Deck 10: The Medieval World 1250-1350

Question 1

The commerce that occurred as a result of the Pax Mongolica was facilitated by the introduction of:

A) double-entry bookkeeping and early forms of credit transfers.
B) Roman numerals into European accounting.
C) abacuses and standardized coins used across Europe.
D) receipts and bookkeeping ledgers.
E) manuals to facilitate trade along the Silk Road.

Answer 1

double-entry bookkeeping and early forms of credit transfers.

Question 2

Texts like Marco Polo's Description of the World:

A) were entirely factual.
B) were fictional.
C) were in no way helpful to merchants traveling to the East.
D) were not religious texts and so were not read.
E) were a mix of fact and fiction.

Answer 2

were a mix of fact and fiction.

Question 3

Increasing European interest in African gold was driven by:

A) declining gold prices.
B) the discovery of large gold deposits in Europe.
C) increasing demand for bulk goods from Asia.
D) decreasing demand for silver in Europe.
E) increasing demand for expensive luxury goods in Europe.

Answer 3

increasing demand for expensive luxury goods in Europe.

Question 4

The Vikings did not permanently colonize the eastern coast of North America in part because:

A) eastern North America had no goods of interest to the Vikings.
B) their ships could not carry goods easily from North America to Europe.
C) it was too cold in northern North America to contemplate permanent residence.
D) they could find no land suitable for farming.
E) Viking relations with the indigenous people of North America were not peaceful.

Question 5

The thirteenth century had witnessed the development of the philosophical belief that the secular and spiritual worlds were rational,organized,and comprehensible to human beings.In the fourteenth century,William of Ockham:

A) denied that human reason could prove fundamental theological truths.
B) confirmed such a belief.
C) argued that theological questions could all be resolved through reason, but questions concerning the natural world could not all be so resolved.
D) determined that human reason could resolve nothing with regard to the world, with the exception of the truths of mathematics.
E) argued that the only knowledge human beings could attain came through divine revelation alone.

Question 6

For Europeans,the most important consequence of the Mongol conquests was:

A) the commercial links it established between Europe and the Far East along the Silk Road.
B) that the Mongol defeats of the Abbasid caliphate removed a major threat to European control of the eastern Mediterranean.
C) that the Mongol conquest of Russia brought eastern Europe into closer contact with western Europe.
D) that by destroying Persia, the Mongols extended the life of the Byzantine Empire.
E) the extensive cultural exchange that became possible between the Chinese and Europeans.

Question 7

Culturally and ethnically,the Mongols were most closely related to the:

A) Chinese.
B) Turks.
C) Russians.
D) Persians.
E) Siberians.

Question 8

Long-distance trade in the thirteenth century usually occurred:

A) because Venetian merchants regularly sailed from Italy to India.
B) on long-distance caravans that traveled from Europe to China along the Silk Road.
C) through a series of interlocking trade networks.
D) only after the fall of the Mongol Empire.
E) only after the foundation of the Ottoman Empire.

Question 9

Why did the Pax Mongolica come to an end?

A) Conflict between various components of the Mongol Empire increased.
B) The Mongols lost control of the Silk Road to the Chinese.
C) The Mongols began to push further west into Europe and war broke out.
D) The Mamluk sultanate of Egypt began attacking caravans on the Silk Road.
E) The Mongols converted to Eastern Orthodox Christianity and so closed the Silk Road to Western Roman Catholics.

Question 10

Time became standardized in the fourteenth century due to:

A) most towns agreeing that only one church bell would ring the hours.
B) the increased use of sundials.
C) the invention and proliferation of mechanical clocks.
D) the recent adoption of Islamic methods of timekeeping.
E) the standardization of candles, which burned hour by hour.

Question 11

In the early twelfth century,Genghis Khan quickly built up a large military force by:

A) offering land in exchange for military service.
B) uniting with the Mughal Empire of India.
C) peacefully merging with the Chin dynasty in western China.
D) defeating Poland, Hungary, and eastern Germany.
E) incorporating the warriors of defeated tribes into his own army.

Question 12

The Norse colony in Greenland ceased to exist during the fourteenth century because:

A) their territory was taken over by Inuit groups.
B) during the plague, all the settlers of Greenland died.
C) the climate had cooled considerably and farming was no longer possible.
D) the Norse no longer had any resources to exploit in Greenland.
E) the Norse who lived in Greenland moved to a new colony in modern-day Newfoundland.

