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Medieval university

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{{Middle Ages Tall}} :''This article is about European institutions. For Asian institutions see Medieval university (Asia)'' The first Europe European medieval institutions generally considered to be universities were established in Italy, France and England in the late 11th and the 12th Century for the study of Liberal arts arts, law, medicine, and theology. These universities evolved from much older schools and monasteries, and it is difficult to define the first date at which they became true universities for teaching higher education, although the lists of studium generale studia generali for higher education in Europe held by the Roman Curia Vatican are a useful guide. A different case is the university of Constantinople, which was founded in the 9th century as a secular institute of higher learning, to support the state administration.

Origins
Image:Laurentius de Voltolina 001.jpg 270px|left|thumb|Representation of a university class, (1350s). With the increasing professionalization of society during the 12th century 12th and 13th century 13th centuries, a similar demand grew for professional clergy. Prior to the 12th century, the intellectual life of Europe had been relegated to monastery monasteries, which were mostly concerned with the study of the liturgy and prayer; very few monasteries could boast true intellectuals. Following the Gregorian Reform's emphasis on canon law and the study of the sacraments, bishops formed cathedral schools to train the clergy in canon law, but also in the more secular aspects of church administration, including logic and disputation for use in preaching and theological discussion, and accounting to more effectively control finances. Learning became essential to advancing in the ecclesiastical hierarchy, and teachers attracted prestige as well. However, demand quickly outstripped the capacity of cathedral schools, which were essentially run by one teacher. On top of that, tensions rose between the students of cathedral schools and burghers in smaller towns. So, cathedral schools migrated to large cities, like Paris and Bologna. The predecessor of the modern university found its roots in Paris, especially under the guidance of Peter Abelard, who wrote ''Sic et Non'' (Latin "yes and no"), which collected texts for university study. Dissatisfied with tensions between burghers and students and the censorship of leading intellectuals by the Church, Abelard and others formed the ''Universitas'', modeled on the medieval guild, a large-scale, self-regulating, permanent institution of higher education. By the 13th century, almost half of the highest offices in the Church were occupied by degreed masters (abbots, archbishops, cardinal (Catholicism) cardinals), and over one-third of the second-highest offices were occupied by masters. In addition, some of the greatest theologians of the High Middle Ages, Thomas Aquinas and Robert Grosseteste, were products of the medieval university. The development of the medieval university coincided with the widespread reintroduction of Aristotle from Byzantine Empire Byzantine and Jewish scholars and the decline in popularity of Platonism and Neoplatonism in favor of Aristotelian thought.

