Jacob Schulman
AP Euro
September 11, 2006
Ms. Kim
Days 3 & 4: Life in Europe during the High Middle Ages
I. Life In Europe during the High Middle Ages:
A. Christian society is describes as: those who pray (monks), those who fight (nobles), and
those who work (peasants)
1. The relationship among the three orders is seen as beneficial
B. Not reality: Most monks descended from nobles, and were really the same as the peasant
class
C. The use of sociological divisions provides insight into the medieval mind
II. Those Who Work:
A. Peasants: largest (>90%)and economically most productive (“Rural dwellers who possess
the means of agricultural production”)
B. Weren’t really mentioned in records; Honorius wrote that they would be saved because
they lived simply and helped feed everyone else
C. Hard to generalize all peasants into one social class
1. There were many different levels of peasants (poorrich)
2. From 1050-1275: significant amount of social mobility
D. Slavery, Serfdom, and Upward Mobility:
1. Slavery did exist around the year 1200, but it wasn’t very large
a. No specific teachings in the gospels on slavery & St. Paul didn’t condemn it
2. Slaves and Serfs both lacked freedom, and were subject to the power of 1 person
Slaves could be bought and sold; Serfs could not be bought and sold
3. Serfs had to perform labor on the lord’s land (usually 3 days a week)
a. Had to pay to marry; If father died, had to pay inheritance tax
b. Serfs were tied to the land, and serfdom was hereditary
c. Villeins (“inhabitants of small villages”=English Serfs) could be set free:
Can’t seek freedom using their own money
A third party can pay to free the serf (Serf gives money to 3rd party) (Manumission)
Must be peaceful for 1 year and a day and than will be permanently free
4. In 11th and 12th cent’s new land from cleared forests and wastes was available
Increased German peasant migrations
5. 1240: Geoffrey de Montigny made older peasants that had owed servitude to an old
church pay 500 pounds per year over 12 years to help rebuild the church
6. Jean Mouflet of Sens: 1249, made an agreement with the abbot, to allow him to
become a “citizen of Sens”
a. He had a leather shop and by making agreements with lords, he was able to secure
his freedom
7. Peasants started clearing their own land and becoming more productive
Clear 1st piece of landBuy more landMake MoneyPurchase Freedom
D. The Manor:
1. Most peasants lived on manors (Latin- “dwelling”,”residence”)
Basic unit of rural organization and center of rural life
2. Arable land was divided into 2 sections: demesne/home farm- lord; other for peasants
3. Manor had a pasture, some forestland (firewood, ash for candles, feeding animals)
E. Agriculture Methods:
1. “Open-field system”: Arable land was divided into 2 or 3 fields
2 were farmed each year, while 1 was fallow- rotated yearly to not overfarm the land
2. Local needs, fertility of soil, and dietary customs decided what was planted
3. Chicken and sheep manure was used to help farm (Was sometimes given as a gift)
4. 12th Century: iron increasesIron plowshares (part that actually grinds the earth)
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5. Padded horse collar allowed the plow to be pulled easier
Oxen were used on heavy grounds- Midlands
Horses were better on lighter rocky land
6. Horses: pulled carts to market, faster than oxen Opportunities for consumers to buy
increased greatly
7. 9th-13th centuries- Crop amount increased greatly (cereals doubled)
The land needed to have three times its seed for survival (Surplus was sold)
8. Battle Abbey in Sussex, England 1350-1499- largest crop of grain
Attributed to heavy seeding, good rotation, use of manure from the monastery’s sheep
F. Life on the Manor:
1. Most people stayed on the manor their entire life, and took over their parents’ jobs
2. Manor life was dull: people drank for fun (People died “coming from an ale”)
3. 94% of peasant farmers were married- lived in nuclear families with 5 ppl usually
4. Women:
a. worked with men in the vineyards, harvest time, preparing crops for textiles
Shear sheep, pick hops (for beer), tend gardens
b. Women managed the house: including garden (ate mostly vegetables- preserved)
Women also made ale (5% of women died in ale-related accidents)
