Unit 5: Medieval Europe
Chapter 9: The Early Middle Ages
Section I: The Geography of Europe
Chapter 9-1: Geography of Europe (pgs. 230-233)
History & Social Studies Standard 7.6.1: Study the geography of Europe and the Eurasian landmass, including their location,
topography, waterways, vegetation, and climate and their relationship to the ways of life in Medieval Europe.
The BIG Idea: Because Europe has many types of landforms and climates, different ways of life have
developed there.
Key Terms & People:
Eurasia
topography
Quality Control for Main Idea #1: The physical features of Europe vary widely from region to region.
1. What is the boundary between Europe and Asia?
2. Where are most of Europe’s major rivers located?
3. How is the topography of southern Europe different from that of the Northern European Plain?
4. What four peninsulas do you see labeled on the map on page 231?
5. How might the Alps have affected the movement of people? (Refer to the map on page 231).
6. Why is the Iberian Peninsula isolated from the rest of Europe?
Quality Control for Main Idea #2: Geography has shaped life in Europe, including where and how people live.
7. What kinds of crops do people in southern Europe grow?
8. What city was built on an island in a river to make it hard for invaders to reach?
Clean Your Closet:
landforms
Northern Europe
Southern Europe
Scandinavia
climate
vegetation
Unit 5: Medieval Europe
Chapter 9: The Early Middle Ages
Section 2: Europe after the Fall of Rome
Chapter 9-2: Europe after the Fall of Rome (pgs. 234-239)
History & Social Studies Standard 7.6.2 – Describe the spread of Christianity north of the Alps and the roles played by the early church
and by monasteries in its diffusion after the fall of the western half of the Roman Empire.
The BIG Idea: Despite the efforts of Christians to maintain order, Europe was a dangerous place after the
fall of Rome.
Key Terms & People:
Middle Ages
monks
Charlemagne
Aachen
medieval
monasteries
Magyars
missionaries
Patrick
Benedict
Vikings
Clovis
Matchmaker
– ‘Hook up’ the key term with its mate!
1. __________________ was the teenager who was kidnapped from England and taken to Ireland as a slave. He
later escaped and then returned to Ireland to convert it to Christianity.
2. __________________ were people who were sent by the pope to convert northern Europeans to Christianity.
3. __________________ are religious men who lived apart from society in isolated communities.
4. __________________ was a brilliant warrior and a strong king who lead the Franks in building a huge empire.
5. __________________ was the ruler of the Franks who converted to Christianity and created one of the
strongest kingdoms in Europe.
6. __________________ was the capital of Charlemagne’s empire and is located in western Germany.
7. __________________ is the period between ancient times and modern times, roughly 500 to 1500.
8. __________________ are Scandinavian invaders who raided western Europe for loot and slaves.
9. __________________ was an Italian monk who created rules which most European monasteries lived by.
10. __________________ are the communities where monks lived under strict rules such as the Benedictine Rule.
11. _________________ is another name for the Middle Ages.
Lie Detector – Fix the Bold Word to make the statements true.
12.
Rewrite the true statement.
Of the three European invaders, it was the Magyars who invaded the most areas.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
13. Even though he faced resistance, Patrick eventually converted the English people to Christianity.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
14. Christianity was spread during the early Middle Ages largely due to the efforts of Clovis and Charlemagne.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
15. Many missionaries were named monks, a religious title given to people famous for their holiness.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
‘Systems Check’ – Place each question number from the first page under its main idea.
Main Idea #1: Christianity
spread to Northern Europe
through the work of
missionaries and monks.
Main Idea #2: The Franks, led by
Main Idea #3: Invaders
Charlemagne, created a huge Christian threatened much of Europe in the
empire and brought together scholars
700s and 800s.
from around Europe.
‘Gathering Up Loose Ends’ – Inside the outline of a monastery list two rules that
monks had to follow. Outside list three contributions that monks made to society.
1. _________________
__________________
2. _________________
1. _________________
__________________
_________________
3. _________________
2. _________________
_________________
_________________
Unit 5: Medieval Europe
Chapter 9: The Early Middle Ages
Section 3
Chapter 9-3: Feudalism and Manor Life (pgs. 242-247)
History & Social Studies Standard 7.6.3 – understand the development of feudalism and how it affected Medieval economy and social
order.
