Lit Only by Fire

A World Lit Only By Fire Summer Reading Assignment Section 1: The Medieval Mind 1. Whose country was described as “the back of a horse?” 2. Who declared he was “above grammar?” 3. Who invaded Rome in A.D. 410? 4. Who was the last Roman emperor of the west? 5. What were the serfs’ basic agricultural tools? 6. Why did outlaws flourish in the Hercynian Forest? 7. What replaced Rome as the imperial fixer of European frontiers? 8. What is the Nicene Creed? 9. What was the first great work to shape and define the medieval mind? 10. What did Canossa symbolize? 11. When did the designation of saints emerge? 12. Why did Leo III become a very unpopular emperor? 13. From where did the name exchequer emerge? 14. What was the lowest title of the aristocratic order? 15. Why were proclamations from the Holy See called bulls? 16. Why was the papacy moved to Avignon in 1305? 17. Why do we know nothing of the architects and builders of Chartres or Canterbury? 18. What was the Great Schism? 19. When did the Renaissance begin?

Section 2: The Shattering 1. Who was the next explorer to successfully navigate the Straits of Magellan after Magellan? 2. What was the policy of Spain toward Jews beginning in 1492? 3. What was the most celebrated crime of the Middle Ages? 4. According to Manchester, at any given moment the most dangerous enemy in Europe was who? 5. Who said “God has given us the papacy. Let us enjoy it?” 6. What scriptural precedent did the Church use to justify the sale of indulgences? 7. When did the Church establish rules of celibacy for the clergy? 8. Who did Girolamo Savonarola declare “is no longer a Christian?” 9. Who conspired to murder Lorenzo de Medici? 10. What were the three largest European cities in 1500? 11. Why were there no correctional facilities in the sixteenth century? 12. Who are the Fuggers? 13. How large was the average man of the time?

14. What was the life expectancy for the peasants of Europe in the 16th century? 15. What were the required... [continues]

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