History of the United States I / Unit 1 USH1 0019 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Church's Power
Captions available
The idea
The Great Schism of ten fifty-four split the Church, the western branch under the Pope becoming the Roman Catholic Church and continuing in Latin.
In practice
Excommunication, which sent souls to hell forever, and which monarchs feared to challenge.
Where people slip
Mostly illiterate serfs depended on literate priests to read and interpret scripture, so the parish priest held enormous power.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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