Characteristics
Image:medieval-university.jpg frame|right|Class in a medieval university, [[illuminated manuscript from the 13th century.]] Initially medieval universities did not have a campus. Classes were taught wherever space was available such as churches and homes, a university was not a physical space but a collection of individuals banded together as a ''universitas'' (the corporation). Soon, however, some universities (such as University of Cambridge Cambridge) began to buy or rent rooms specifically for the purposes of teaching. Universities were generally structured along three types, depending on who paid the teachers. The first type was in University of Bologna Bologna, where students hired and paid for the teachers. The second type was in University of Paris Paris, where teachers were paid by the church. Oxford and Cambridge were predominantly supported by the crown and the state, a fact which helped them survive the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538 and the subsequent removal of all the principal Catholic institutions in England. These structural differences created other characteristics. At the Bologna university the students ran everything -- a fact that often put teachers under great pressure and disadvantage. In Paris, teachers ran the school; thus Paris became the premiere spot for teachers from all over Europe. In Paris the main subject matter was theology, for as the Church paid the salary, it set the topic. In Bologna, where students chose more secular studies, the main subject was law. University studies took six years for a Bachelor degree and up to 12 additional years for a master's degree and doctorate. The first six years taught the faculty of the arts, which was the study of the seven liberal arts: arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music theory, grammar, logic and rhetoric. The primary emphasis was on logic because of its close ties to scholasticism, which was a popular method of teaching. Once a Bachelor of Arts had been obtained, the student would choose one of three faculties -- law, medicine, or theology -- in which to pursue the master's degree and doctorate degree. Theology was the most prestigious area of study, and the most difficult. Courses were offered according to books, not by subject or theme. For example a course might be on a book by Aristotle, or a book from the Bible. Courses were not elective, the course offerings were set, and everyone had to take the same courses. There were, however, occasional choices as to which teacher to use. Students entered the University at 14 to 15 years of age. Classes usually started at 5am or 6am. Students were afforded the legal protection of the clergy. In this way no one was allowed to physically harm them; they could only be tried for crimes in a church court, and were thus immune from any corporal punishment. This gave students free rein in urban environments to break secular laws with impunity, a fact which produced many abuses: theft, rape and murder were not uncommon among students who did not face serious consequences. This led to uneasy tensions with secular authorities. Students would sometimes "strike" by leaving a city and not returning for years. This happened at the University of Paris strike of 1229 after a riot (started by the students) left a number of students dead; the University went on strike and did not return for 2 years. As the students had a legal status of clerics, which, according to the Canon Law, could not be gained by women, women were not admitted into universities. A popular textbook for university study was called the ''Sentences'' (''Quattuor libri sententiarum'') of Peter Lombard; theology students and masters were required to write extensive commentaries on this text as part of their curriculum. Much of medieval thought in philosophy and theology can be found in scholastic textual commentary because scholasticism was such a popular method of teaching. Most University of international excellence in Europe were registered by the Holy Roman Empire as a Studium generale Studia Generale. Members of these institutions were encouraged to disseminate their knowledge across Europe, often giving lecture courses at a different Studium generale Studium Generale.

