samuel, Gavril Radomir, and lvan
Vladislav.
ffi
BulgarLa arud all the lands up tp
Lhg,
Danube. After that he
headed to the Adriatic an d {ffit#t8the<ity plDurres and neaoe(} r0 rne Aorlarlc ano caprureo tne
Qlty
ol-IJurres ano
so,rne fbrtrpqseq pround Thesialoniki, S#ttf*aO sfqategic
f"tlftqW.Fr\8.$l nutg arta. Meanwhile, Samuet
"KWJ&,W
nscription made by order of King
van Vladislav. lt was carved in order to
with the Empire, which was superior in territory, as w.el{as in
memorate the restoration of the Bitola
economic and military power. Despite the brave
-ryCistaoQ.g,
rtress, and it reads:'Joan, King of Bulgaria,
cities and regions fell into the hands of Basi one after . Bulgarian by birth, grandson of pious
another. In the summer of 10L4, the Empg.r6r surrounded
ikola and Ripsimia, son of Aaron, who was
and captured an army of 14 000 Bulgariq,rf soldiers near the
ther of Samuel, King of Bulgaria'.
l;village
of Klyuch, close to present-d_ry?etrich. FIe ordered
;that the soldiers be blinded, and o one out of every 100
left one-eyed in ordertdlead the rest home. Upon iimen WaS
iseeing^his
sqldi.grs, King S
fuuu*lcnu
{a."m 1001 marked the beginning of the deciSive confiv^^vry^v^^
with the Empire. which was Irrp.rior in territorv as we,l{is in
seeing his soldiprs, King Sanxlel got aheart attack and died
in hiJffS@ffiin the c"iqy'of Prelpa.
Kins Gavril Radomir
(
i 0 14- 101 5) continued the
rg3l$thT\#fbut only iri one year a CShffifgyorganised by his
'i
1
I
I
I
I
I
ffi
OD HING
I
The common food consisted of bre &d, fish, meat, daify
,,
,i
FESTIVITIES AND COURT CEREMONIES
Festive days were celebrated according to the Christi
calendar, but some holidays from the Rcman period we*
' Ernpress Theodora with her entourage
-
a mosaic from the church of San Vitale in
Ravenna. Byzantine laws provided material
security for women. When they got married,
women were given a rich dowry by their
family, which was inherited by their children
later on. According to the laws of Justinian,
girls could be married after the age of 12,
and boys after 14. ln Christianity, mothers
were deeply revered. Manual labour was
considered degrading, and house work,
weaving and sewing was done by women
from the lower social strata. A lot of women
from higher social layers were well-educated.
,
They even interveneC in politics. History
t"filwrrmbers
Helen, the mother of Emperor
Constantine the Great; Ernpress Theodora
who, despite her dark past, exercised very
strong influence over Justinian; lrene, the first
woman who became'basileus'and a number
of women from the Comnenus dynasty.
merchants from near,.ry$far gathered for the fairs held on
the day of the saint
frrqfebitn.
city. The orthodox
tbtA
and rituals
KEpF of,pllowed
.durittg
family celebrations like
baptisirg, bdfr$ttials, weddings, and funerals.
I
The CoronAtrqn.was the most flamboyant celebration'.
As God's
ffie
Emperorwas an objlct of admiratien
which was most obviously manifested in his clothing and
before the crowd and was applauded.
The everyday life of the multiethnic Byzantine
population wes shaped by natural conditions and social
status. The notion of unity among the
'RomAioi
people'
was based on Orthodox Christianie, the authority
'i'
of the emperor, and the imperial laws which were
',,cogtmon
for
all subjects of the Empire.
)htf The clothes of the aristocrats were decorated
#ngflc5fd}$land
precious
stones. State officials wore
-
-E-E
fms and soecial costumes at ceremonies. The most
lqtjfunqs"bnd-special
costumes at ceremonies. The most
&b;b^A$Unt.clotires
were those of the Emperor.
%
{{.{,'*'?,,'!'i t .- .n
tJt 'c-
t.
*'
!*f. ,i&,,
(il,
s4*s;.+F
####ffiffi ffiwffi#pffi *tr*Yffiffi $$qh*tsth #.