The BIG Idea: A complex web of duties and obligations governed relationships between people in the
Middle Ages.
Key Terms & People:
knights
William the Conqueror
lord
The horse collar
vassal
manor
Eleanor of Aquitaine
fief
feudalism
serfs
Magyars
castle
Matchmaker
– ‘Hook up’ the key term with its mate!
1. __________________ were pieces of land given to knights instead of money for their service.
2. __________________ is a knight who has been paid with land by a noble (lord).
3. __________________ were workers on the farm who were tied to the land.
4. __________________ was the large estate owned by a knight or a lord.
5. __________________ is the term given to nobles who had given land to knights for their service.
6. __________________, the Vikings, and Muslim invaders often raided the Frankish kingdoms in the 800’s.
7. __________________ was one of the most powerful people in the Middle Ages.
8. __________________ declared himself king after defeating the English at the Battle of Hastings.
9. __________________ were skilled warriors that fought for nobles in return for land.
10. __________________ was the relationship and rules between lords and vassals.
11. _________________ allowed farmers to use horses and work much faster.
Lie Detector – Fix the Bold Word to make the statements true.
Rewrite the true statement.
12. Towns grew because vassals increased.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
13. William the Conqueror defeated Normandy at the “Battle of Hastings.”
_____________________________________________________________________________________
14. If they gained enough land, serfs could become a lord.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
15. After divorcing the French king, Eleanor Aquitaine later became the queen of Spain..
_____________________________________________________________________________________
‘Systems Check’ – Place each question number from the first page under its main idea.
Main Idea #1:
feudalism governed how
knights and nobles dealt
with each other.
Main Idea #2:
Feudalism spread
throughout much of
Europe.
Main Idea #3: The
manor system
dominated the economy.
Main Idea #4: Towns
and trade grew and
helped end feudalism.
‘Clean out your locker!’ – Using page 243, list the social order of feudal society
and create a symbol for each level.
Title/Rank
Kings and Queens
Feudal Society
Symbol
Honors: Imagine you are a noble in need of knights. Write a letter to a knight
telling them why you need their help, how you will pay them, your responsibilities,
and their responsibilities. Use the words feudalism, fief, vassal and manor in
your letter…
Unit 5: Medieval Europe
Chapter 9: The Early Middle Ages
Chapter 9-4: Feudal Societies (pgs. 248-251)
History & Social Studies Standard 7.6.3 – understand how feudal relationships provided the foundation of political order.
The BIG Idea : Although the feudal systems of Europe and Japan were similar, their cultures were very
different.
Key Terms & People:
chivalry
knights
daimyos
kings
haiku
samurai
emperor
lords
peasants
Bushido
Christianity
Buddhism
Matchmaker
– ‘Hook up’ the key term with its mate!
1.
__________________ and 2. _____________________ were admired for their courage, bravery, loyalty,
and dedication as warriors.
3.
__________________ and 4. _____________________ used their land to pay warriors to fight for them. In
Europe land was given to warriors as payment, but in Japan the warrior was paid rice and
grain from the land.
5.
__________________ and 6. the _____________________ officially owned all the land and granted pieces
of it to lords and daimyos.
7.
__________________ and 8. _______________________ were codes of conduct that samurai and knights
were expected to live by.
9.
__________________ were the largest part of the population in both Europe and Japan, and they were
responsible for farming the land.
10. __________________, Shinto, and Confucianism all contributed elements to religious life in Japan.
11. __________________ was the single religion that all Europeans practiced.
Lie Detector – Fix the Bold Word to make the statements true.
Rewrite the true statement.
12. Japanese poets in the 1600s wrote short three-line poems called sonnets.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
13. European art in the Middle Ages dealt mostly with nature themes.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
14. Chivalry required samurai to be brave, loyal, humble, modest, and kind and gentle with women.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
15. Both Japan and Europe formed vassal societies that shared common elements.
_____________________________________________________________________________________