Question 13

The expression "Mongol horde" actually comes from the:

A) Turkish word ordu meaning, "army."
B) Chinese words hen goal, meaning "warrior band."
C) German word hart, meaning "hard" or "solid."
D) English verb horde meaning "to accumulate or stockpile."
E) Arabic word jihad meaning "struggle" or "war."

Question 14

After conquering territory in what is now Iraq,Iran,Pakistan,Afghanistan,Armenia,and Anatolia,the Mongols who controlled this territory,called the Ilkhanate,converted to:

A) Roman Catholicism.
B) Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
C) Judaism.
D) Zoroastrianism.
E) Islam.

Question 15

After the 1340s,the economy of Europe was marked by:

A) gold shortages.
B) silver shortages.
C) inflation.
D) decreasing demand for luxury goods from the Far East.
E) the discovery of new gold supplies within Europe itself.

Question 16

Parallel to the interest in the gold trade in Europe,several entrepreneurial empires were established by Europeans.Among the first was that created by the:

A) Catalans.
B) Sardinians.
C) Sicilians.
D) Grenadians.
E) Maltans.

Question 17

The first European colonies established outside of Europe geographically were in the:

A) Indian Ocean.
B) Pacific Ocean.
C) Caribbean Sea.
D) Atlantic Ocean.
E) Arctic Ocean.

Question 18

The leader who united the Mongol tribes and began the conquest of China was named:

A) Qubilai Khan.
B) Ögedei Khan.
C) Temujin.
D) Timur the Lame (Tamerlane).
E) Lin Pao Khan.

Question 19

Mongol governance was directed toward:

A) ensuring absolute rule over all subject territories.
B) creating a stable staffed by Mongols in all subject territories.
C) securing tribute from subject territories.
D) instituting taxes on trade and commerce in all subject territories.
E) centralizing control in a single ruler.

Question 20

In the thirteenth century,Moscow became an important center because:

A) Muscovite dukes conquered much of Siberia.
B) it became a center of trade for both eastern and western merchants.
C) it became a tribute-collecting center for the Mongol Khanate.
D) it became a leading intellectual center for the study of Greek texts.
E) it became the site of an annual meeting for the leaders of various Mongol territories.

Question 21

During the so-called Babylonian Captivity,the power of the papacy:

A) waned due to its inability to generate revenue through taxes and court fees
B) increased due to the Avignon popes' austere lifestyles.
C) waned politically and economically but increased in spiritual or moral authority.
D) increased due to their strong connections to the Holy Roman Empire.
E) increased politically and economically but diminished spiritually.

Question 22

Sovereignty is won by:

A) diminishing the power of the nobles within the state.
B) diminishing the power of local monasteries.
C) diminishing the power of other states.
D) increasing the power of other states.
E) increasing the power of the nobles within the state.

Question 23

_________ was not a sacrament in the medieval Roman Catholic Church.

A) Ordination of a priest
B) Baptism
C) Extreme Unction
D) Confession and Penance
E) Pilgrimage

Question 24

As the power of the papacy weakened after 1250,popular piety:

A) decreased dramatically.
B) became formulaic as people used old and tired rituals.
C) became technically heretical as the papacy no longer had the moral authority to effectively lead Christians in Europe.
D) became markedly less spiritual and meditative.
E) found its strongest and most creative forms of expression.

Question 25

The medieval doctrine of transubstantiation taught that:

A) when Christ became human he had two natures.
B) people became fully human only when baptized.
C) the Eucharist became the body and blood of Christ during Mass.
D) Christ never became fully human.
E) people would rise from the earth on Judgment Day.

Question 26

Crusading can be linked to an extreme form of the sacrament of:

A) Baptism.
B) Confession and Penance.
C) Matrimony.
D) Confirmation.
E) Communion.

Question 27

Sovereignty can be defined as:

A) sharing governmental power over a given territory.
B) the ability of a country to attack other countries.
C) the ability of a king to control his nobles.
D) the ability to control a defined territory without challenge.
E) the ability of townspeople to act independently of a king or local lord.