A merchant street in Paris a miniature
from the 1sth century. The guilds consisted of
a definite number of craftsmen. They agreed
on the so-called statutes of production
the quatity and quantity of the products, the
number of assisfa nts, the size of workshops,
16. MEDIEVALTowNs
IN WESTERN EUROPE
lJrban lifesfyle had been well-known in the Mediterranean
region since Antiquity, but the Barbarian invasions in the
4tf_7tn centuries teO io the dpq.line of cities. In the early
Middle Ages, they were rWEfir populated administrative
full members of tfr{g-uind All of them were
artisans who had passed an exam and had
created a 'masterpiece' complylng with the
guitd regulations, The
igg
,-ln
were
disciples of the masters
-En!.
.nad
some
experience, while the
"frro&"t
were
novice and used to work for free in order to
learn the craft.
and church centres.
REVIVAL OF IJRBAN LIFE
AREASWHERE CITIES GREW
I;rban life developed intensively in Northern and Central
Italy. Rich and po*erful towns were formed in the Valley of
the RiverPo, where Milanwas the leading city. The maritime
republics of Venice, Geno a, and Pisa grew along the coast.
They participated actively in the trade with the East and
r,rppoited ttre Crusades. Venetians and Genoese challenged
eaitr other for domination over the Mediterrane an arLd the
Black Sea, and established powerful colonial empires. In
the region of Tos carra, the city of Florence flourished, and
in the-lsth century it became the economical and cultural
centre of Central ltaly.
Paris and Rouen became the leading urban centres in
Northern France, while Lyon and Marseille
-
in the region
south of the River Loire. The big merchanttowns of BrugeS,
Ghent, and Antwerp in Flanders played an important role
in European economy. In the lands of the Holy Roman
I So*. of the old ;b$h- centres in Northern Italy and
I Sorrthern France stdlffdio revive in the mid 8th century. In
I
tnr 10th- 1 lth centuries, the process of revival of old cities
I
and the emergence of new ones spread to other regions in
{
Western Europe. New towns were founded over the ruins
#
of ancient towns, around bridges, marketplaces, castles,
t
and monasteries. A lot of towns managed to gain political
f
autonomy in a struggle with their seigneurs
-
feudal lords
I
and bishops. They obtained charter of self-government
f
and formed self-governing communes
\
-
In the 1 lth- I}th centuries, there were already big urban
centres in Western and some parts of Central Europe. Their
residents lived on crafts and trade and enjoyed political
freedoms. A new social layer of free ctttzens started to take
shape.
glnartg
-
a document guaranteeing rights
hh"OYebdoms; a treaty determining the
rights and obligations of the citizens to the
king or to the local feudal lord
commune
-
a self-governed community
of citizens in the medieval town
pllgarchy
- a
form of government in
ffier ffiilvuhh
r"u"rat powerfu I
'
and rich p*rffi6?families
guild, or corporation
-
a professional
association of craftsmen with political and
religious functions
/7
trmpire free towns emerged, and they recognised only the
authority of the Emperor. The towns along the coast of tne
Baltic and the North seas Flamburg, Liibeck, Bremen,
etc. were among the most powerful. In the L2'fr century,
they formed
,?F, ,egongq?iq.Blliance called the Hanse atic
League and
over the trade from England
to Scandinavia anil fhFBalEcs.
TI-IE IMAGE OF MEDIEVALTOWNS
The urban space in medieval towns was organised
"qy"gqfi^
the citadel (fortress). The town square with the tffi,.W
theneighbourhoodoftherichestcittzenS,andthf6ffirai
symbolysing the power of the city were situated behind its
walls. Part of the population lived in suburbia outside the
city walls. Different professional groups lived in separate
,
of the ancieirfcivilisation. The streets were narrow and
tarely paved; there were extremely poor hygiene standards.
lJrban dwellers were badly hit by frequent epidernics;
deadly diseases usuallyn s$rted from the harbours-.
|
,t[rq
i
u{{lA
dJJru
Lorenzo de Medici by B. Gozzoli, l sth
century. The House of Medici was an old
Florentine family whose ascent started with
Cosimo de Medici (l
g7g-1404),
founder of
a powertul tade company and a bank. He
imposed his will on the government
of the
Republic without holding a formal position
and still alive was given the honorary titre
'Father
of his Country' (Pater Patriae). His son
Piero (1416-1469)
and his grandson Lorenzo
the Magnificent (1449-1492) estabtished futt
political and economic control over the city.
