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The Clergy represents a body of ordained ministers, bishops, priests and deacons within the catholic church. They operate within the catholic church as a servant to god within individual churches and lead religious ceremonies. During the Middle ages these religious ceremonies were in Latin which made them an exclusive experience with only the educated able to access these religious ceremonies and services making religion a mythic experience in everyday life in Medieval Europe.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/clergy-Christianity

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During the Middle Ages there was approximately 200 popes from the years 500 to 1500 AD. Each Pope held significant power, the following three popes are considered some of the most influential in the spread of the Roman Catholic Church in Western Europe;

Gregory I: Founder of Medieval Papacy, founded the Catholic Church to what we understand it to be in Medieval Europe

Innocent III: Considered the most important pope of Medieval Europe, he reformed and recentered papal power, giving the pope authority over religious and political matters in Christian Europe.

Gregory VII: Was the pope during the investiture Controversy which allowed him to depose a Christian King and gain ultimate authority in Christian Europe over all matters of everyday life.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/St-Gregory-the-Great

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Innocent-III-pope

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Gregory-VII

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Cardianals are part of the college of Cardinals and they elect the pope from their cardinal college. They are bishops of major dioceses within the catholic church. Throughout medieval times they held significant power within the monarchies of their dioceses, acting as political advisors to kings throughout Europe brokering

https://www.britannica.com/topic/cardinal-Roman-Catholicism

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The Crusades were a military expedition that was a response from Christian leaders under the influence of the pope to limit the expansion of the Muslim Faith in Europe.

These crusades were a response to a specific territorial expansion of the Seljuk Turks which limited trade routes of European Christians.

The ambition of the Crusades was to retake control of the Holy Land in the eastern Mediterranean and to recapture formerly Christian territories.

https://www.britannica.com/event/Crusades

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St. Francis of Assisi (born 1181/82, Assisi, duchy of Spoleto [Italy]—died October 3, 1226, Assisi; canonized July 16, 1228; feast day October 4) is the Founder of the Franciscan religious orders that are known for their focus on poverty and charity. The orders had significant influence over how people whether that be Monarchs, Merchants and the poor viewed the church after the corrupt and excessive practices of the Church during the Medieval Period.

Fun Fact: He is the Patron Saint of Ecology and Animals! (He's an Environmental King!)

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Francis-of-Assisi

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Photo of Monte Cassino abbey in Italy

A monastery is a community of religious order members, these monasteries would house members of the clergy, friars and monks who all followed the Catholic faith.

Abbeys were a group of buildings that consisted of a monastery, and a Cathedral or church. They were governed by an Abbot, collected taxes, and held significant portions of land throughout Europe.

These were places of Worship throughout Medieval Europe!

Fun Fact Abbeys and Monastries are still used in Religious Ceremonies today! King Charles III Coronation was held in the oldest Abbey in England - Westminster Abbey

They have a significant influence over the political and social landscape of Cities and Counties in Countries of Western Europe and were the centre of Political life in Countries where monarchies held power!

https://www.britannica.com/topic/monastery

https://www.britannica.com/topic/abbey

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St. Thomas Aquinas (born 1224/25, Roccasecca, near Aquino, Terra di Lavoro, Kingdom of Sicily [Italy]—died March 7, 1274, Fossanova, near Terracina, Latium, Papal States; canonized July 18, 1323; feast day January 28, formerly March 7).

He was part of the Dominican order and was a Theologian within the order, He wrote two works on the reconciliation of faith and reason. He studied at multiple universities across Europe including in Paris!

Fun Fact he is the Patron Saint of Students! He is also one of the Doctors of the Church! An exclusive order of on 37 Saints!

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Thomas-Aquinas

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360° Video: Explore inside Westminster Abbey ahead of King Charles’s coronation - BBC News

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The Crusades - Pilgrimage or Holy War?: Crash Course World History #15

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Teacher Questions to promote deep knowledge and integrated knowledge 

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Teacher Questions to promote deep knowledge and integrated knowledge 

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Q1- What do you believe was the main role of the clergy in medieval society?

Q2- Why do you think the clergy held so much power in medieval society? What was their influence, think culturally, spiritually?

Q3- How do you think their influence spread? In what ways did the Clergy influence everyday society in Medieval Europe?

Q4- What do you think the powers and responsibilities of the pope may have been in Medieval Europe?

Q5- How did the popes' influence impact the role of kings and monarchs throughout Medieval Europe? What was the relationship between the church and kings during this time period?

Q6- In what ways was the pope more than a spiritual leader during the Medieval Period?

Q8- What roles did cardinals play in the church? How could they have influenced the European Royal Courts? - Remember, Cardinals were always members of the royal court; they were generally the representative of Jesus and the pope within royal courts

Q9- How would the loyalty of the cardinals to the pope influence their role and decision in the royal courts? Consider thinking about political or spiritual matters.

Q10- What are the main functions of abbeys and monasteries?

Q11- How did monasteries and abbeys spread and preserve knowledge throughout the Medieval period?

Q12- What economic impact did monasteries and abbeys have to European Medieval Communities?

Q13- What do you think the Crusades were really about?

Q14- What does the church's ability to call for the crusade say about their influence over the royal courts of Medieval Europe?

Q15- How did the works of friars such as St Thomas Aquinas and St Francis Assisi reveal the influence of the work of friars in European Medieval Society?

Q16- How did the mobility of friars lead to an increase in in spreading of the Catholic Church throughout Western Europe during the Medieval Period?