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When were the middle ages in France?

The Middle Ages is a historical term, an era in world history. Beginning with the fall of the Western Roman Empire (AD 476) , feudalism reigned worldwide for hundreds of years until after the Renaissance (AD 1453), when capitalism was on the rise .

In the concept of world history, medieval history can also be called medieval history, and the concept of “Middle Ages” in the West comes from this. What was medieval France like?

Early Middle Ages 5th to 10th centuries

The period included two dynasties: the Merovingian and the Carolingian.

The Merovingian dynasty was the first dynasty of the Frankish kingdom . In 481 AD, Merovingian’s grandson Clovis defeated the Western Roman Empire in Gaul and formally established the dynasty.

At the beginning of the 8th century, the competition between East Francia and West Francia was particularly intense. Charles, the Chancellor of the East Frankish Palace, restored order in the north, and in 732 at Poitiers repelled the Arab invasion and reunited the Frankish kingdom. In 751, his son Pepin (reigned from 751 to 768) formally ascended the throne with the support of the Pope and established the Carolingian Dynasty.

In 768, Pepin’s son Charlemagne succeeded to the throne. During his reign, he went on expeditions to Italy, Spain, Germany and other regions year after year. By 800, he had put the vast areas of Western Europe under the rule of the Roman Empire under his control, and he was crowned by the Pope, Charlemagne became the emperor of the West.

The Treaty of Verdun signed in 843 divided the Charlemagne Empire into three parts, of which the Kingdom of West Francia evolved into what is now France.

In the 500 years from Clovis to Hugo Capet, barbarian invasions and internal and external wars continued. The prevalence of the feudal natural economy, the expansion of the power of the lords, and the strengthening of the centrifugal tendency and independence of the nobility have resulted in a long-term backward production, feudal separatism and national disunity.

Middle Middle Ages 10th to 15th centuries
This period includes the Capetian dynasty (987-1328) and the Valois dynasty (1328-1589).

In the middle of the Middle Ages, French agriculture, handicrafts, and commerce developed. The population grew gradually, reaching about 16 million by the 1420s. Many new cities appeared on the main roads and markets. From the 11th century, some cities launched the commune movement and achieved autonomy through armed uprisings or money redemption.

With the rise of the cities, a new social class emerged, the bourgeoisie , which became a third class distinct from the privileged classes (clergy, nobles). The development of commodity-currency relations has strengthened domestic economic ties and created favorable conditions for national unification.

In the early days of the Capetian Dynasty, the territory directly controlled by the royal family was limited to the area between the Seine and the Loire, and the major duchies and counties were divided, like independent kingdoms. During the reign of Philip IV (1286-1314), he strengthened official governance and rectified the army. He clashed with the Pope because of his insistence on levying property taxes on the church.

After the death of Charles IV in 1328, since the Capet family had no male heirs, the Valois dynasty was established by Philip VI of the Capet family’s Ponzi Valois family. In 1337, the British and French “Hundred Years’ War” broke out.

In 1358, another revolt of Zaclay occurred north of Paris. The national hero Joan of Arc emerged in the later period of the war. Although she was betrayed and killed, the trend of national unity was irresistible. In 1453, the Hundred Years’ War ended with a French victory.

By the end of the 15th century, the last aristocratic territories—Burgundy, Bicardy, Brittany, Provence, and Roussillon—were incorporated into the realm of the French kingdom.

Late Middle Ages 16th to 18th centuries
This period was an important period in France’s transition from feudal society to capitalist society. The second half of this period is known in French history as the “Old Regime”.

From the 16th century, the French capitalist relations of production began to sprout and develop. The opening of new shipping routes made the focus of French foreign trade shift from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. From the 17th century, France expanded its colonies to North America, Central America, Africa and India.

In the first half of the 16th century, the wounds of the Hundred Years War between Britain and France had not yet healed. Francis I and Henry II of the Valois Dynasty launched a war of aggression against Italy and competed with the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V for the border land between Germany and France, thus It opened the prelude to the long-term hegemonic struggle between France and the Habsburg family.

When the Italian War ended in 1559, France took control of the three dioceses of Calais and Metz, Tours and Verdun.

In 1589, the first king of the Bourbon dynasty, Henry IV (reigned from 1589 to 1610), tried his best to restore peace and recuperate. Afterwards, after the reorganization of the bishops Richelieu and Mazarin, Louis XIV came to rule. During this period, the French autocracy entered its heyday.

Louis XIV strengthened the feudal centralized rule and greatly weakened the power of the local aristocracy. Promote the development of capitalist industry and commerce. At the same time, the long war between Louis XIV and the Habsburgs extended the eastern frontier of France to Strasbourg.

During the reign of Louis XV (1715-1774), although the economy developed, the autocratic monarchy declined.

When Louis XVI came to the throne in 1774, the bourgeoisie increasingly felt that political status was increasingly disproportionate to economic power. They were extremely dissatisfied with the system of checkpoints, guild regulations and unfair taxation, especially against the privileges of nobles and priests. The Enlightenment movement, which represented the interests of the bourgeoisie, flourished. They attacked the Catholic Church and autocratic monarchy, spread scientific knowledge, and preached democracy, freedom, equality, and reason. The French feudal system was in serious crisis.