They were generous patrons of arts and
Florence became a centre of Renaissance
under thei r governance.
wW Lilvt*
ro.{s*.a -
.i,/.,--__.'*.F
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE
ffi&E#rTr-o'burgers'
in Germ anyand' bourgsqi*i
--i,z\f\./v/\-
iil Fi6ilc-e E?gbyed some privileges compared to thJt#6?U\
population. For this reason a lot of peasants attempta$iil
settle in the towns and benefit from the saying 'City atr
makes one free'.
Originally, the government of the free towns had a
Middle Ages, a lot of free towns became-#bendent on the
central authority. In Italy, tyrants like the House of Medici
in Florence took over the city rule and limited urban self-
government.
Free towns were a signfficant phenomenon
in Western Europe during the Middle Ages.
Their political structLtre was later used as a model
for
the
formation
of republican societies in modern
times and of a civil socieQ structure in Western Europe.
republican
W
chaructgr, They were governed by
the richest clli"p,p$.c.4llg/ 'patricians'
who dealt with trade,
finance,
"1d..Umg.'qffi-Shtr1q51p
_ryre
*u1 preserved fo;
the longest tlffil'the Uig ff#*?
*1fff,:f'iffi'#,:T,-'n
iff6?*d&
ffi
;, ;lffi:
:??:Tli #*tr
#'H,1:H'
?f; i Jl,x?;
p[aft*and gradually they became an o&A*an=k to
L_,JL+f -;t -
Wlpnd
competition. Merchants were the most
$
dynamic pbrt of the urban layer. They were also united in
-..b
u.
f the urban layer. They were also united in
S,
guilds which gvaranteed their rights.
"Sl
Jews lived in many European cities. Their
\s
\}'
s
*S
-'!
rS
\a
\J
neighbourhoods (ghettos) were usually surrounded by
walls. As a religious minority, Jews suffered different
ffirl:ii,;Tffififfffikxiffirf*
)hurch as sinful for Chriiltlans. Thus, thCGws took
$troqg tu
glifipnq in the financial sector of the emergirg
.{itatftYfu
,$hssff(46A
--o--oA
q
U NIVERSITY COMMUNITIES
F,
*u#?&eY'-{ r=#
Thg eprergEhcE of universities was closely related to the
dfffiff/ffifrt of the rowgs,.{l_ntll
rlhe
lz'n centur5i, there
were schools only ,wffi&H6HE%athedrals. In order
to throw away th; bYffiardianship, teachers and
students started to forril self-governed communities.
The first universities emerged in Bologna (10S8), Paris
(1100), oxford (1167), pnd Cambridge (1209). The
Papacy recognised their independence and they were
granted certain privileges.
tzF{rtfit,Tqte-f,
thod
"r,?ffiit,!1ilffr,
included reading and commenting on the Holy Scripture,
raising a problem, discussion, and conclusions.
rational thinking developed in universities and that[ftmfitffi
them frongn*o*napJk
ng,uhre.
urb an s o c iety andrln-%ftffi
@ty
gf-law, medicine, or theology where a
e$@ree
was obtained. Few received
Lecture in the Paris University
-
a miniature
from the 14th century. tn those times,
only youngsters at the age of 14 entered
universities" First, they studied a general
course in the Open faculty where the Seven
Liberal Arts trivium (grammar, rhetoric,
and dialectics) and quadrivium (geometry,
arithmetic, astronomy, and music) were taught.
Those who managed to graduate became
gfuelors and could continue to study in the
{he highest degree of PhD.
rnem rronl,m*o,n?slp"culture. U rban socrety and uruvel$tlds
created a fef{fgT$ftfd for the rise of a new social category
-
free intellecttrals ivho earnetffieir living via mental work.
Medieval society was organised in a strict hierarchy.
The rights of every person and his position in sociee
were determined by birth and could not be changed;
nobody cowld leave the estate in which they were born.
This started to change in the Late Middle Ages when
urban estqte, the bourgeoisie, strengthened its positions in
society. It became the most prosperous and active part of
West European socieQ and started to challenge
the authoitty of seculo, and church aristocrAcy.
6. I4cropkrflvr rllrBr,rnr43arrytfr sa 9. KJrac
-
aarxuitcKrr e3ux
ffiWffiffiPffi $ru Yffiffi $ $
t$o*$
sth #.
Coronation of King Louis VI (1 108) a
miniature. The coronation of Catholic kings
and emperors goes through three stages.
