When you think about the ANiad . Ages. what do you think about#™ Castles, knights, peasants, | mystical swords, dragons? WelL you are mostly right. CPerhaps not % about the dragons!) : Ihe Middle Ages were a period in Europe that lasted 1,000 years, from 500 AD to 1500 AD. They began ter the fall of the Roman Empire. The first of the Middle Ages was called the Dark ‘This is because historians don’t know a D what happened! a look at the Middle Ages—theThe Roman Empire existed for about 1,500 years. It ruled Europe, North Africa, and even parts of Asia. It collapsed in around 476 AD. But why? In the end, the Roman Empire had a lot of problems. The main problem was its size—it was Bb too big to control! There were also » barbarian invasions, military reforms, and economic problems. :The Feudal System In the feudal system, lords owned the land and everything on it. They lived in large manor houses, or even castles. Small communities formed around the place where the lord lived. The lord kept the community safe, and the community worked for him. The people who worked for a lord were called peasants or serfs. Around 90 percent of the people in Europe were peasants—they worked very hard and died very young. The lord had total power over the peasants.Daily Life Many people in the Middle the countryside and worked on farms. Ages lived in The workers, or peasants, lived in very small houses—sometimes lots of people lived in a single room. Some peasants owned animals like chickens and cows. And these animals sometimes lived in the homes with the people. Life in the city was also hard. Some people were carpenters and builders—they had a trade. Other people worked as bakers, doctors, or lawyers. People didn’t eat very well in the city. There was not very much fresh food. They only ate meat when it was a special occasion. Most people did not drink water because it was very dirty. Not many people went to school in the Middle Ages. Poor children worked with their parents. Some children learned a trade. Rich children had their own teachers. Some churches had schools where students could learn to read and write in Latin.The Black Death The Black Death was a common disease in the Middle Ages. Historians think it started in Asia and came to Europe with rats on ships. The disease caused panic in Europe: there was no cure. People thought it was the end of the world. By the time it finished, between 100 and 200 million people were dead!A Day in the Life of a King PTET RRL oe om Lee Pea nom sc moe Oum Tag Pee TSO Unt ae Co mom co Mm Oa Ptr msstiiee Coren ct Tee Rel) learned to ride a horse, hunt, and fight ARSC eS LURTIM CoB SECC oy POR Uat A Re a eRe USO RICO Pert aa Cea ce ct 3 Teese Na eee tr ‘ ba After ey sehen Flere ticae ater Gna En) eens) Me ST eT Cae Ce va Can sn went hunting. There were a Fran tl tar reno fight, too!became so insane that " nicknaine i a aU TOS eauHow to Become A knight y two ways to become a knig if someone fought hard in battle. The other way was to train with a knight, It was hard for most boys to become a knight because it was very expensi you needed to have a sword, armor, and a horse, These things were not cheap in the Middle Ages. So, knights were never Peasants, they were boys from noble families,A boy went to stay with a knight when he was seven years old. He was called a page—he served food, washed clothes, and learned good manners. He also learned how to fight with other pages, but they only used wooden swords, When the boy was 15 he became a squire. A squire took care of horses, and cleaned armor and swords. When the knight went to battle, the squire went with the knight. The squire finally became a knight in a ceremony. This was called the dubbing ceremony. The squire kneeled in front of a knight and the knight touched his shoulders with a sword—this made him a knight! iAmazing Middle Ages en Pe WORUS CNM) CKCOntal Onn ts OTC eta When you hear UEC OLN CINCO ECG eT CUTV LU Carn tas 2. Medicine was very basic, Wee an iy mm vera . s Sait 3, Cats and dogs were kept in. castles Ryans 4. The medieval version of soccer was known as a ae were no rules! OF oon CP Te GM eoImONO Cn tM arcane re over a hundred years—it is known as The Hundred Years War, OTe oA Len RO st 7. The people in England in the Middle Ages spoke a mixture Pn eich src a Ne nn aUe