The Middle Ages: Features and Features

The Middle Ages and the Renaissance are the brightest periods in the history of mankind. They were remembered by various events and changes. Next, let us consider in more detail the features of the Middle Ages.

General information

The Middle Ages are a fairly long period. In its framework, the emergence and subsequent development of European civilization, its transformation - the transition to the New Age. The Middle Ages originates from the fall of Western Rome (476), however, according to modern scholars, it would be more fair to extend the border to the beginning of the 6th-end of the 8th century, after the Lombards invaded Italy. The Middle Ages end in the middle of the 17th century. It is customary to consider the bourgeois revolution in England to be the end of the period . However, it is worth noting that the last centuries were far from medieval in character. Researchers are inclined to separate the period from the middle of the 16th to the beginning of the 17th century. This "independent" time interval represents the era of the early Middle Ages. Nevertheless, this one, that the previous periodization is very conditional.

Characteristics of the Middle Ages

In this period, the formation of European civilization. At this time, a series of scientific and geographical discoveries begins, the first signs of modern democracy - parliamentarism - appear. Domestic researchers, refusing to interpret the medieval period as the era of "obscurantism" and "dark ages," seek to highlight the phenomena and events that have turned Europe into an entirely new civilization, as objectively as possible. They set themselves several tasks. One of them is the definition of the basic social and economic features of this feudal civilization. In addition, researchers are trying to fully represent the Christian world of the Middle Ages.

Public structure

This was the time in which the feudal mode of production and the agrarian element prevailed. In particular, this is characteristic of the early period. The society was represented in specific forms:

• Estate. Here the master, through the work of dependent people, satisfied most of his own material needs.
• Monastery. From the estate, it differed in that periodically here there were literate people who knew how to write books and who had the time for it.
• The royal court. He moved from one place to another and organized management and life following the example of an ordinary estate.

Government structure

It was formed in two stages. The first was characterized by the coexistence of Roman and German modified social institutions, as well as political structures in the form of "barbarian kingdoms". At the second stage, the state and feudal society are a special system. In the course of social stratification and the strengthening of the influence of the landed aristocracy between landowners-the population and the seigneurs-relations of subordination and domination arose. The era of the Middle Ages was distinguished by the presence of the estate-corporate structure, which resulted from the need for separate social groups. The most important role belonged to the institution of the state. He provided protection of the population from feudal freedom and external threat. Along with this, the state was one of the main exploiters of the people, since it represented interests primarily of the ruling classes.

Second period

After the end of the period of the early Middle Ages, there is a significant acceleration in the evolution of society. Such activity was due to the development of monetary relations and the exchange of commodity production. The importance of the city continues to increase, for the first time still in political and administrative subordination to the seigniorage - the estate, and in the ideological - at the monastery. Subsequently, the development of the political legal system in the New Time is associated with its development. This process will be perceived as the result of the creation of city communes, defending liberties in the struggle with the ruling lord. It was at that time that the first elements of democratic legal consciousness began to take shape. However, historians believe that it would be not entirely true to seek the origins of the legal representations of modernity exclusively in the urban environment. Of great importance were representatives of other classes. For example, the formation of ideas about personal dignity occurred in class feudal consciousness and was originally aristocratic in nature. From this we can conclude that democratic freedoms developed from the freedom of the higher classes.

The role of the church

Religious philosophy of the Middle Ages had a comprehensive significance. The church and faith completely filled the human life - from birth to death. Religion claimed the management of society, it performed a lot of functions, later transferred to the state. The church of that period was organized according to strict hierarchical canons. At the head was the pope - the Roman High Priest. He had his own state in Central Italy. In all European countries, the popes subordinated to the bishops and archbishops. All of them were the largest feudal lords and had entire principalities. It was the top of the feudal society. Under the influence of religion there were various spheres of people's activity: science, education, culture of the Middle Ages. In the hands of the church was a huge power. The seniors and kings, who needed her help and support, showered her with gifts, privileges, seeking to buy her assistance and location. Together with this religious philosophy of the Middle Ages had a calming effect on people. The church strove to smooth out social conflicts, called for mercy for the destitute and oppressed, for distributing alms to the poor and suppressing lawlessness.

The influence of religion on the development of civilization

The church controlled the production of books and education. Due to the influence of Christianity by the 9th century, a fundamentally new attitude and understanding of marriage and family has taken shape in society. In the early Middle Ages, alliances between close relatives were quite common, and numerous marriages were quite common. It was with this that the church fought. The problem of marriage, which was one of the Christian sacraments, has become almost the main theme of a large number of theological writings. One of the principal achievements of the church in that historical period is the formation of a conjugal cell - the normal form of family life that exists to this day.

Economic development

According to many researchers, technological progress has also been associated with the widespread dissemination of Christian doctrine. A consequence of this was a change in the attitude of people towards nature. In particular, we are talking about the rejection of taboos and bans, which hindered the development of agriculture. Nature has ceased to be a source of fear and an object of worship. The economic situation, technical improvements and inventions have contributed to a significant increase in the standard of living, which has survived for several centuries the feudal period. The Middle Ages, thus, became a necessary and very regular stage in the formation of Christian civilization.

Forming a new perception

In society, the human person has become more appreciated than in Antiquity. This was mainly due to the fact that the medieval civilization, imbued with the spirit of Christianity, did not seek to isolate a person from the environment because of the propensity to a holistic perception of the world. In this regard, it would be wrong to talk about, ostensibly, preventing the formation of individual features of the church dictatorship over a person who lived in the Middle Ages. In Western European territories, religion, as a rule, performed a conservative and stabilizing task, providing favorable conditions for the development of the individual. It is impossible to imagine the spiritual quest of a person of that time outside the church. It was the knowledge of surrounding conditions and God, inspired by church ideals, that gave birth to the diverse, colorful and vibrant culture of the Middle Ages. The church formed schools and universities, encouraged book printing and various theological disputes.

Finally

The whole structure of the society of the Middle Ages is usually called feudalism (in the term "feud" - vassal). And this despite the fact that this term does not provide an exhaustive description of the social structure of the period. The main features of that time should be attributed:

• The concentration in the villages of the absolute majority of the inhabitants;
• Prevalence of subsistence farming ;
• The dominant position of large landowners in society;
• Separation between kings and vassals of power;
• Domination of the Christian faith;
• The unfree position of the landowning peasants who are personally dependent on the masters;
• Lack of an unrestrained thirst for wealth and accumulation in society.

The most important factor in the cultural community of Europe was Christianity. It was during this period that it became one of the world's religions. The Christian church was based on an ancient civilization, not only denying the old values, but also reinterpreting them. Religion, its wealth and hierarchy, centralization and worldview, morality, law and ethics - all this formed a single ideology of feudalism. It was Christianity that largely determined the difference between the medieval society of Europe and other social structures on other continents at the time.