jueves, 19 de noviembre de 2009

Homework: the crusades

What were the crusades?

The Crusades were a series of military campaigns during the time of Medieval England against the Muslims of the Middle East.
In 1076, the Muslims had captured Jerusalem - the most holy of holy places for Christians. Jesus had been born in nearby Bethlehem and Jesus had spent most of his life in Jerusalem. He was crucified on Calvary Hill, also in Jerusalem. There was no more important place on Earth than Jerusalem for a true Christian which is why Christians called Jerusalem the "City of God".
However, Jerusalem was also extremely important for the Muslims as Muhammad, the founder of the Muslim faith, had been there and there was great joy in the Muslim world when Jerusalem was captured. A beautiful dome - called the Dome of the Rock - was built on the rock where Muhammad was said to have sat and prayed and it was so holy that no Muslim was allowed to tread on the rock or touch it when visiting the Dome.
Therefore the Christian fought to get Jerusalem back while the Muslims fought to keep Jerusalem. These wars were to last nearly 200 years

How were the crusades?

The first crusade: 1096-1102

The appeal was made by Pope Urban II in November 1095 but crusaders did not set out until the following summer. One route went through Hungary crossing the Byzantine frontier at Belgrade then through the Balkans. The other route took crusaders down through Italy crossing by sea from Bari to Dyrrachion and then to Constantinople by land.

The second crusade:1447-1449

The Second Crusade was prompted by the fall of Edessa in 1144. In this case both the French under Louis VII and the Germans led by Emperor Conrad III followed the same route through Hungary and arrived in Constantinople within a month of each other in September and October 1847.

The third crusade:1189-1192

The Third Crusade, was prompted by the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin in 1187. A German contingent under Frederick Barbarossa did attempt to cross using the traditional route through the Balkans and Anatolian but Barbarossa died en route and his forces later suffered an ambush. The important routes therefore were those take by the French under Philip Augustus and the English led by Richard I. Both expeditions travelled by sea stopping for the winter at Messina.

The fourth crusade:1202-1204

The Fourth Crusade was preached by Innocent III in 1202. The majority of the Crusaders sailed from Venice. The goal was the recapture of Jerusalem through an invasion of Egypt, however, the Crusaders were persuaded to mount an attack on behalf of the Venetians at Zara and then on Constantinople to depose the Emperor. The fall and sack of Constantinople in April 1204 did lasting damage to relations between Eastern and Western Christians. A Latin empire lasted there for 60 years.

The fifth crusade:1218-1221

The sixth crusade:1228-1229

The seventh crusade:1248-1254

The eighth crusade:1270

lunes, 16 de noviembre de 2009

Words of Unit 2: meaning

Unit 2

1.Vikings- They came from Scandinavia. They conquered the British Isles, nothern France and southern Italy, and they founded kingdoms.

2.Magyards- They came from the steppes of Asia. They settled in Eastern Europe, and founded the kingdom of Hungary.

3.Saracens-They were Muslim pirates who attached the Mediterranean coasts of Europe.

4.Serfs- As peasants could not depend on the king's protection, they turned to the nobles for help.
Nobles had their own armies and castles. In exchange for protection, the peasants had to work for the nobles, and submit to their authority. They became the noble's serfs.

5.Nobles-is a state-privileged status which is generally hereditary, but which may also be personal only.They were the knights and their families. Their duty was to defend the population.

6.Fief or manor- Nobles received land in exchange for swearing allegiance to the king. This land is called a fief or manor. Each one has got a castle where the lord live. There were also villages where the peasants lived, and forests.

7.Vassals- the barons became the kings vassals by accepting the king's supremacy.

8.Paid homage- The vassals paid homage to the king and swore alliance to him in a ceremony.

9.Court- It was formed by a group of lawyers, clergy and soldiers. They helped to the king to gobern. Their decisions usually only affected to the king's lands.

10.Demesne- It is called to a part of the land on the manor, that it was used by the lord himself.

11.Clergy- They were the monks and priests. They had to pray for the spiritual salvation of the people.

12.Priviliged states- It was formed by the nobles and the clergy. They had advantages.

13.Pope- In Rome he was the head of the Church. He also ruled over the Papal State on the Italian Peninsula.

14.Order of Saint Benedict- It was the most important order in the early Middle Ages.

15.Regular clergy- They were member of religious orders. Each order was led by an abbot.

16.Knight- The squires that they proved their worth about five years later they were made knights in a special ceremony.

17.Tithe- It is a percentage of the harvest, to the Church.

18.Fallow-Every year the peasants left half of their land fallow so that it recover and became fertile again.

19.Self-sufficient- The peasants were that. They grew food, made clothes and furniture, and built their houses.

jueves, 12 de noviembre de 2009

Words of Unit 1 : meaning

Unit one

1.Allah- Islamic God.

2.Byzantine Empire- The new name of the Eastern Roman empire. Its capital was Constantinople.

3.Carolingian Empire-The Franks handed the power to the Mayors of the Palace.

4.Germanic-Tribes that they lived in the north of the roman empire.

5.Hegira-This date marks the start of the Muslim calendar. It is when Muhammad moved to Medina in 622.

6.Islam-A new religion made from Muhammad.

7.Justinian Code-It modernised the Roman law.

8.mosaics-which covered the walls and ceilings of churches and palaces.

9.monotheistic-they only believe in one god.

10.Ramadan-It's a month in the Islamic calendar where the Muslims have to fast.

11.Huns- They attached the Visigoths in the 4th century.

12.Basileus- He is the emperor. He had great power. He commanded the army and goverment, and he was also religious leader.

13.Bizantine Orthodox Chuch-It's a religion like the Catholic but of the Eastern Europe.

14.East-West Schism-It's a union of the Roman Catholic Church and the Byzantine Ortodox Church.

15.Icons-They are holy images that they were in the churchs.

16.Treaty of Verdum-It confirmed the division of the Carolingian Empire.

17.Missi dominici- also called messengers, they check on local affairs, and ensure that the system of goverment was functioning properly.

18.Counties-they also called administrative units. Charlemagne divided his empirre into them.

jueves, 5 de noviembre de 2009

Proceso de produccion del trigo



1. First, the peasants planted the wheat in the soil.

2. Then, when several months pass, the peasants collect the wheat.

3.Then, they burn the wheat in the mills, to separate the bad things of the wheat and the good things.

4.Finally they do the bread in the ovens. With the sape they want.