Developments in
Europe

Explore the transformations that reshaped medieval Europe from c. 1200 to 1450: the rise of states, religious upheaval, the Black Death, and the seeds of the Renaissance.

AP World History

Setting the Stage: Europe c. 1200

By 1200, Europe was organized around feudalism: a decentralized system in which lords controlled local territories in exchange for military service to monarchs. The Catholic Church served as the most powerful pan-European institution, uniting diverse kingdoms under a shared religious framework.

Feudalism

Political and economic system based on land grants (fiefs) exchanged for loyalty and service

Manorialism

Economic backbone: self-sufficient estates where serfs worked the land for lords

Christendom

Cultural-religious unity under the Roman Catholic Church centered in Rome

Four Transformations (1200–1450)

1

State-Building and Conflict: Monarchs centralized power, leading to wars such as the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453) and new bureaucratic institutions.

2

Crisis and Catastrophe: The Black Death (1347–1351) killed roughly one-third of Europe's population, reshaping labor, economy, and social hierarchies.

3

Religious Conflict and Reform: The Great Western Schism (1378–1417) split the papacy, undermining Church authority and spurring reform movements.

4

Cultural Revival: The Italian Renaissance (beginning c. 1350) revived classical learning, humanism, and artistic innovation.

Why This Period Matters

The developments of 1200–1450 created the preconditions for the modern world. Centralized monarchies would become the nation-states of later centuries. The devastation of plague restructured labor markets and challenged feudal obligations. Church crises opened space for the Protestant Reformation. Renaissance humanism planted the intellectual seeds of the Scientific Revolution.

Political Centralization

Key Conflicts Driving Change

Hundred Years' War

1337–1453: England vs. France. Spurred national identity, military innovation (longbow, cannons), and the decline of feudal cavalry.

The Reconquista

Christian kingdoms gradually reclaimed the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim Moors, culminating in 1492 with the fall of Granada.

The Crusades (Legacy)

Though largely over by 1291, the Crusades opened trade with the East, transferred knowledge, and deepened Christian-Muslim tensions.

Mongol Invasions

The Mongol threat (1240s) devastated Eastern Europe but also facilitated trans-Eurasian trade via the Pax Mongolica.

The Black Death (1347–1351)

Consequences of the Plague

1

Labor Scarcity: Surviving peasants demanded higher wages and greater freedom, weakening serfdom across Western Europe.

2

Social Upheaval: Peasant revolts erupted (English Peasants' Revolt of 1381, French Jacquerie of 1358) as laborers challenged the feudal order.

3

Religious Doubt: The Church's inability to explain or stop the plague led many to question its authority, fueling anti-clerical sentiment.

4

Economic Restructuring: Depopulation shifted land use patterns, promoted urbanization, and accelerated wage-based labor over feudal obligations.

Church vs. State Power

	Church Authority	Monarchical Authority
Source of Legitimacy	Divine appointment, apostolic succession	Divine right, military power, taxation
Trend (1200–1450)	Declining: schisms, corruption	Rising: centralization, bureaucracy
Key Crisis	Great Western Schism (1378–1417)	Hundred Years' War (1337–1453)
Result by 1450	Weakened moral authority	Stronger national monarchies

Religious Dissent and Reform

John Wycliffe

English theologian (1320s–1384) who challenged Church corruption, advocated for vernacular Bible translation, and questioned papal authority. His followers were called Lollards.

Jan Hus

Czech reformer (1369–1415) influenced by Wycliffe. Criticized indulgences and Church wealth. Burned at the stake for heresy, sparking the Hussite Wars in Bohemia.

The Italian Renaissance

Beginning in the city-states of northern Italy (Florence, Venice, Milan) around 1350, the Renaissance was a cultural and intellectual movement that revived Greco-Roman classical learning. Wealthy merchant families like the Medici patronized artists and scholars, creating an environment of innovation.

Humanism

Intellectual movement emphasizing human potential, classical texts, secular subjects alongside religious ones

Patronage

Wealthy families and the Church funded art, architecture, and scholarship as displays of prestige and piety

Civic Identity

Italian city-states competed culturally, fostering innovation in art (Giotto, early Brunelleschi) and literature (Petrarch, Boccaccio)

Trade and Economic Change

How to Analyze This Period

1

Identify the Category: Is the question about political (state-building), economic (trade/plague effects), social (feudalism/serfdom), or cultural (Renaissance/religion) change?

