The English In England the Norman Conquest (q.v.) made William supreme lord. Following the Norman feudal usages, he insisted upon an oath from each one of his subjects, and did not allow the intervention of the feudal nobles. In spite of the civil wars of the 12th century, Henry II was able to retain the supreme control. The tyranny and incom petence of John led to a revolt an the part of the barons and the extortion from him of the Great Charter. (See GREAT BRITAIN - Mirous VAL ENGLAND). The efforts of the kings to evade the provisions of the charter caused the union of the nobles and the third estate, the distinctive feature of the English Constitution as contrasted with that of France or of Ger many. The loss of its continental possessions really strengthened England and enabled it to develop a strong government in its own island.
The German Germany was a kingdom made up of great duchies. The king was strong only when he had all these duchies under his immediate control. The imperial title which he held was usually a source of weak ness, because of the necessity of maintaining his authority outside of Germany. Those kings who neglected the imperial interests in Italy and Burgundy were strongest at home. Frederick Barbarossa, Henry VI and Frederick II (qq.v.), who attempted to build up strong em pires, were compelled, as the price of support from their German subjects, to make constant concessions. Thus they bartered away most of their German lands and royal rights. The towns and cities, in particular, acquired privi leges and practical independence in payment for their support in men and money. On the extinction of the Hohenstaufen house, Germany was divided up into many separate entities, varying in size from a duchy to a village or to a knight's fee, all claiming independence of all control except the imperial. The weak em perors of the 14th and 15th centuries were un able to maintain any effective control or order.
i Each emperor was intent only upon retaining his position and securing such property for his family as he could. Consequently Germany be came a prey to internal dissension and• division.
The Other The other coun tries were more backward. In Spain, the Chris tian kings were engaged in conquering Moslem territory or else in warring with one another. These movements were going on for several centuries, and culminated just at the close of the Middle Ages. In 1492, the Moors were conquered in Granada, their last stronghold. The two most powerful kingdoms, Castile and Leon, had already been united, and 20 years later the Spanish portion of Navarre was added.
In Scandinavia powerful monarchies were growing up. In the eastern portions of Europe new Christian kingdoms had arisen, especially Russia and Hungary. which were destined to play an important role in the latter centuries.
The Period of the Renaissance: Discover last period of the Middle Ages is often spoken of as the Age of the Renaissance (q.v.). The name is to a certain extent a mis nomer. But it is sanctioned by general usage, and there are certain factors that may be brought together, which serve to mark the transition from the medieval to the modern world.
The travel and commerce of the 12th and 13th centuries caused an interest in foreign lands which never abated. In particular, the taste for spices, which had become common, led to attempts to secure these more easily and more cheaply. After the loss of the Christian possessions in Syria, the importation of spices into Europe was burdened with heavy tolls by the Moslem rulers through whose territories they had to be carried. To the men of the 15th century there seemed to be two possible routes by sea to the spice islands, one by sailing around Africa, the other by sailing directly west to India. Attempting the latter led to the dis covery of America; attempting the former, to the doubling of the Cape of Good Hope. The result of these discoveries was to make the na tions on the ocean the leaders in commerce. The Mediterranean ceased to be the centre of the world's commerce and the Italian cities lost their pre-eminence as commercial centres.
Inventions: Compass, Gun This exploration was possible only by the use of the compass (q.v.). This had been known in the West by the 12th century; in the East, centuries earlier. But it was per fected as a real aid to navigation only in the 14th century. About the middle of -the 15th century came an even more important inven tion, that of printing (q.v.). This resulted at once in increasing enormously the number of books in existence and in cheapening their cost to one-fifth or less, so that hooks were readily accessible to a much larger number than before. At about the same time the manufacture of gunpowder was being perfected. Compositions similar to gunpowder (q.v.) had long been known in the East, and the knowledge of the composition of "Greek fire had been brought to the West. But it came into general use only in the 15th century, and the guns long after that were held by many to be inferior to the cross-bow. But gunpowder, before 1500, was revolutionizing the art of war and rendering the mediaeval knight obsolete.