List of medieval universities
Image:Map_of_Medieval_Universities.JPG right|thumb|350px|''Map of Medieval Universities'' List of medieval universities (founded before 1600), in order of foundation. Note that many of these institutions were schools prior to the university foundation date. *University of Constantinople, often referred to as University of the palace hall of Magnavra Byzantine Empire – recognised as University 849 *University of Bologna, Italy – teaching from 10th Century recognised as University 1088 *University of Oxford, England – teaching from 1096 recognised as University 1117 *University of Paris, France – recognised as University 1150 *University of Modena University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy – recognised as University 1175 *University of Vicenza, Italy – recognised as University 1204 *University of Cambridge, England – teaching from 12th Century, recognised as University 1209 *University of Palencia, Spain – recognised as University 1212 *University of Arezzo, Italy – recognised as University 1215 *University of Salamanca, Spain – recognised as University 1218 *University of Padua, Italy – recognised as University 1222 *University of Naples, Italy – recognised as University 1224 by Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor *University of Toulouse, France – recognised as University 1229 *University of Siena, Italy – recognised as University 1240 *University of Valencia, Spain – recognised as University 1245 *University of Piacenza, Italy – recognised as University 1248 *University of Valladolid, Spain – recognised as University 1250 *University of Seville, Spain – recognised as University 1254 *University of Paris Sorbonne, France (at the University of Paris) – recognised as University 1257 *University of Northampton (thirteenth century) University of Northampton, England – recognised as University 1261 – disbanded 1264 *University of Montpellier, France – recognised as University 1289 *University of Coimbra, Portugal – recognised as University 1290 (in Lisbon) *University of Rome La Sapienza, Italy – recognised as University 1303 *University of Macerata, Italy – recognised as University 1290 *University of Lisbon, Portugal – recognised as University 1290 *University of Lérida – recognised as University 1300 *University of Avignon, France – recognised as University 1303 *University of Orléans, France – recognised as University 1306 *University of Perugia, Italy – recognised as University 1308 *University of Coimbra, Portugal – recognised as University 1308 *University of Treviso, Italy – recognised as University 1318 *University of Cahors – recognised as University 1332 *University of Angers, France – recognised as University 1337 *University of Pisa, Italy – recognised as University 1338 *University of Grenoble – recognised as University 1339 *Charles University of Prague, Czech Republic – recognised as University 1348 *University of Florence, Italy – recognised as University 1349 *University of Perpignan – recognised as University 1350 *Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland – recognised as University 1364 *University of Vienna, Austria – recognised as University 1365 *University of Pécs, Hungary – recognised as University 1367 *University of Erfurt, Germany – recognised as University 1379 *University of Heidelberg, Germany – recognised as University 1385 *University of Cologne, Germany – recognised as University 1388 *University of Ferrara, Italy – recognised as University 1391 by papal bull *University of Zadar, Croatia – recognised as University 1396 *University of Fermo, Italy – recognised as University 1398 by papal bull *University of Würzburg, Germany – recognised as University 1402 by papal bull *University of Leipzig, Germany – recognised as University 1409 *University of St Andrews, Scotland – recognised as University 1413 by papal bull *University of Rostock, Germany – recognised as University 1419 *University of Leuven, Belgium – recognised as University 1425 *University of Barcelona, Spain – recognised as University 1450 *University of Glasgow, Scotland – recognised as University 1451 by papal bull *Istanbul University, Turkey – recognised as University 1453 *Ernst Moritz Arndt University of Greifswald University of Greifswald, Germany – recognised as University 1456 *University of Basel, Switzerland – recognised as University 1460 *University of Bratislava (Universitas Istropolitana), Slovakia – recognised as University 1465 *University of Ingolstadt, Germany – recognised as University 1472 *University of Tubingen (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen), Germany – recognised as University 1476 *Uppsala University University of Uppsala, Sweden – recognised as University 1477 *University of Copenhagen, Denmark – recognised as University 1479 *University of Aberdeen, Scotland – recognised as University 1494 *University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain – recognised as University 1495 *University of Alcalà de Henares, Spain – recognised as University 1499 *University of Wittenberg, Germany – recognised as University 1502 *University of Seville, Spain – recognised as University 1505 by papal bull - 1551 by city council *Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic – recognised as University 1538 *National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico – recognised as University 1551 *National University of San Marcos, Peru – recognised as University 1551 *Université de Genève, Switzerland – recognised as University 1559 *University of Leiden, Netherlands – recognised as University 1575 *Vilnius University University of Vilnius, Lithuania -- recognised as University 1579 *University of Zaragoza, Spain – Teaching started at School of Zaragoza in Century VII, recognised as University 1583 - *University of Edinburgh, Scotland – recognised as University 1583 *University of Dublin, Ireland – recognised as University 1592 *University of San Carlos, Philippines – recognised as University 1595 See also: List of oldest universities in continuous operation

References
*Cobban, Alan B. ''English University Life in the Middle Ages'' Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1999. ISBN 0814208266 *Ferruolo, Stephen ''The Origins of the University: The Schools of Paris and their Critics, 1100-1215'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0804712662 *Haskins, Charles Homer. ''The Rise of Universities.'' Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1972. ISBN 0879683791 *Rait, Robert S. ''Life in the Medieval University.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1931. ISBN 0527736503 *Seybolt, Robert Francis, trans. ''The Manuale Scholarium: An Original Account of Life in the Mediaeval University.'' Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1921. *Thorndyke, Lynn, trans. and ed. ''University Records and Life in the Middle Ages'' New York: Columbia University Press, 1975. ISBN 039309216X

See also
* Renaissance of the 12th century * Studium Generale * Ancient universities of Scotland * Town and gown * Medieval university (Asia)

External links

- The Educational Legacy of Medieval and Renaissance Traditions.
- From Manuscript to Print: Evolution of the Medieval Book.
- Life of the Students at Paris.
- The Heritage of University Planning: Medieval Colleges: General Organization.
- Medieval Universities.
- Medieval History: A Medieval Atlas
- A Brief History: The Medieval University.
- Discussion Document: Is University Life Any Different Today than it was Yesterday?
- Medieval Science, the Church and Universities Category:Middle Ages Category:History of education Category:Academia Category:school types gd:Oilthighean Aosmhòr nl:Lijst van middeleeuwse universiteiten pt:Universidade medieval fi:Keskiajan yliopisto

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