Comparison Of Feudalism And Nationalism In Western Europe

Objective

You will compare feudalism and nationalism in Western Europe.

Introduction

The countries of Austria, Belgium, Germany, France, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, and Switzerland are all considered to be apart of Western Europe. In this lesson you are going to learn about their history and how feudalism and nationalism shaped their countries.

Western Europe

The two largest countries in Western Europe are France and Germany. These two countries have access to trade, resources, and ports that allow them to have productive and strong economies. The French culture is strong in France and Monaco. German is key in Austria, Liechtenstein, and Germany. The countries of Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg have their own unique cultures, but have French and German influences. These cultural divides go deep into the history of the region.

In 50 BCE, the Roman Empire took control of what is now France. During this time a group of Celtic tribes lived in the area. These Celtic tribes spoke a version of what would

There was a hierarchy of people with feudalism. At the top were powerful lords who split their lands amongst lesser lords. These lords were called vassals If someone was a vassal to a powerful lord, that meant they would pledge his service and loyalty to the more powerful lord. Once this pledge was completed, the powerful lord would grant an estate to the vassal. These estates were called fiefs. . The lord promised to protect the vassal and his fief if the vassal provided military support, money, and food to the lord. It was not uncommon for a vassal to have his own vassals underneath him. European lords would often build castles from which they would control their lands from. These castles over time became larger and larger. Whenever war would break out in their land, castles would become a fortress for anyone that took shelter behind its