The just war theory is a guideline that has developed over many years about how you can justify a war. This theory has existed since ancient times though it was really developed in the Christian middle ages. St. Thomas Aquinas was one person who really contributed to this theory. He stated that you had to have three guidelines to enter into a war. The first was that you had to have a cause and that you could not declare war just to seize power and wealth. Second on the list was that it had to be declared by the proper authority. The third and final is that you had to have good intentions and want peace as an end result. Over time people have added other reasons to the just war theory such as not attacking civilians, burning property or that you should have a chance at success before you declare war. The church also added certain days of the week or seasons of the year such as lent where there could be no fighting or you would be excommunicated.

Thomas Aquinas also wanted to prove that there was a God not just through the bible but also through reason. Following Aristotle he used the concept of potency and act to prove that there is a God. He used the analogy of the unmoved mover or that of a stick pushing a stone. Your hand holds the stick that pushes the stone but that does not mean that the stick has an independent power to move the stick on its own because your hand is pushing the stick. But even your hand does not have an independent power to push the stick because if you cut off your hand it would not continue to still push the stick. Aquinas’s reasoning is that if you go far back enough in the chain you would have to get to something that is complete actuality and that there would be no potential unactualized. He then says that this must be God and therefore you can prove that there is a God through pure reason without even reading the bible.

In the renaissance of the 12^th century there was more interest in classical literature and the ancient philosophers. More and More works of Cicero and Horace began to be translated from Greek yo Latin or from Arabic to Latin. This would be the last Renaissance where people all over Europe would be able to read the same language, Latin. A particular interest in the ancient Greek philosophers was formed and scholars just referred to Aristotle as, “The philosopher.” This did cause a lull in actual scientific experimentation however because scholars thought so highly of the ancient thinkers. Instead of studying physics you would just read Aristotle, instead of learning about and studying medicine you would just read Hippocrates. But out of this Renaissance you got great thinkers such as Peter Abelard and St. Thomas Aquinas who believed that you didn’t have to believe in just reason or religion but they could work together and combine.

In 1225 Thomas Aquinas was born to a well to do influential family in the castle Roccasecca in Italy. At the age of fourteen he started his studies at the university of Naples. When he was nineteen he resolved to join the Dominicans and lead a life of poverty. According to the story his family imprisoned him in a castle for a year to try and dissuade his decision. After a year they let him go where he traveled to the university of Paris to study where some of his fellow students called him a, “Dumb ox.” His teacher however proclaimed,”You call him the dumb ox, but in his teaching he will one day produce such a bellowing that it will be heard throughout the world.” He went on to write over four million words and write works such as Suma Theologica, Summa Contra Gentiles and Contra Errores Graecorum.

In the Middle ages a new religion developed that was similar to the Manichean religion in Persia. This new religion was the Albigensian religion. Like the Manicheans they believed in two gods, a good god and an evil god. The good god was all things spiritual and the evil god represented materiel things. Because of this the Albigensians shunned all worldly possessions, and the “perfect” among the Albagensians ate no meat or animal products, were celibate and practiced lives of denial.

During the 13^th century a few new mendicant orders were made. Mendicant orders consist of people who have decided to live in poverty and travel and preach the word of God. They also might do good deeds such as building houses for the poor. The Franciscans were established by St. Francis of Assisi. Francis had given up all his worldly possessions in order to travel and preach the word of god only relying on what God might give him day to day. He soon had followers who he called them, “The order of Friars Minor.” The other one that developed during this time was the Dominicans. This order was founded by St. Dominic who wanted also to live a life of poverty and preaching but also to learn and become knowledgeable. St. Francis was of the opinion that you only needed the simple gospel and did not encourage more learning. Whereas the Dominicans became the professors at universities and taught schools.

Around this time in England the barons banded together and forced king John 1 to sign the Magna Carta. This is significant in the history of England because it meant that the king too was subject to the law. He was not allowed to do whatever he wanted and the beginnings of parliament were also made. The king had to have the consent of other people in order to place new taxes or make any major changes to the law. This was the beginning of more liberties in England.

There are many misconceptions regarding the crusades that exist in the mind of the average person. One of them is that the crusades were an unprovoked attack on the Muslims. This is about the opposite of the reality. At the time Muslims had taken over much of Saudi Arabia and had conquered North Africa and Spain and were a constant threat to the Byzantine empire and the rest of Europe. The next one is that the crusaders went on crusade for money. This is ridiculous since most of the crusaders were already wealthy but to go on crusade they would have to get mortgages or go bankrupt because of the enormous expense of going on crusade. One is that modern terrorism is the result of the crusades. The reality is that the crusades were so disastrous and unsuccessful that most Muslims didn’t even remember the crusades. The first Muslim to even mention the crusades in a book wasn’t until 1899. Another one is that the crusaders massacred in Jerusalem until the streets fan ankle deep in blood. This one is partially true since when the crusaders took over Jerusalem in the first crusade there was a big massacre. But this was because Jerusalem had resisted takeover of their city until the end and in medieval warfare it was common to put a city to the sword if they resisted takeover.

The great schism from eastern and western religion happened over a long period of time but finally came to a split in 1054. Over time the customs and they way of doing the religious practices in the east and the west changed. In the west their was strict celibacy whereas in the east you could become a priest even if you were married. These small changes alone were not enough to divide the east and the west but this along with all the other things just made the east side more foreign and odd to the westerners. Constantinople was the capitol of the eastern part of the roman empire that remained unconquered by the barbarians and over time the city of Rome diminished in its power and prestige whereas Constantinople grew more and more powerful. The people in the east wanted Constantinople to replace Rome as the center of the Catholic faith saying that Rome was now just a backwater place compared to the powerful city of Constantinople. They thought that Constantinople was the new Rome and should be more important or at least equal to the city of Rome. All of this and the pope excommunicating a popular priest and misunderstandings lead to the division of religion in the east and the west. Today we still see the Greek Orthodox church from the time of the great schism.

In the 9^th and 10^th centurys in France the power became very de-centralized due to the constant invasions from Vikings and Muslims the local lords took over protesting that towns people. The kings power decreased until in the late 10^th century the Carolingian dynasty died out and Hugh Capet became king only having control over Paris and some of the out skirting towns. But over the course of the Capetian dynasty the kings regained more control of their lands. In 1190 Phillip the second Augustus became king. He took back the French lands that had been ruled over by the king of England. Fiefs( small pieces of land that a lord would give to a vassal for his service) owned by Vassals who had no heir were taken by the king, as well as fiefs controlled by Vassals who ignored their feudal obligations. Under Phillip the second power in France became much more centralized and more like what we think the French monarchy was today.