Early European History Part 99

[27] From the old German _hansa_, a "confederacy."

[28] See page 526.

[29] See page 640.

[30] In 1831 A.D. the two provinces of East Flanders and West Flanders became part of the modern kingdom of Belgium.

CHAPTER XXIV

MEDIEVAL CIVILIZATION [1]

200. FORMATION OF NATIONAL LANGUAGES

THE 12TH AND 13TH CENTURIES

The twelfth and thirteenth centuries, which in western Europe saw the rise of national states out of the chaos of feudalism and the development of cities, may be regarded as the central period of the Middle Ages. During this time there flourished a civilization which is properly described as "medieval," to distinguish it from cla.s.sical civilization on the one side and modern civilization on the other side. The various European languages then began to a.s.sume something like their present form. A large body of literature, in both poetry and prose, appeared. Architecture revived, and flowered in majestic cathedrals. Education also revived, especially in the universities with their thousands of students. These and other aspects of medieval life will now engage our attention.

LATIN AS AN INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGE

Throughout the Middle Ages Latin continued to be an international language. The Roman Church used it for papal bulls and other doc.u.ments.

Prayers were recited, hymns were sung, and sometimes sermons were preached in Latin. It was also the language of men of culture everywhere in western Christendom. University professors lectured in Latin, students spoke Latin, lawyers addressed judges in Latin, and the merchants in different countries wrote Latin letters to one another. All learned books were composed in Latin until the close of the sixteenth century. This practice has not yet been entirely abandoned by European scholars.

THE ROMANCE LANGUAGES

Each European country during the Middle Ages had also its own national tongue. The so-called Romance languages, [2] including modern French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Rumanian, were derived from the Latin spoken by the Romanized inhabitants of the lands now known as France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Rumania. Their colloquial Latin naturally lacked the elegance of the literary Latin used by Caesar, Cicero, Vergil, and other cla.s.sical authors. The difference between the written and spoken forms of the language became more marked from the fifth century onward, in consequence of the barbarian invasions, which brought about the decline of learning. Gradually in each country new and vigorous tongues arose, related to, yet different from, the old cla.s.sical Latin in p.r.o.nunciation, grammar, and vocabulary.

FRENCH

The indebtedness of the Romance languages to Latin is well ill.u.s.trated by the case of French. It contains less than a thousand words introduced by the German invaders of Gaul. Even fewer in number are the words of Celtic origin. Nearly all the rest are derived from Latin.

DEVELOPMENT OF FRENCH

The popular Latin of the Gallo-Romans gave rise to two quite independent languages in medieval France. The first was used in the southern part of the country; it was called Provencal (from Provence). The second was spoken in the north, particularly in the region about Paris. The unification of the French kingdom under Hugh Capet and his successors gradually extended the speech of northern France over the entire country.

Even to-day, however, one may hear in the south of France the soft and harmonious Provencal.

THE TEUTONIC LANGUAGES

The barbarians who poured from the wilds of central Europe into the Roman world brought their languages with them. But the speech of the Goths, Vandals, Burgundians, and Lombards disappeared, while that of the Franks in Gaul, after their conversion to Christianity, gradually gave way to the popular Latin of their subjects. The Teutonic peoples who remained outside what had been the limits of the Roman world continued to use their native tongues during the Middle Ages. From them have come modern German, Dutch, Flemish, [3] and the various Scandinavian languages (Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, and Icelandic [4]). In their earliest known forms all these languages show unmistakable traces of a common origin.

ANGLO-SAXON

Britain was the only Roman province in the west of Europe where a Teutonic language took root and maintained itself. Here the rough, guttural speech of the Anglo-Saxons so completely drove out the popular Latin that only six words were left behind by the Romans, when they abandoned the island early in the fifth century. More Celtic words remained, words like _cradle, crock, mop_, and _pillow_, which were names of household objects, and the names of rivers, mountains, and lakes, which were not easily changed by the invaders. [5] But with such slight exceptions Anglo-Saxon was thoroughly Teutonic in vocabulary, as well as in grammar.

CHANGES IN ANGLO-SAXON

In course of time Anglo-Saxon underwent various changes. Christian missionaries, from the seventh century onward, introduced many new Latin terms for church offices, services, and observances. The Danes, besides contributing some place-names, gave us that most useful word _are_, and also the habit of using _to_ before an infinitive. The coming of the Normans deeply affected Anglo-Saxon. Norman-French influence helped to make the language simpler, by ridding it of the c.u.mbersome declensions and conjugations which it had in common with all Teutonic tongues. Many new Norman-French words also crept in, as the hostility of the English people toward their conquerors disappeared.

DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH

By the middle of the thirteenth century Anglo-Saxon, or English, as it may now be called, had taken on a somewhat familiar appearance, as in these opening words of the Lord's Prayer: "Fadir ur, that es in heven, Halud thi nam to nevene, Thou do as thi rich rike, Thi will on erd be wrought, eek as it is wrought in heven ay." In the poems of Geoffrey Chaucer (about 1340-1400 A.D.), especially in his _Canterbury Tales_, English wears quite a modern aspect, though the reader is often troubled by the old spelling and by certain words not now in use. The changes in the grammar of English have been so extremely small since 1485 A..D.--the beginning of the reign of Henry VII [6]--that any Englishman of ordinary education can read without difficulty a book written more than four hundred years ago.