Question 28

Dante's Divine Comedy depicts the poet's mythical journey through:

A) the Holy Land in search of the Holy Grail.
B) the mountains in and around medieval Florence.
C) hell, purgatory, and heaven.
D) Egypt in search of the Desert Fathers.
E) England and France with the knights of the Round Table.

Question 29

King Philip IV of France's ability to move Pope Clement V's court to Avignon demonstrates the:

A) gulf between the theoretical and actual power of the papacy.
B) flexibility of papal governance.
C) piety of Philip IV.
D) destitution of the papacy.
E) enormous respect Clement had for Philip.

Question 30

By the mid-thirteenth century,the pope called some crusades in order to:

A) try to retake Jerusalem from Muslim rule.
B) fight against non-Christian peoples in the north of Russia.
C) defend Venice from attacks from the Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt.
D) support the political needs of the papacy.
E) defend Europe's borders in the East from invasion by the Mongols.

Question 31

A fresco painting is essentially a(n):

A) painting executed on fresh plaster.
B) egg tempura painting executed on a piece of wood.
C) oil painting executed on a stretched canvas.
D) image that is modeled and executed on an outside wall.
E) egg tempura painting executed on a wall.

Question 32

Although Louis IX's attempts at crusading were failures,they cemented his reputation as a:

A) bad military strategist and king.
B) lover of lost causes.
C) self-absorbed king who cared little about his subjects.
D) relic hunter.
E) protector of the Church.

Question 33

The medieval painter Giotto is remembered especially because he:

A) rendered architectural details with photographic precision.
B) specialized in individual portraits, which were highly lifelike.
C) developed a new technique for painting on canvas with oil paints.
D) brought a deep humanity and naturalism to his religious images.
E) developed a new technique for painting on wood using pigment mixed with egg white.

Question 34

Dante's Divine Comedy represents:

A) the nadir of Italian vernacular writing.
B) the pinnacle of Latin prose.
C) a fusion of classical and Christian cultures.
D) a clear adoption of Christian principles and a rejection of classical learning.
E) a rejection of Christianity in favor of classical learning.

Question 35

The nominalist distinction between reason's ability to understand the natural world and its inability to understand the divine world encouraged people to:

A) ignore the natural world.
B) contemplate God alone, as all important knowledge came through revelation.
C) understand the human world as a metaphor for the divine world.
D) understand the real world without reference to the supernatural.
E) look to universals in the world, which could provide some small insight into the divine world.

Question 36

Sovereignty implies governmental control over:

A) peoples.
B) space.
C) farming.
D) the Church.
E) towns.

Question 37

During the so-called Babylonian Captivity of the fourteenth century,the papacy was:

A) divided between two rival popes.
B) moved to Avignon, France.
C) disbanded for seventy-five years.
D) controlled by the Persian aristocracy.
E) removed from Rome to Babylon.

Question 38

European art of the thirteenth century reflected a renewed interest in:

A) the saints.
B) portraits.
C) children.
D) biblical stories.
E) nature.

Question 39

The name "The Babylonian Captivity" for the Avignon papacy references the:

A) exile of Christians from Roman citizenship in the first three centuries
B) exile of Christians from the Levant (ancient Babylonia) after Saladin's victory at the Horns of Hattin in 1187 C.E.
C) exile of Christians from Spain after the Muslim conquest in the 700s C.E.
D) exile of the Jews in Babylon during the sixth century B.C.E.
E) diaspora of the Jews after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E.

Question 40

Meister Eckhart taught that:

A) by renouncing the senses, one could draw inward and ultimately find God.
B) secular leadership of the Church would purify its doctrine and discipline its clergy.
C) the laity should stop attending church and focus instead on the miracles of Christ.
D) the most practical devotional act for the laity was pilgrimage.
E) the laity should renounce marriage and enter monasteries and convents.

Question 41

Realism and naturalism were the key trends in both art and literature in the late Middle Ages.

Question 42

In the fourteenth century,Edward II argued that he was the legitimate heir of France based on a closer relationship to Philip IV of France than that of the new Valois king because:

A) his mother was Philip IV's wife.
B) he was married to Philip IV's sister.
C) he was married to Philip IV's daughter.
D) he was the grandson of Philip III.
E) his mother was Philip IV's daughter.

Question 43

The Black Death appears to have originated in:

A) Italy.
B) India.
C) Sub-Saharan Africa.
D) Iran.
E) China.

