Year 7 - History
The life of Matilda and medieval women
Medieval women: what can we learn from Matilda about women in medieval England?
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit, pupils analyse the historical significance of Empress Matilda's life. They use her life as a lens to consider the lives of noble women in medieval England.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to use your knowledge about Matilda's life to draw wider conclusions about the lives of medieval women.
Key Notes
- Historians can learn about medieval women by studying Matilda's early life.
- Historians can learn about medieval women by studying Matilda's role in the Anarchy.
- Historians can learn about medieval women by studying Matilda's court.
- Historians can learn about medieval women by studying Matilda's later life.
- Matilda's life is one particularly well documented way in which historians can learn about medieval women.
Vocabulary To Learn
- baron: a baron is a great lord or landholder in the kingdom
- Anarchy: the Anarchy was an absence of government in society; political or social disorder
- civil war: a civil war is a war between citizens of the same country
- empire: an empire is a group of countries or provinces ruled from the centre by one person or a group of people
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Surnames have always been used and they generally aren't changed from one generation to the next.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.
Historians can learn about medieval women by studying Matilda's early life. Historians can learn about medieval women by studying Matilda's role in the Anarchy.
2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'baron'
a baron is a great lord or landholder in the kingdom.
3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.
Mistake: Surnames have always been used and they generally aren't changed from one generation to the next. Correction: During the medieval period, people went by their first name and one or more given names. These given names could be nicknames based on their place of origin or occupation or a distinguishing feature. Some people chose their own given names.
More Lessons In This Unit
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