A Lack Of Centralized Government In The Medieval Kingdoms In Europe

1.) How did medieval rulers restore order and centralize political power? Medieval rulers restored order and centralized political powers by creating their own form of government. These leaders expanded their territory and spread their authority by creating many micro-managed systems. They developed large bureaucracies, armies, judicial systems and created taxes in order to cause the common-folk pay for all of it.

You may have heard of the Middle Ages and Feudalism, but you might not know a lot about it. Some people think that the Middle Ages is just a random period of time, but actually, it is the period of time after the fall of the Roman empire. Feudalism during the Middle Ages had its advantages and disadvantages. It caused unfairness to the lowest rank, it provided military service and protection, and it also provided economic stability.

Taking Shay’s rebellion for example where the majority, poor farmers grouped together to over throw the government. By having a more centralized government it would control the inevitable problem of factions; hearing the voice of the majority and protecting the rights of the

Everything of this world grows out of something else, in this case even our modern governments have progressed out of some sort of system. These early systems ran on ideas that can still be placed in the same categories we place our ideas in today. Looking deeper into the SPICE of the European MIddle Ages several ideas are uncovered, including but in no way isolated to, People in power tend to stay in power, lower class look to hope beyond their current life, and being loyal to who brought you. These ideas shaped a great deal of this time period encompassing the way lives were lived and how structure were put in place.

In the 1300's an Italian scholar named Petrarch came up with the name "Dark Age" to describe the time Europe was going through during the Middle Ages in 500AD-1500AD. Throughout the Middle Ages Europe was going through some rough times, but there were also moments of growth. For example the Black Death was a time of darkness but there were positive times like when universities were built. Although the dark ages were looked at as a negative occurrence, more events show a sign of growth.

In northern Europe after the Middle Ages, monarchies began to build the foundations of their countries that are still in affect today. During the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries these “New Monarchs” made many relevant changes in their nations. During the middle of the fifteenth century Europe was affected by war and rebellion, which weakened central governments. As the monarchies attempted to develop into centralized governments once again, feudalism’s influence was lessened. This “new” idea of centralization was reflected in the monarch’s actions. Rulers tried to implement peace and restore the idea that the monarchy represented law and order in the nation. These New Monarchs were able to build armies due to taxation, and

The need of central government was absolutely

In the High Middle ages (after 1000 A.D) and beyond there were major political, economic and intellectual changes that happed across Europe. The changes helped bring about new eras to the European landscape. As Europe was brought into these new eras, it thus brought upon the end of the Dark Ages.

In this essay I will talk about how some governments and countries were stabilized and centralized.

Throughout history, leaders have acquired power in many different ways. People have gained power through military conquests, economic wealth, religion and political power. When power is earned some leaders like to boast about their power in many different ways such as building powerful armies, or building spectacular monuments and buildings and even attacking other countries. During medieval history, in Africa, Asia and Europe, power has been shifted to many different leaders. Many leaders have been well known because of the power they either gained or lost. Two forms of power that have been the most effective in medieval history are religious power and economic power.

A strong central government sets a foundation for how a civilization is supposed to run. Rules, values, and order are all contributors to a community’s governmental structure to make it run smoothly. These factors allow the people and government officials to sustain and avoid falling apart. The main reason that civilizations collapse is because of the failure to maintain a government, without corruption, which usually leads to poor decision-making based on the leaders self interests. One civilization that had first hand knowledge of what a weak central government looked like was Ancient Macadonia.

According to a theory proposed by Hobbes, when anarchy transpires, stronger bordering governments tend to partake in warfare in order to attain more land. When strong, central governments rule, then a time of peace presides without other nations making a political grab for your own land. This is exemplified in a decrease in European wars once the states developed a centralized government. Furthermore, in areas such as the Middle East where weak central governments rule, there tends to be political unrest, civil wars, and fighting amongst the nations.

Large scale centralized governments in Europe that were thriving during the ninth century found themselves deteriorating in the tenth and even eleventh century. Empires no longer had a tight grip on those who inhabited the land. Notably, each sector and individual empire of Europe experienced this loss of control differently. Many of the empires in western Europe, like the Carolingian empire, experienced fragmentation and a lack of unification as locals of influential families began to take rule. With these local rulers, the borders of each empire vanished or became a blur. To illustrate, regions “as small as a few square miles” were under the control of various lords who in their right, acted as independent rulers (SH p.128). Even to the east, the Byzantines experienced a lack of control as the wealthy Dalasseni family could defy the emperor and also form rebellions against him (SH. 117). Adding to this fragmentation, Europe experienced detrimental invasions from the Vikings, Muslims, and the Magyars (Hungarians). Due to this division, Europe as a whole became multi-ethnic and multilingual. Because of this overall disintegration of peoples, existing rulers became heavily dependent upon vassals; individuals who voluntarily made a public bond with a commanding lord. Lords at the time did not have an abundance of people to whom they could trust and carry out their dealings. The feudal system of lords and vassals as revealed in Love and Complaints in Angouleme, which emphasized

From the origins of civilization, people looked for a high power for guidance and direction. Beginning with the Sumerians, the kings and their nobility looked to their polytheistic religious beliefs for direction through cosmic and terrestrial signals. Priests came into play, helping those who needed help in their walk with their faith. The Pope was considered God on Earth and government officials looked to him to answers numerous times during battles and wars. Religion became a companion to power in the middle ages, but the nature of authority slightly changed, relying more on religion, as we entered into the modern period.

What is a nation-state? A nation-state is defined as a type of political organization in which a group of relatively homogenous people live in one area under one government, and its development actually traces back to the Middle Ages. Medieval Europe was unified by the Roman Catholic Church, a powerful, but corrupt, institution. This corruption, coupled with the Renaissance spirit, led to increasing dissatisfaction with the Church and sparked the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation. These revolutionary ideas created conflicts between rulers, especially the triumph of the Protestant German princes over Charles V in 1555, which laid the foundations for the first true nation-states, France, Germany, and Italy, centuries later.