2

Establish Causation: Connect causes to effects. Example: Black Death → labor scarcity → peasant revolts → weakening of serfdom.

3

Compare Across Regions: How did European developments parallel or differ from those in the Islamic world, China, or Africa during the same period?

4

Identify Continuity vs. Change: What persisted (e.g., Christianity remained dominant) vs. what transformed (e.g., feudalism weakened)?

5

Link to Later Periods: How do these developments set the stage for the Renaissance (Unit 1 → Unit 2), Reformation, and Age of Exploration?

Example: Causation Chain

Example: Comparing Responses to Crisis

	Western Europe	Islamic World	East Asia
Plague Impact	30–60% mortality	~30–40% mortality	China: devastated earlier (1330s–1340s)
Political Effect	Feudalism weakens, monarchies strengthen	Mamluk Sultanate disrupted	Yuan Dynasty collapses (1368), Ming rises
Religious Response	Flagellants, antisemitism, Church doubt	Viewed as divine test; prayer, charity	Buddhism, Confucianism adapt
Economic Recovery	Wage labor rises, commerce expands	Trade recovers via Indian Ocean	Ming rebuilds agriculture, tribute system

Common Mistakes

✕ Dark Ages Myth

Claiming this period was a time of total ignorance or stagnation. In reality, significant intellectual, economic, and political developments occurred throughout.

✕ Renaissance Only Italian

While it began in Italy, Renaissance ideas spread across Europe and were influenced by Islamic scholarship and Byzantine preservation of Greek texts.

✕ Ignoring Global Connections

European developments did not occur in isolation. Trade routes, Mongol conquests, and the plague itself were global phenomena connecting Afro-Eurasia.

Question 1 of 5

Which of the following was a direct consequence of the Black Death in Western Europe?

The massive death toll created severe labor scarcity, giving surviving workers leverage to demand higher wages, better conditions, and freedom from serfdom. The Hundred Years' War began in 1337, before the plague.

Question 2 of 5

The Great Western Schism (1378–1417) is historically significant because it:

The Schism featured two (and later three) rival popes, confusing and disillusioning European Christians. This weakened the Church's moral authority and contributed to a climate where reformers like Wycliffe and Hus could gain followers. The East-West Schism was in 1054, a different event.

Question 3 of 5

Source: "The Florentine merchant class, enriched by banking, textile trade, and connections to the broader Mediterranean economy, invested heavily in the revival of classical learning. They commissioned works from artists and scholars, seeing in ancient Rome a model for civic virtue and cultural greatness."

▼ Tap to read passage

Based on the passage, which factor best explains the emergence of the Renaissance in Italian city-states?

The passage explicitly connects merchant wealth (from banking and trade) to the patronage of classical learning. Italy was not unified by monarchs during this period: it remained a collection of independent city-states.

Question 4 of 5

How did the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453) contribute to the decline of feudalism in Europe?

The war saw innovations like the English longbow and later gunpowder cannons, which made heavily armored feudal cavalry less effective. Both monarchies increasingly relied on paid professional soldiers rather than feudal levies, accelerating the centralization of military power.

Question 5 of 5

Which of the following best represents a continuity in European society from 1200 to 1450, despite the many changes of this period?

Despite the Great Schism, plague, and reform movements, Christianity remained the dominant cultural and religious framework across Europe throughout this period. Church authority was challenged but not overthrown. Serfdom actually strengthened in Eastern Europe even as it declined in the West.

Developments inEurope

Setting the Stage: Europe c. 1200

Four Transformations (1200–1450)

Why This Period Matters

Political Centralization

Key Conflicts Driving Change

The Black Death (1347–1351)

Consequences of the Plague

Church vs. State Power

Religious Dissent and Reform

The Italian Renaissance

Trade and Economic Change

How to Analyze This Period

Example: Causation Chain

Example: Comparing Responses to Crisis

Common Mistakes

Question 1 of 5

Question 2 of 5

Question 3 of 5

Question 4 of 5

Question 5 of 5

Developments in
Europe