Palazzo Vecchio, where Florence’s medieval government met (Florence, Italy, 1200s AD)
Different kinds of medieval governments
In the Middle Ages, Europe split up into many different states. Each state had its own system of government. Some of these, like Denmark, Spain, France or England, were monarchies, and had kings or caliphs to rule them. Central Italy was ruled by the Pope, when it wasn’t in the Holy Roman Empire.
What’s a monarchy?
Who is the Pope?
Roman government
All our medieval Europe articles
How did they choose rulers?
Most of the time, kings and queens were the children of the last king or queen. But it was also pretty common for the rich men to get together and elect kings and queens, or for generals to fight their way into the position. Popes were also always elected.
Empires and republics
There were also two empires: the Eastern Roman Empire in Eastern Europe and the Holy Roman Empire that ruled most of Germany and Italy. Some parts of northern Italy were independent city-states with a republican government like ancient Rome.
The problem with medieval government
The main problem with all of these governments was that the kings and emperors of the Middle Ages weren’t very powerful. They tried to tell their subjects what to do, but a lot of the time their subjects just said “No” and didn’t pay any attention. The rulers didn’t have enough money to pay soldiers, so they couldn’t make people do what they wanted.
More about feudalism
The western European governments used feudalism to help the king keep control, but often this just caused more problems.
More about republics
What are mercenary soldiers?
In Italian republics like Florence and Genoa, there were a lot of civil wars, when one side wouldn’t accept the decision of the majority vote and they fought each other. Thousands of mercenary soldiers fought in these wars.
Did you find out what you wanted to know about medieval government? Still have questions? Let us know in the comments!
what year was this published and who is it published by
You’ll find citation information just below the end of each article.
Describe in depth the medieval political ideas and medieval society.
Urgently needed
Pretty sure this information is in the article you are reading, though I’d be happy to answer any specific questions you may have after reading it.
Why weren’t the kings and queens powerful? please reply ASAP
They needed bigger armies to make other people do what they wanted. But they couldn’t afford to pay the armies because there wasn’t much trade for them to make money on. Starting up trade again eventually made them rich enough to pay soldiers.
Y is there no details about the states
Click on the links! This is just a general article about government. You’ll find more here: https://quatr.us/medieval-europe-articles-middle-ages
what is government through the medieval times
Isn’t that what this article is about?