Rise of States & Systems of Rule
Aligned to C3.D2.Civ.1 — C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.
What this lesson teaches
Medieval and early-modern societies organized governing power in different ways. Feudal monarchies concentrated authority in a king supported by nobles; independent city-states governed themselves and their surrounding land; and large empires ruled many peoples under a single central authority.
Worked example
The Italian city-state of Venice governed itself as a republic led by an elected doge, unlike the kingdom of France, where a hereditary king held supreme authority.
Practice questions
- Name three ways of organizing governing power in this era (monarchy, city-state, empire).
- Explain one strength and one weakness of ruling through a feudal monarchy.
- Compare how power was distributed in a city-state versus in a large empire.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
El surgimiento de los Estados y los sistemas de gobierno
Las sociedades medievales y del inicio de la época moderna organizaron el poder de gobernar de distintas maneras. Las monarquías feudales concentraban la autoridad en un rey apoyado por nobles; las ciudades-estado independientes se gobernaban a sí mismas y a las tierras vecinas; y los grandes imperios gobernaban a muchos pueblos bajo una sola autoridad central.
Ejemplo: La ciudad-estado italiana de Venecia se gobernaba como una república dirigida por un dux electo, a diferencia del reino de Francia, donde un rey hereditario tenía la autoridad suprema.
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