10D – The Church’s Story: The Middle Ages

• A good starting page for the Middles Ages.  Ducksters would be aimed at Levels 4 and 5 (Yrs 7-10).  It includes the Catholic Church, the crusades and monasteries.
• The History for Kids website is another good site for anything you want to know on the Middle Ages. This includes the crusades, daily life, key people and warfare.
• Mr Donn’s site has a lot of links to other relevant material on the Middle Ages, including videos and animations.  This is divided into Daily Life, the Power of the Secular Leaders and the Power of the Catholic Church.
• Information and quizzes can be found on the BBC website but you won’t be able to access the videos.  This includes the crusades, daily life and the Islamic world.
• The History Channel website has information and short video clips on a number of key medieval topics.  This site includes Charlemagne, the crusades and the Knights Templar.
• Medieval Europe: Crash Course European history #1 (14 mins)

• Activities and things to watch about monasteries on this site.  It is aimed at younger children but it is fun and informative.
• This clip gives a 2 minute summary of Monastic Life
• A 20 minute clip on the life of monks.
• Dark Ages History Minute: Monks
• Making History – Medieval monastic clergy (5.49 mins)
• A short page on Medieval nuns.
• Five options for the Religious Life for medieval women  (extra for experts!)
• Abbesses

Pilgrimages are journeys to sacred places.  The aim is to grow spiritually by renewing prayer life and working hard to live as Jesus taught during the hardships of the journey.

• Retracing a medieval pilgrimage (4.15 mins)
• A Modern re-enactment of a Medieval pilgrimage in Sweden (33 mins)
• Saints and travellers: Medieval Pilgrim badges
• An hour long documentary with Simon Reeve looking at Christian Pilgrimage: Canterbury (Part of a series)
• A medieval pilgrim song

Between 1095 and 1291 waves of armies of Christian crusaders left western Europe and travelled eastward to Jerusalem to free the holy land from the forces of Islam that they believed were opposed to the interests of the Church and Western  European Society.  While most Crusaders believed they were defending their faith or participated as an act of penitence and pilgrimage, there were some who had less noble reasons, such as gaining wealth and power.  These Crusades were to have wide-ranging effects on Christianity, Europe and the Middle East right down to our current times.

• The Crusades – Pilgrimage or Holy War? Crash Course (11.32 mins)
• The First Crusade: the people’s crusade Part 1 (8.12 mins)
• The First Crusade: Peter the Hermit Part 2 (8.51 mins)
• The First Crusade: A good crusade? Part 3 (9.31) There are three more episodes of this series form Extra credits plus a myth de-bunker episode if you wish to follow the story to the end.

Devotion to Mary, the Mother of Jesus was very important in Medieval period.

• This short clip shows a Chapel to Mary (Lady Chapel) of one of England’s great Medieval cathedrals, Ely.  Unfortunately, it was almost completely destroyed during the Reformation, but enough remains to show how important Mary was for medieval worshippers.

• Crash Course History of Science: Cathedrals and Universities #11

• Te Reo Māori Quizlet for The Middle Ages
• English Vocab Quizlet for The Middle Ages