Question 44

Bubonic plague was most commonly spread by:

A) flea bites.
B) lice.
C) breath droplets, which infected individuals expel while coughing.
D) transmissions of bodily fluids.
E) mosquito bites.

Question 45

The Mongols ruled the vast territory of their empire directly.

Question 46

The Stone of Destiny was taken to Westminster Abbey by Edward I:

A) as a memento of Edward's failed invasion of Scotland.
B) to show his English subjects the unusual way Scottish kings were crowned.
C) to demonstrate England's power over Scotland.
D) to ritually bless it before returning it to Scone Abbey.
E) as a mark of his respect for the Scottish Army who fought against him.

Question 47

Mongol rulers were highly intolerant of religious and philosophical differences.

Question 48

Aside from starvation,the most devastating effect of the Great Famine was the:

A) death of almost all the small livestock in Europe.
B) compromised immune systems of those who survived.
C) rise of cannibalism in Europe.
D) inability to recover lands lost to flooding.
E) tremendous increase of people sentenced to death for poaching.

Question 49

A fundamental source of conflict in the Hundred Years' War was that:

A) England lay claim to Flanders.
B) France lay claim to Cornwall.
C) the French king was a vassal of the English king for Brittany.
D) the English king was a vassal of the French king for Gascony.
E) the English king constantly attacked France's borders from the stronghold in Gascony.

Question 50

The Black Death was caused by:

A) a virus called varicella-zoster.
B) a bacterium called Mycobacterium leprae.
C) a virus called rubeola
D) a bacterium called Yersinia pestis.
E) a virus called Variola vera.

Question 51

Philip IV's decision to suppress the Knights Templar and exile Jews from France was driven by:

A) religious concerns-both groups were regarded as heretics.
B) political concerns-both powerful groups were challenging the king's authority.
C) social concerns-both groups presented challenges to the traditional class structure in France.
D) financial concerns-both groups were wealthy and Philip was in debt to them.
E) economic concerns-both groups were exempt from taxes.

Question 52

The portability of altarpieces and devotional images allowed for greater individuality in artistic styles.

Question 53

The most obvious source of gold for European monarchs was China.

Question 54

Medieval colonies in the Mediterranean and North Atlantic were driven by a desire to foster trade.

Question 55

The Seven Years' Famine occurred because:

A) Europe had reached the limit of its ability to supply food for its population and the climate warmed by approximate two degrees centigrade.
B) Europe's climate cooled by ten degrees centigrade.
C) Europe had reached the limit of its ability to supply food for its population and the climate cooled by approximately two degrees centigrade.
D) Europe had reached the limit of its ability to supply food for its population and a drought occurred.
E) Europe's climate warmed by ten degrees centigrade.

Question 56

The Mongol Empire was the largest empire in history.

Question 57

Dante's Divine Comedy is an important social and political commentary on fourteenth-century Italy.

Question 58

Edward made the territory of _________ a settler colony of England.

A) Wales
B) Scotland
C) Ireland
D) Brittany
E) Cornwall

Question 59

William of Ockham argued that human reason could not lead to an understanding of God.

Question 60

During the Babylonian Captivity,the papacy's administrative control over the Church increased even as its moral authority declined.

Question 61

In the Middle Ages,marriages were always solemnly celebrated in a church.

Question 62

Why was the Black Death so devastating in Europe?

Question 63

How did the Pax Mongolica impact the commercial and artistic development of Europe?

Question 64

How was a renewed fascination with the natural world reflected in thirteenth-century art and philosophy?

Question 65

What were the causes of the Hundred Years' War?

Question 66

Jews were victims of attack by both Christians and Muslims during the plague.

Question 67

The Hundred Years' War was,in part,a product of emerging ideas of statehood.

Question 68

The Black Death struck and disappeared from Europe in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

Question 69

Sovereignty was a zero-sum game in the Middle Ages.

Question 70

How did the integration of European and Asian commerce impact European technological development?

Question 71

What events marked the decline of the papacy in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries?

Question 72

What factors account for the success of the Mongol Empire?

Question 73

What was the purpose of the early European colonies?

Question 74

How did England and France increase their sovereignty in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries?

Question 75

To what extent were the sacraments a way of extending church authority over everyday Christians in the Middle Ages?