First, the king took a vow
-
a kind of contract,
and promised to protect the Church and the
clergy, to keep the peace, the
iustice
and the
kingdom, entrusted to him by God. After that,
the archbishop performed the holy sacrament
of anointment that bound the secular ruler
and God together and leg'itimated its power
on Earth. Finally, the future king acquired the
regatia, each symbolysing something specific:
a sword and a sheath (war and peace), golden
spurs (knighthood), a glove (iurisdiction), a
sceptre (pastoral staff), and a crown.
Centralisation of the Kingdom of France
ffiffiffi&tu
21 o cENTRAusATIoN
OFTHE KI NGDONfi
OF FRANCE
In the 9th and early 10th centuries, the Western Frankish
Kingdoffi, or the Kingdom ofFrance, emerged in the Western
part of the collapsing Carolingian Empire. Its population
spoke Romance dialects which gave the beginning of the
French language.
POLITICAL FRAG M ENTATION
The Capetian dynasty controlled only Paris and its close
surroundings, itre region of ile-de-France. Powerful
local lords dominated the other parts of the Kingdon?
They were king's vassals but they often followed an
independent policy. The Duke of Normandy, William the
Conqueror, who cpnquered England and became its king,
was one of the*.{F ance *us i classical feudal country.l
iffi-ad-tnffifeudal
hierarchy based on the personal
bond between the sjggur and his vassal and on land
possession linked wiTh-service
-
the so-called feud. Until
the 13th century, peasants, who were the most numerous
part of the population, were under land and persowal;,'
depetrdence on secular feudal lords or on the church. The
country was politically fragmented and relations
4rnong
different regions were poor.
STRENGTHENING
THE ROYAL POWER
King Louis VI ( 1 108- Il37) initiated a process of
centralisation. He fully imposed his a hority on ile-de-
France, while Paris started to grow as one of the richest and
the most beautiful cities in Europe.
In their efforts to unite the country the Capetians clashed
with the Flantagenets, kings of England and seigneurs of a
big territory in Western Ffarlgg-/".ry:ng Philip II Augustus
(lj 80- IZZ3) managed to$ffittiB English ofmost oftheir
possessions in North-'Wesfein'France. He also undertook
-
ldministrative reforms: the Royal Council was established;
travelling royal inspectors started to control the local feudal
lords; towns were given m9fg*.f,q.gdpms and became king's
allies in the strugg-le with
fiffisKfu?ons.
At the beginning
of the 13th century, after the Albigensian Crusade against
the Cathar heresy, the French kings imposed their rule on
most of Southern France.
lnut[jbhw\
C\e
\
i
i
I
t
I
f
*.
'ffi
ffi
IUAGNA CARTA LIBERTATUM
:\
In the L2th century, the
strengthen its power. The
law started to take shape.
the Roman law and all the
it.
central authority continued to
so-called 'common' or 'royal'
It was based on the principles of
free Englishmen had to observe
King John Lac$land (1 199-1216) waged unsuccessfutr
wars against Frange
And
came into conflict wit[
"Pqpg
[nnoc.n-t
III wh"
#Ldmf,{fffi-4hqd
him. The King'r rtffifi-i$
olic_y cause d arev6tYiiKvfiiih all the layers of socidry4'otk
pq$n 17 May L2l5,barons and crtrzens forced the King
o sign Magna Carta Libertatum (The Great Charter of
iberty). For the first time this document limited the king's
ower and guaranteed certain rights for the free estates.
is considered the beginning of the political rights and
iberties of the Englishmen and the basis for the English
nstitutional system.
A new representative body, the Parliament,
Ep&eapd.
t used to control the financial policy of the king and dra&
ills. In the l|th century, the two chambers of ParliarfrEirt
obk shape. Higher secular and church aristocracy sat in the
F{ouse of Lords, while knights and town representatives sat
Westminster Palace the residence of
the king in the Middle Ages; nowadays, it
r's the House of Partiament. tn the 12th-13th
centuries, estate representation was formed
in the Western European monarchies. They
started to limit the kings' power to a certain
extent. This role was played by the General
Estates in France; by the Cortes in Spain; by
the Reichstag in the Holy Roman Empire,
and by the Parliament in England. The
English Pailiament became a model for such
representations which still exist. The kings
were forced to conform with the decisions
of Pailiament as far as important problems
were concerned; elements of parliamentary
procedures such as voting, debate, etc.
took shape. However, the role of Pailiament
duilng the Middle Ages was limited, and the
peasanfs who were the vast majority of the
population in all the European countries were
not represented in it.
f,f
"14
in the House of Commons.
