Controlled most of Europe and North Africa.

Evidence: ruins, coins, Latin documents.

Towns: grid pattern, Forum (marketplace), temples, amphitheatre (gladiators, Coliseum), aqueducts (water), roads (cobbled, Apian way), circus (chariot racing), sewerage system, town walls. Baths, public and private every day.

Houses: patricians lived in houses, plebeians lived in apartments.

Private house called a domus. Atrium (open courtyard in middle). Peristylium (walled garden). Tiled roofs. Mosaic floors. Villas in country.

Apartments: called insulae. Poor tenants at top, better off in middle, shops at bottom.

Family: father totally in charge. Strict discipline. Married young (12 and 14)

Clothes: knee-length tunics.... (More)

Stage 1: Page

Once a boy reached the age of seven, he would be sent to live with a another lord and his family; this was known as fostering. He would then learn to ride a horse, use a sword, sing, manners and dance.

Stage 2: Squire

At 14, the boy started to learn to fight on horseback. He would accompany the lord into battle, look after his horse and weapons and help the lord dress for battle and tournaments.

Stage 3: Knight

At 21, the boy was eligible to become a knight. He spent the night before the ceremony... (More)

The Influence of the Church

The Church had helped create the Renaissance by commissioning artists. An unintended consequence was that it also made people question old beliefs:

• As more people learned to read, they were able to read the Bible for themselves instead of having to accept everything told to them by priests and bishops. Their interpretations of the Bible often differed from those of the Church.
• The invention of the printing press meant that the ideas of the reforms could spread around Europe quickly and this encouraged people to support them and challenge the Church.

The Wealth of the... (More)

General

• Fall of ancient Rome to Renaissance.
• A time of war, little interest in education, plague and a reduction in population of Europe.
• Feudal system: Kings granted land, called a fief, to vassals in return for soldiers. Kings, barons, knights, bishops and abbots, freemen and serfs.
• Knights lived on Manors. They kept some for themselves (demesne) and rented out the rest to peasants.
• Norman invasion of Britain: William the Conqueror, Battle of Hastings 1066, Bayeux Tapestry.
• Norman invasion of Ireland: Rory O Connor V Dermot McMorrough king of Leinster. Asked Henry II for help.
• Strongbow (Richard... (More)