Modern Age Europe 1348-1789 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Modern Age Europe 1348-1789 - Essay Example For a long time Europe was under the power of monarchs and popes creating a great controversy between the church and the state as to who should hold absolute power. The period between 1350 and 1550 in Europe was also characterized by increased trade among nations, conquest and colonization of states such as Africa and Asia. It was also a period when slave trade was thriving due to labor requirements in plantations, mines, and at homes of the noble citizens. The discovery of the Americas by Columbus also played a great part in the changes that took place thereafter. The aim of this paper is to discuss the political, religious, social and cultural changes that took place in Europe between 1350 and 1550. The paper will thus be divided into four sections. First it will discuss the political changes. Secondly, the religious changes. Thirdly, the social changes will be discussed and lastly, the cultural changes. Political Changes There are various political changes that occurred in Europe from 1350 to 1550. These were necessitated by the various events that occurred during this time such as the bubonic plague, the hundred years war and the rise of national sentiment, the late medieval church the great schism, the renaissance, the reformation age, and the religious wars. ... The noble landowners were the most powerful people but the plague deprived them of their power since it rendered agricultural products undesirable and wages were high thus loss of revenues which was the source of power. The church also lost some political power as it depended on land for revenue. On the other hand, the political power of the artisans increased as their items of trade such as jewelry was on high demand. Due to loss of revenue from agricultural produce the government had no option than to apply restrictive legislations and impose taxes on peasants so as to get revenue. As a result there were increased peasant uprisings which were detrimental to the growth of the economy. Another political change in Europe was the increasing nationalism especially in France as a result of the 100 years of war in Europe. The war took place between May 1337 and October 1453 with the defeat of England by France. Before the war, there was a lot of disunity in France which the Estate General took advantage of to usurp the power of the royals. However, efforts by Joan of Arc to unite the country led to nationalistic feelings in France and desire to have a national identity. This led to a political shift whereby France adopted a centralized form of government as opposed to feudal monarchy. Nationalism also led France to dishonor the Treaty of Troyes which had led to disinheritance of the French king by the English king. France was thus able to elect its own king and gain political power. Another crucial outcome of the war was the end of King Edward’s vassalage to the king of France thus acquiring sovereignty over English territories in France although by the end of the war, England had control of only one French territory