Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 07.djvu/330

* EUROPE. ■jsr, EUROPE. sumed the Imperial title. See Holt Roman Emfibe. Second only to Germany's influence during these centuries was that of the Scandinavians. In the latter half of the ninth century the Swede Rurik established among the eastern Slavs the kingdom which became Russia, and the Danes conquered nearly half of England. In the tenth century the Norsemen obtained possession of a part of northern France, founding there the Duchy of Normandy. In the first half of the eleventh century the Danish King Cnut reigned for a few years over a northern empire which in- cluded all England and the greater part of Scan- dinavia : and England escaped from the rule of the Danes only to fall, within a score of years, under that of the Normans. In the same century wandering Norman knights gained control of southern Italy and Sicily. (See Nobmans; Va- rangians: Guiscard.) Of all the national States that were in process of formation at the close of the eleventh century, England alone had a strong central government, and this only after the Norman Conquest. France and Germany each had a king, but the king was only the first among his peers : the real power was in the hands of the great nobles and prelates. The same was true in Italy, and in the Christian States that were taking form in northern Spain; and in neither of these countries was there even the nominal unity of a single national kingship. In Spain and in Italy, however, as in France, separate and fairly homogeneous nationalities were developing. Goths ami Franks, Burgundians and Lombards had intermarried with the Roman provincials and had adopted their speech ; and on the basis of the vulgar Latin of each province, new national languages had already been formed. The Scandi- navian conquerors also, who came five centuries later, lost their racial identity and became French in France, Italians ■ in Italy, Slavs in Russia. In all the larger countries of western and southern Europe, however, there were marked local differences in dialect and in cus- toms, and broader differences between the north- ern and southern districts. In general, through- out the Middle Ages, national feeling was weak. The strongest ties were those of locality and of class, and the classes were not national, but Euro- pean. At the close of the eleventh century the peoples of northern and eastern Europe were coming under the influence of Christian civiliza- tion. The (inly important regions not already reclaimed from heathenism at the end of the cen- tury were those south and east, of the Baltic, in- habited by Pomeranians. Prussians. Lithuanians, Livonians, etc. The Scandinavians, the Western Slavs (Poles and Bohemians), and the Hunga- rians received Christianity from the Roman Church, and were thus drawn into the West-Euro- I bodj of nations. The Servians, Bulgarians, and Russians, on the other hand, were ('(inverted li Greek missionaries, and constitute to tlii- day. with the Greeks, a distinct East-European group. Increasing Poweb of the Chttbch. AJterthe disruption "f the Frankisb Empire the unity of We t'Tn Christendom was visibly represented only in tli^ Roman Church. The Church had loyally supported the Empire, and bad striven to avert it- destruction. When tins became inevita- ble, Hi,' Church naturally secured as much as pos- sible "f tin- Imperial inheritance. The unity for which il tood was in no wise confined to mat- ters of faith and worship. The Church repre- sented the learning of the age. and had complete control of education. It was the exclusive recipi- ent and administrator of charitable trusts; it alone cared for the sick and infirm and relieved the poor. It interpreted and enforced by penal- tic-, the rules of morality, and by reason of the intimate connection between morals and law, and between its sacraments and the whole social life, it exercised a somewhat indefinite but very wide jurisdiction over matters which are to-day re- garded as legal. (See Canon Law.) To this jurisdiction every Christian was subject, from the peasant to the King. The Church thus discharged many governmental functions which the medieval State was too crude and too feeble to undertake. It was in reality an ecclesiastical State, and it pos- sessed a governmental organization and a govern- mental personnel far superior to that of any eon- temporary secular State. For the efficient dis- charge of its duties the Church deemed it necessary that its agents, irorn Pope to parish priest, should be independent of the secular powers. It had suc- ceeded in exempting its clergy from secular juris- diction, but it had not obtained full freedom in the selection of its officials. The Pope, as Bishop of Rome, was chosen by the clergy and people of Rome. In the tenth century the Roman nobles controlled the Papal elections, and the character of the popes whom they selected was such as to deprive the office of much of its dignity and au- thority. In the eleventh century the German em- perors brought about a reform ; they secured the deposition of unworthy popes and the election of worthy German successors; but this Imperial interference was a fresh menace to the independ- ence of the Church. The local authorities of the Church, the bishops and the abbots, were like- wise elected by the clergy of the cathedral chap- ters and of the monasteries; but the lands of the Church were fiefs and the prelates feudal vassals, and the secular overlord naturally endeavored, and usually with success, to control the election of these authorities. The attempt of the greatest of the German popes (Gregory VII.) to deprive the feudal superior of all influence upon the choice of bishops and abbots brought the Papacy into conflict with the German emperors. In this conflict the emperors were supported by the Ger- man prelates whom they had practically appoint- ed, while the popes were sUp)x>rted by the secular princes of Germany, who desired to weaken the Imperial power at home. (See Investiture; Gregory VII. ; Henry IV.; Saxony; Papacy.) The terms on which the conflict was ended (Concordat of Worms, 1122) did not fully real- ize the Papal aims. In the eleventh century, however, the basis was laid for the greatly in- creased power which the Church exercised in the thirteenth century. The selection of the head of the Church was intrusted to a body created by the bead of the Church, the College of Cardinals. The interest of the feudal superior in the control of Church elections was diminished by renewed prohibition of the sale of ecclesiastical prefer- ments (simony), and by making it more difficult for those prelates who bought preferment to keep it. Finally. I he renewal and enforcement of the rules prohibiting the marriage of the clergy se cured for the Church a body of servants removed as far as possible from all influences except her own. i See Celibacy.) From the eighth cen- tury, win n the Roman Pontiffs denied the tempo-