[Ill.u.s.tration: GEOFFREY CHAUCER From an old ma.n.u.script in the British Museum, London. The only existing portrait of Chaucer.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: ILLUMINATED Ma.n.u.sCRIPT From an old ma.n.u.script now in the possession of the British Museum. The shrine of Thomas Becket, archbishop of Canterbury, was a celebrated resort for (Proofer's Note: Remainder of text unavailable)]

ENGLISH AS A WORLD-LANGUAGE

What in medieval times was the speech of a few millions of Englishmen on a single small island is now spoken by at least one hundred and fifty millions of people all over the world. English is well fitted for the role of a universal language, because of its absence of inflections and its simple sentence-order. The great number of one-syllabled words in the language also makes for ease in understanding it. Furthermore, English has been, and still is, extremely hospitable to new words, so that its vocabulary has grown very fast by the adoption of terms from Latin, French, and other languages. These have immensely increased the expressiveness of English, while giving it a position midway between the very different Romance and Teutonic languages.

201. DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL LITERATURES

LATIN HYMNS

Medieval literature, though inferior in quality to that of Greece and Rome, nevertheless includes many notable productions. In the twelfth and the thirteenth centuries Latin hymns reached their perfection. The sublime _Dies Irae_ ("Day of Wrath") presents a picture of the final judgment of the wicked. The pathetic _Stabat Mater_, which describes the sorrows of Mary at the foot of the Cross, has been often translated and set to music.

These two works were written by a companion and biographer of St. Francis of a.s.sisi. St. Bernard's _Jesu Dulcis Memoria_ ("Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee") forms part of a beautiful hymn nearly two hundred lines in length. Part of another hymn, composed by a monk of Cluny, has been rendered into English as "Jerusalem the Golden." Latin hymns made use of rhyme, then something of a novelty, and thus helped to popularize this poetic device.

LATIN STUDENTS' SONGS

Very unlike the hymns in character were the Latin songs composed by students who went from one university to another in search of knowledge and adventure. Far from home, careless and pleasure-seeking, light of purse and light of heart the wandering scholars of the Middle Ages frequented taverns, as well as lecture rooms, and knew the wine-bowl even better than books. Their songs of love, of dancing, drinking, and gaming, reflect the jovial side of medieval life.

SONGS OF THE TROUBADOURS

Still another glimpse of gay society is afforded by the songs of the troubadours. These professional poets flourished in the south of France, but many of them traveled from court to court in other countries. Their verses, composed in the Provencal language, were always sung to the accompaniment of some musical instrument, generally the lute. Romantic love and deeds of chivalry were the two themes which most inspired the troubadours. They, too, took up the use of rhyme, using it so skillfully as to become the teachers of Europe in lyric poetry.

THE FRENCH EPIC

If southern France was the native home of the lyric, northern France gave birth to epic or narrative verse. Here arose many poems, describing the exploits of mythical heroes or historic kings. For a long time the poems remained unwritten and were recited by minstrels, who did not hesitate to modify and enlarge them at will. It was not until late in the eleventh century that any epics were written down. They enjoyed high esteem in aristocratic circles and penetrated all countries where feudalism prevailed.

THE CHARLEMAGNE LEGEND

Many of the French epics centered about the commanding personality of Charlemagne. After his death he became a figure of legend. He was said to have reigned one hundred and twenty-five years, to have made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and to have risen from the dead to lead the First Crusade.

Angels inspired his actions. His sword contained the point of the lance which pierced the Savior's side. His standard was the banner of St. Peter.

Though history shows that Charlemagne had little contact with the Moslems, in the popular mind he stood forth as the great champion of Christianity against Islam.

SONG OF ROLAND

The oldest, and at the same time the finest, epic connected with Charlemagne is the Song of Roland. [7] The poem centers around Roland, one of the twelve peers of France. When leading the rearguard of Charlemagne's army out of Spain, Roland is suddenly attacked by the treacherous Moors.

He slays the enemy in heaps with his good sword, Durendal, and only after nearly all the Franks have perished sounds his magic horn to summon aid.

Charlemagne, fifteen leagues distant, hears its notes and returns quickly.

But before help arrives, Roland has fallen. He dies on the field of battle, with his face to the foe, and a prayer on his lips that "sweet France" may never be dishonored. This stirring poem appealed strongly to the martial Normans. A medieval chronicler relates that just before the battle of Hastings a Norman minstrel rode out between the lines, tossing his sword in air and catching it again, as he chanted the song "of Roland and of Charlemagne, of Oliver and many a brave va.s.sal who lost his life at Roncesvalles."

[Ill.u.s.tration: ROLAND AT RONCESVALLES From a thirteenth-century window of stained gla.s.s in Chartres Cathedral.

At the right, Roland sounding his horn; at the left Roland endeavoring to break his sword Durendal.]