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CHARLES COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Medieval Life and Catapult Activities Science and Social Studies

Week 1 of 4 (July 7 - July 10)

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Student: ____________________________________ School: __________________________

Dear Families,

This has been an unusual and, in many cases, a very trying time for students and adults alike. We have spent this spring and early summer learning a new normal, and working together to make our society safer and more caring for all citizens. We appreciate and commend all members of our CCPS family for helping us to stay safe, to be strong, and to connect as a community.

Many families (students included) look for educational activities to keep connected to learning over the summer. Included in this publication is an engaging series of activities focused on the history and science of catapults. These are completely optional. However, we believe families will find these fun as well as a wonderful “workout” for the mind.

The inter-disciplinary activities in this packet are meant to be completed over the course of four consecutive days, with each day consisting of approximately one-hour of activities. Below is an outline of the suggested activities.

Medieval Life and

Catapult Activities

COMPONENT TOPICS AND ACTIVITIES

PART 1 SOCIAL STUDIES

A History of Medieval Life and the Manor System A Review of Medieval Castles, Knighthood, and Chivalry

PART 2 SCIENCE

A Study of Energy, Force, and Motion An Analysis of Articles on Potential and Kinetic Energy

PART 3 INTERDISCIPLINARY

Rubber Band Shoot Investigation and Catapult Design Challenge

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In this packet, you will learn about the way of life of people during the Middle Ages in Europe. Also, you will analyze the social, economic, political, and military aspects of medieval life. You will finish this week of activities by constructing your own catapult. In today’s Europe, castles can be seen rising above the landscape of many towns and villages. Some of these castles have been preserved as museums and offer guided tours. Others have crumbled into disrepair. These castles provide a glimpse into a way of life that dominated Europe during the Middle Ages. Indeed, during this period, people often relied on castles for protection. Because of this, people constructed hundreds of castles throughout Europe. Study the photographs on this page of medieval castles.

Bodiam Castle, at Sussex, England Mamure Castle, at Anamur, Turkey Questions to Consider:

1. Why do you think people built castles during the Middle Ages?

2. Who do you think lived inside castles?

3. What do you think the land around castles was used for?

4. Why do you think people stopped building castles?

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A New System What political system arose in Europe during the Middle Ages?

Soon after the death of Charlemagne in 814, a political and military system called feudalism developed. Within this system, lords owned huge amounts of land. A lord could be any nobleman, member of a high-ranking class, or church official who owned a fief and allowed a person to use part of it, usually for agriculture, in return for services. Therefore, a lord could be a king, a prince, a knight, or a clergyman. Individuals who agreed to use a portion of a lord’s land were known as vassals. Ownership of the land remained with the lord, but he allowed the vassal to tax the peasants on the land and keep the proceeds. Also, the vassals received a portion of the crops that these peasants produced. In return, the vassal promised to be loyal to and fight for his lord. Because of this, vassals often kept an army composed of professional soldiers called knights. To ensure a knight’s loyalty, a vassal would sometimes grant part of his fief to his knights. By doing this, the vassal would become the lord of his knights, who would become his vassals. Indeed, a nobleman could be both a lord and a vassal. He could be a lord by granting land to knights, clergy, and other nobles. However, he could also be a vassal to a more powerful lord who had granted land to him. Lords often made alliances with other lords to increase their power and their land. The more vassals a lord had, the more dominant the lord would become. However, sometimes lords and vassals often fought each other over land or other matters. Some of these disputes were settled in the lord’s court. In medieval England, some courts used a judicial system in which vassals, called peers, would judge a vassal suspected of wrongdoing. Over time, this practice became a key feature of English law, and, eventually, the laws of the United States of America.

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Manorialism What was manorialism?

