Medieval period is usually called the time interval between the New and Old eras. Chronologically, it fits into the framework from the end of the 5th-6th to the 16th (sometimes inclusive) centuries. In turn, the Middle Ages is divided into three periods. These are, in particular: early, high (middle) and late era (beginning of the Renaissance). Next, consider how the medieval states of Europe developed.
General characteristics
The XIV-XVI centuries are considered separate, independent periods in terms of the volume of events that have one or another significance for cultural life. The degree of heritability of the characteristic features of the previous stages was different. Medieval Western Europe, its Central and Eastern parts, as well as some territories of Oceania, Asia and Indonesia have retained elements characteristic of the Ancient period. The settlements of the territory of the Balkan Peninsula strove for a fairly intensive cultural exchange. Other medieval cities of Europe adhered to the same trend: in the south of Spain, France. At the same time, they tend to turn to the past, preservevestiges of the achievements of previous generations in certain areas. If we talk about the south and southeast, then the development here was based on traditions formed back in Roman times.
Cultural colonization
This process spread to some of the medieval cities of Europe. There were quite a few ethnic groups whose culture strictly adhered to the framework of antiquity, but they sought to attach them to the religion dominant in many other territories. So, for example, it was with the Saxons. The Franks tried to force them to join their - Christian - culture. The same applies to other tribes that retained polytheistic beliefs. But the Romans, when seizing lands, never tried to force the people to accept a new faith. Cultural colonization has been accompanied since the 15th century by the aggressive policy of the Dutch, Portuguese, Spaniards, and later other states that seized territories.
Nomadic tribes
The history of medieval Europe, at an early stage in particular, was filled with captivity, wars, destruction of settlements. At this time, the movement of nomadic tribes was actively taking place. Medieval Europe experienced the Great Migration of Nations. In the course of it, the distribution of ethnic groups took place, which settled in certain regions, displacing or uniting with the nationalities that already existed there. As a result, new symbioses and social contradictions were formed. So, for example, it was in Spain, which was captured by Muslim Arabs in the VIII century AD. In this planthe history of Medieval Europe was not much different from Ancient.
State Formation
The medieval civilization of Europe developed quite rapidly. In the early period, many small and large states were formed. The largest was the Frankish. The Roman region of Italy also became an independent state. The rest of Medieval Europe broke up into many large and small principalities, which were only formally subordinate to the kings of larger entities. This, in particular, applies to the British Isles, Scandinavia and other lands that are not part of the big states. Similar processes also took place in the eastern part of the world. So, for example, on the territory of China at different times there were about 140 states. Together with the imperial power, there was also feudal power - the owners of the fiefs had, among other things, the administration, the army, and in some cases even their own money. As a result of this fragmentation, wars were frequent, self-will was clearly manifested, and the state was generally weakened.
Culture
The medieval civilization of Europe developed very heterogeneously. This was reflected in the culture of that period. There were several directions of development in this area. In particular, there are such subcultures as urban, peasant, knightly. The development of the latter was carried out by the feudal lords. Artisans and merchants should be attributed to urban (burgher) culture.
Activities
Medieval Europe lived mainly on subsistence farming. In certain regions, however, there is an unequal pace of development and involvement in certain types of activities. For example, nomadic peoples who settled on lands previously developed by other peoples began to engage in agriculture. However, the quality of their work and the subsequent results of their activities were much worse than those of the indigenous population.
In the early period, Medieval Europe experienced a process of deurbanization. During it, residents from the destroyed large settlements moved to the countryside. As a result, the townspeople were forced to move on to other activities. Everything necessary for life was produced by peasants, except for metal products. Plowing of the land was almost universally carried out either by the people themselves (they harnessed to the plow), or with the use of cattle - bulls or cows. From the IX-X centuries, the clamp began to be used. Thanks to this, they began to harness the horse. But these animals were in very small numbers. Until the 18th century, peasants used a plow and a wooden shovel. It was quite rare to find watermills, and windmills began to appear in the 12th century. Hunger was a constant companion of that period.
Socio-political development
Land ownership of the initial periods was distributed among the communities of peasants, the church and the feudal lords. Gradually there was an enslavement of people. The lands of free peasants began to join, under one pretext or another, to plotschurch or secular feudal lords living with them on the same territory. As a result, by the 11th century, economic and personal dependence flourished to varying degrees almost everywhere. For the use of the plot, the peasant had to give 1/10 of everything produced, grind bread at the master's mill, work in workshops or on arable land, and take part in other works. In the event of a military danger, he was charged with protecting the land of the owner. The serfdom of Medieval Europe was abolished in different regions at different periods. The dependent peasants in France were the first to be freed in the 12th century, at the beginning of the Crusades. Since the 15th century, peasants in England have become free. This happened in connection with the fencing of the land. In Norway, for example, the peasants were not dependent.
Trading
Market relations were either exchange (goods for goods) or financial (goods-money). For different cities there was a different weight of silver in coins, different purchasing power. Large feudal lords could mint money, those who took out a patent for minting. Due to the lack of systematic trade, fairs began to develop. As a rule, they were timed to coincide with certain religious holidays. Large markets were formed under the walls of the prince's castle. Merchants organized themselves into guilds and conducted foreign and domestic trade. Around that time, the Hanseatic League was formed. It became the largest organization uniting the merchants of a number of states. By 1300, it included more than 70 cities between Holland and Livonia. They weredivided into 4 sections.
A large city was at the head of each region. They had connections with smaller settlements. In the cities there were warehouses, hotels (merchants stayed in them), and sales agents. To a certain extent, the Crusades contributed to the development in material and cultural terms.
Technological progress
During the period under review, it had an exclusively quantitative character. This can also be attributed to China, which has stepped far ahead of Europe. However, any improvement met with two official obstacles: the guild charter and the church. The latter imposed bans in accordance with ideological considerations, the former out of fear of competition. In the cities, artisans were united in workshops. Organizing outside of them was impossible for several reasons. Shops distributed material, quantity of products, places for sale. They also determined and strictly controlled the quality of the goods. The workshops monitored the equipment on which production was carried out. The charter regulated both free time and work time, clothing, holidays and much more. Technology was kept in the strictest confidence. If they were recorded, then only in cipher and passed exclusively to relatives by inheritance. Often, technology remained a mystery to future generations.
