Middle Ages Webquest
PART A You are about to embark on a voyage throughout the Middle Ages. On this voyage, you will discover many things about this
unique time in Europe's history. Using the following webpage http://medievaleurope.mrdonn.org/ find the answer to each of the
following questions and record your answers (spelled correctly) on your worksheet. GOOD LUCK AND SAFE TRAVELING.....THIS WAS
A VERY DARK & DANGEROUS TIME IN EUROPE'S HISTORY!! You must answer all of the questions before proceeding to part B.
Medieval Europe Timelines
1. The medieval times, or middle ages, refers to a time in history that lasted about 1000 years. When did the middle
ages start, and when did they end?
500 CE - 1500 CE (CE stands for Common Era and basically means the same thing as AD.)
The Plague
1. What was the name of the horrible disease that hit Asia, Africa, and Europe in the 1300s? The Black Death
2. In ten years, the plague had killed over 30 million of Europe's population.
3. People thought they were getting sick as a punishment from their gods, but it was actually fleas and rats that
were spreading the disease.
Feudalism
4. In medieval times, there were three major groups of people. They were the Nobility, the church, and the
commoners.
5. If people wanted more land, they would simply start a fight with someone.
6. Around 900 CE, a new form of government called feudalism was formed.
7. In the feudal system, everyone was a vassal. What does the term vassal mean? servant
8. What was the ceremony called in which the vassals promised their loyalty to a lord? Homage
9. The most important promise of the vassal to the lord was their loyalty.
Fiefs
10. Land in medieval times was broken into fiefs.
11. The fief included at least one village, huts for the serfs, the manor house or castle, and areas set aside to grow,
feed, or catch food - the fields, pasture land, and woods.
12. In exchange for ownership of a fief, you had to promise certain things.
a. You had to promise loyalty to the king or to the lord who gave you the fief.
b. You had to provide military service. You did not have to fight yourself, but you had to send men when
needed
c. You had to act as a host when your king or lord came visiting.
d. You had to contribute funds for a ransom if your king or lord was captured in battle.
e. You had to provide gifts of cash to help offset the costs of any of your lord's special occasions, such as a
wedding.
Life of the Nobility --- Kings, Lords, Ladies, Knights
13. During the middle ages, noblewomen had no rights. They were the property of their husbands.
a. They could not even choose their own husbands; their fathers chose for them.
14. Girls did not go to school. They were taught by their mother how to behave and there was a
b. strict code of behavior in the middle ages.
15. Which church ruled the daily lives of the people in the middle ages? Catholic Church
16. Wealth and Power were usually two reasons why arranged marriages were contracted.
Medieval Castles
18. Why did the nobility build their castles out of stone in the middle ages? Castles were designed to withstand a
siege and to mount a defense.
The Manorial System
Common People
19. The common people in the middle ages were the farmers and the peasants .
20. The serfs could not leave the manor without permission, but they weren't slaves. They stayed with the land
even if the lad was sold to a new owner.
21. The peasants were free to leave the manor, but usually didn't because there really was no place for them to
go.
22. How did the commoners pay their taxes to the lord? Grow his crops, tend the livestock, bake the bread, sew
the clothes, make the tools and so the work
23. Could most of the common people read or write? No
Knight Life
24. At what age did the sons of noblemen begin their training for knighthood? 7
25. At age 15, he became a squire and was assigned to a knight to learn how to fight and behave.
26. Once a squire proved himself in battle, he became a Knight.
27. What was the code called that said that all knights had to be brave in battle and is now the basis of good manners in
most Western societies? Code of chivalry
28. Name six standards of the Chivalric Code.
a. Brave in battle
b. Keep promises
c. Defend the church
d. treat noblewomen with respect
e. Loyal to the lord
f. Loyal to the king
29. The knight was one of three types of fighting men during the middle ages:
a. Pages
b. Squire
c. Knights
Part B (RESPOND to each question)
30. What were the main features of feudalism? How did feudalism change the social structure of Anglo-Saxon England?
Loyalty lay at the heart of the feudal system. The landowners extracted loyalty from their serfs, the lords expected loyalty
from their knights, and the king demanded loyalty from everyone.