Within the fiefs of medieval Europe, an economic system called manorialism developed. In this system, the central focus of each fief was the lord’s manor house. Some lords developed the manor house into a castle, which was often surrounded by thick stone walls for protection. Castles included living space for the lord and his family, servants, and soldiers. Many castles also included kitchens and a chapel. The people living on these estates formed a self-sufficient community. The land surrounding the castle was used for farm buildings, peasant houses, a grain mill, orchards, and gardens. The farmland extended beyond this. The peasants did most of the work that was needed on the manor including growing food, building shelters, and making clothes. In return for their work, the lord provided protection for the peasants by maintaining an army. If the fief was attacked, the peasants were allowed to enter the castle. Many peasants who worked on manors were serfs. A serf was a person who was allowed to have a house and a plot of land in return for paying rent to his or her lord. This rent could be a payment in the form of crops, such as wheat, or a certain number of workdays. During workdays, serfs farmed their lord’s land instead of their own. Serfs were not slaves, because they could not be bought or sold. However, serfs did not have the freedom to leave the manor. So in this way, they were bound to their lord’s estate. Manorialism impacted the environmental development of medieval Europe. As people clustered around a lord's manor, they set up common areas, residential sectors, and farmlands. Over time, this led to the development of villages, rather than single-family homesteads. The population also increased as a result of close contact between many different families and the need to produce more children to work the land. On a manor, work was organized to support large-scale farming. Lords and overseers controlled and managed resources, like water and access to mills for grinding grain. Economically, manorialism supported the aristocracy. This system kept peasants and serfs living in poor conditions. While this system did not always benefit the peasants, it did improve overall crop yield and provide food for growing populations. The eventual development of a money-based economy replaced the manorial system of living on land in exchange for performing services.

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The manor was the lord’s estate. A manor system was the basic economic arrangement. It rested on a set of rights and obligations between a lord and his serfs. A manor typically covered only a few square miles of land, and 15-30 families lived in the village on a manor. Fields, pastures, and woodlands surrounded the village. It was a self-sufficient community because they were able to raise or produce nearly everything that they and their lorded needed for daily life. Instructions: Diagram your own medieval manor in the space below. Please add in your own individuality to your manor. At the bottom of your manor, write 3-4 sentences that explain how your manor allowed the people living on it to be self-sufficient. Your manor must include the following: 1. Manor House: The house of the lord and his family and their servants. 2. Village Church: Site of both religious services and public meetings. 3. Peasant cottages: Where the peasants lived. 4. Lord’s Demesne: Fields owned by the lord and worked by the peasants. 5. Workshops: Where tools, clothing, furniture, etc. were made. 6. Mill: Water-powered mill for grinding grain. 7. Common Pasture: Common area for grazing animals. 8. Woodland: Forests provided wood for fuel.

My Medieval Manor

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Castles and Castle Life Why were castles necessary in the medieval period? The manor house was the center of the medieval community. In times of trouble, villagers entered its walls for protection. Its great hall served as the lord’s court. It was also a place for special celebrations and feasts, such as those given and Christmas or after a harvest. Kings and queens, high-ranking nobles, and wealthy lords lived in even grander structures. Castles, or fortified manor houses were built for many purposes. Because of society’s lack of a strong central government, warfare occurred frequently. As a result, nobles built castles for defense against enemies. Castles were one of the most important forms of military technology. With their moats, strong walls, and gates, they were built for security. Another main function of a castle was to serve as a home. Finally, their large size and central locations made castles visual reminders of the social hierarchy and the power of the ruling classes. The earliest medieval castles were built of wood and surrounded by high wooden fences. After about 1100 C.E., most castles were built of stone to resist attacks by more powerful siege weapons. Castles gradually became more elaborate. Many had tall towers for looking out across the land. The main castle building had a variety of rooms, including storerooms, kitchens, a library, a dining hall, sleeping quarters for distinguished guests, and the lord and lady’s quarters. Type of castles throughout history Motte and Bailey Castles Motte and Bailey castles were the earliest form of medieval castles built completely from scratch by the Normans. As their name suggests they had two parts the Motte and the Bailey. The Motte was a large hill made of earth on which was built a wooden keep or lookout. The outer edge was then surrounded with a large wooden fence called a palisade. The Bailey was separated from the Motte by a wooden bridge that could be removed if the Bailey was occupied by enemies. The Bailey was the part of the castle where people lived and animals were kept. A large castle might have more than one Bailey. To give added protection to the castle, both the Motte and Bailey would be surrounded by a ditch, sometimes filled with water. A drawbridge was used for access to the castle. Stone Keep Castle This type of medieval castle soon replaced the Motte and Bailey castles as it offered a better form of defense. A stone keep was the central feature, with thick walls and few windows. Entrance to the keep was by stone steps leading to the first floor. The kitchens were situated on the ground floor while living quarters were on the upper floors. The first keeps were rectangular in shape but later ones were often circular. The Stone Keep would be surrounded by a thick stone wall containing turrets for lookouts. The Bailey was now the area outside the keep but within the outer walls and shelter for animals or craft workshops might be built against the walls. The entire castle might be surrounded by a ditch or moat and entrance to the castle was by drawbridge.