\E---
fr
ENGLAND INTHE 14th-1sth CENTURIES
he Hundred Years' War, although not waged on English
erritory, exhausted trngland. The war campaigns absorbed
uge financial resources and led to a tremendous increase
i4 taxes. In 1348-1349, pne third of the population of
gland was exterminated by the Black death
-
the plague.
138I, & peasants' revolt led by Wat Tyler broke out, and
iff was not easy for the forces loyal to the King to supress it.
$t
the same time, a single English nation with a common
literary langu age started to form. London became the
economic and political centre of the country. The University
of Oxford became a leading cultural centre.
After the end of the Hundred Years' War, a civil war
broke out between the dynasties of York and Lancaster,
which was called the War of the Roses. The Lancasters,
won it and their relative Henry VII of the House of Tudor
(1485-1509) was crowned as king. He pacified England
and laid the foundations of a new period in the history of
the country.
Dffirent dynasties, mostly originating
from
France,
ruled the Kingdom of England between I lth and |4th
centuries. The dufuot of England in the Hundred Years'
War ltowever, broke
"ff
their political and cultural
relations snd led to the
formation
of the modern
isle state.
Water milt
-
a miniature from the 14th century.
Mills started to spread acrossWestern Europe
in the 1zth century. Wind or water energy sef
the heavy wheels in motion and they started
moving the mill stones.
25. EcoNoMY
OFTHE MEDIEVALWEST
Barbarian invasions led to the destruction of lots of urban
centres. Climate change, epidemics, and natural disasters
rye bread, vegE
htrd
fruits) caused high mortality and
physi cal de generation.
AND TECHNICAL INNOVATIONS
-1
3th CENTURIE$
n the 1 lth- l2th centuries, the climate warmed up. The
caused thp,.death. of hundreds of thousands of
people.
Regular
ffiffiffiY,W
and uniform food (mainly tfrtfif or
Ploughing a miniature from the 13
century. The wooden plough was replaced
by a plough with an iron ploughshare in
some regions of Western Europe. Soil
'aould
be ploughed deeper with it. The cattle were
harnessed to a yoke.
..:.,i,
Popr.rlation of some European countries
(approx. in millions)
opulation of Europe started to grow and almost doubled
ntil the l4th century. Until the l ltn cenfury, life expectancy
waf
jUst
_30
years but it gmduelly increased. The main
U
rE?#b 8ti'br E,rro p e an s c o nt i nu e
4I
g,bg
bp
s^qd- o n
9I
t e,{ gige fn'd,6tr6f Europ e an s c ontinue
fu Q,,bg
bp s g
d=
o n ex t e49ige
ffie-
and ai the. same time
ffiH !%tt
ti.it
t-T... -
lown in brder to cultivate new teriitoiies. Agro-technical
nnovations appeared slgrgly* one after arrothet: the yfu.
br the draft cattle; th:,trW with an iron ploughslra=rE;
the horseshoe; the ,frffiar crop rotatiolr.
-tqiqg
mechanisms for the construction of buildings in towns ffiefu
invented, together with water and windmills, fulling mills,
water sledgehammers, the spinning wheel, the mechanical
clock" Renewed contacts with the East enriched the diet of
[9tggr"s
with exotic sPices.
CRISIS OFTHE 14th.1 sth CENTURIES
A medieval prayer reads: 'From plague, famine, and war
save us, tordl; In the l4th-1 5th centuries these three
disasters took devastating dimensions. The demographic
advance was stopped by the 'Black death', the plague.
The pandemics (1348-1349) started in Central Asia and
killed about one third of the population of Europe. A series
of unfavourable years returned back the hunger as a social
phenomenon in many parts of the continent. Because of
ifr. diet based mainly on cereals and the unsafe transport,
even one yew of bad harvest was enough to cause famine
and doom the population of a whole region. However,
Europe gradually regained the nurnber of its population.
At the end of the 15'h century, it reached numbers that
enabled Europe to start colonial expansion towards the
New Wbrld.
CountryNear 1 200 1 340 1 500
France 10 19 16
The Holy Roman
Empire
5 11 7
Spain 5,5 9,5 8,5
Italy 4,5 9,5 5,5
Russia 5,5 B 6
re-atypeof
agncu
technical innovations but on expansion
of cultivated areas in order to increase
prcduction
market economy
-
an economic system
in which free competition and market
needs determine production and prices of
goods.