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Concentric Castles The Concentric castle was developed in the 12th and 13th Centuries and offered the best protection against attack. The main feature of the concentric medieval castle is its walls. An inner wall built of thick stone with turrets positioned at intervals is then surrounded by an equally thick but lower stone wall. The walls were built at different levels so that archers on the inner walls could fire over the archers on the outer walls. The space between the two walls was known as the ‘death hole’ for being trapped within the walls would almost certainly result in death for the attacker. The entire castle was then often surrounded with a moat and entry would be across a drawbridge.

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Instructions: Using the space provided below, design and sketch your own castle, using parts of one or all of the types of castles just described (motte and bailey, stone keep, and concentric). You can even develop your own features for your castle, as long as they are realistic. Remember that castles had multiple functions, but the most important function was to provide protection for the people on the manor.

My Castle Diagram

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Medieval Knights How did citizens protect themselves in a medieval castle? Knights were the mounted soldiers of the medieval world. In general, knights had to have a good deal of wealth, since a full suit of armor and a horse cost a small fortune. Knights were vassals of more powerful lords. The path to becoming a knight involved many years of training. A boy started as a page, or servant. At the age of seven, he left home and went to live at the castle with the lord. Here, a page learned to ride a horse and received instruction from the local priest or friar. After about seven years as a page, a young boy became a squire. Squires were responsible for polishing armor and military equipment, caring for horses, and other tasks requested by the knights. Most importantly, squires trained to become warriors. They learned how to use weapons like the sword, the lance, and the mace. They also learned how to wear and use armor for battle. In his early 20’s, if deserving of the honor, a squire became a knight. Being a knight was more than a profession, it was a way of life. Knights lived by a strong code of behavior called chivalry. They were expected to be loyal to the church and their lord, to just and fair, and to protect the helpless. They performed acts of gallantry, or respect paid to women. Jousts and tournaments were a major part of a knight’s life. In a joust, two armed knights on horseback galloped at each other with their lances extended. The idea was to unseat the opponent from his horse. Jousts were held as sporting events, for exercise, or as serious battles between rival knights. These events served as entertainment for people of the Middle Ages. The medieval style of knighthood lasted until about the 17th century, when warfare changed with the growing use of gunpowder and cannons. Knights, who fought one-to-one on horseback, were no longer effective against such weapons. Knights and nobles in the Middle Ages often had a coat of arms. This was a special symbol that represented their family. Having a special symbol or coat of arms is often called "heraldry". Follow the directions on the next page to create your own personal coat of arms.

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Instructions: Create your own personal coat of arms using the diagram below. Sketch or draw a different picture in each of the six boxes of this shield that describes a characteristic of your personality. On the ribbon below the shield, write one to three words (loyalty, humility, courage, etc.) that best describe you and/or your family.

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The Science of Catapults

Read the articles “From Energy to Force to Motion” and “An Exploration of Energy.” Read each of these examples and decide if they are describing potential or kinetic energy. Record the correct term - “P” for potential and a “K” for kinetic next to each example. _____ A skateboard sitting at the top of a hill.

_____ A book before it falls to the ground.

_____ Wind blowing through your hair.

_____ Eating an apple.

_____ A basketball before it is thrown into the hoop.

_____ A diver before he dives off of the diving board.

_____ A bowling ball rolling down the alley.

_____ A child at the top of a slide.

_____ A soccer ball after it is kicked.

_____ Wood burning in a fire pit.

Rubber band Shoot: In the article “An Exploration of Energy,” they discussed elastic potential energy. We are going to test this concept by building and testing an energy transformer. Materials:

1 rubber band

Ruler

Procedure:

Set up a testing area with a table or chair to launch your rubber band. Be

sure you have an open space to do this. You may want to test outside.

PLEASE BE SURE THAT YOUR PARENT IS WATCHING SO NO ONE GETS

HURT WITH A FLYING RUBBER BAND!

Attach the rubber band on the end of the ruler as shown in the picture.

Pull the rubber band back to 5 centimeters.

Line up the end of the ruler with the starting line (edge of the table or

chair) and release the rubber band.

Measure how far the rubber band traveled from the starting line and

record it on the chart.

Repeat this 5 times.

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Repeat the investigation by pulling the rubber band back to 10 cm, 15 cm, and 20 cm.

Calculate the mean for each distance.

You may need to adjust the distance you pull the rubber band back based on the size of the rubber band you are using.

Rubber band Shoot

Potential Energy

Kinetic Energy (in centimeters)

Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Trial 4 Trial 5 Mean

5 cm

10 cm

15 cm

20 cm

Explain what you have learned about potential and kinetic energy. Be sure to use data from your investigation as well as information from the articles to support your answer. __________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________

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