5. Bread was baked by women, sometimes they made cheese
6. If near a river, fish was consumed and sometimes preserved
7. Mean was usually only eaten on Christian holidays: Christmas, Easter, Pentecost
8. Children helped with household chores (getting eggs, firewood, etc.)
G. Health Care:
1. Medieval people are believed to have been in good shape and healthy
2. Midwives helped women give birth (men weren’t allowed to watch) (pregnancy was
usually fatal)
3. Cesarean sections were performed if the woman died during labor
4. Common day minor diseases were believed to have much more pungent
5. Hospitals were organized for sick people (First in England)
6. Women could only practice obstetrics and matronae- men couldn’t treat women
H. Popular Religion:
1. Christian religion had largest impact on daily lives of ordinary people
- Affected virtually every aspect of everyday life
2. Village church was center of community life- social, political, economic, religious
- Babies were Baptized, people got married, and couples made love in the cemetery
3. Parish priests were responsible for church activities, were usually poor and were taken
care of by their parishioners or lords, they were responsible for the church’s upkeep too
4. People prayed to relics (clothes, bones, saliva, dust from tomb) of local saints
They expects the saints to use their supernatural powers to help them in exchange for
gifts and loyalty (The saint’s relics generally belonged to local churches)
Hagiographies (biographies of saints based on myths/legends) gave special functions
to saints (Elmo gave a sermon in a lightening storn- Sailors; Agatha lost her breast
because she rejected her suitor-Patron Saint of Wet Nurses)
5. Saints were usually chosen by the believers (normal people)
- Roman authorities wanted to try these “saints” to really test if they were
- Connections may have existed between being a saint and your class
Italy/Mediterranean: saints were usually popolani (Non-nobles/Non-Aristocrats)
France/Germany: nobles mostly became saints
6. Center of Christian religious life was mass (Re-enactment of Christ’s sacrifice on cross)
7. Feasts accompanying baptisms, weddings, funerals, etc. were held in the churchyard
8. Rituals used symbolism: Before slicing bread, tapped a cross on it; When a baby was
baptized, salt was put on its tongue- a sign of strength and purity)
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9. Signs and symbols of Christianity were everywhere: calendar was designed around
Christian holidays, Priests wore colored vestments as a sign of changing seasons
10. 12th Century: Sacramental system, expanded on Saint Augustine’s definition- a
Sacrament was an outward and visible sign instituted by Christ to give grace
- Seven sacraments, could only be given by a priest (unless someone was dying)
a. Baptism: rite by which a person enters the Christian community (sprinkling w/ holy
water)
b. Penance (“poena”- Latin “punishment): sins are forgiven by oral confession
c. Eucharist: central ceremony of Christian worship (aka Mass/Lord’s Supper)
d. Confirmation: Christian receives Holy Sprit through laying on bishop’s hand
- Makes the person a full member of the Christian community
e. Marriage: 11th Century- church claims exclusive jurisdiction over marriage
16th Century: church says that for a marriage to be valid, must be blessed by priest
f. Orders: men, through laying and the bishop’s hand, enters service of the people
g. Anointment of the Sick: administered when a person is gravely ill, in danger of death
*Christians believed that these sacraments brought the help needed to live a good
Christian life and merit salvation
- The center of sacramental system was the Eucharist: piece of breat that through
priestly words became the body of Christ and became a channel of Christ’s grace
- Sacramental system was unifying but didn’t replace the devotion to saints
11. Mass was in Latin, but the sermon was supposed to be in vernacular
Growth of universities didn’t help because Priests that learned new languages went to
work for the government
12. People were still able to understand the meaning of biblical stories from murals on
walls, or stained glass windows
- “Good-bye”, “Adieu”, and “Adios” come from the words “God be with you”
13. Mary was seen as a spiritual mother for all Christians and Christ was compassionate
for humanity
14. Peasants had a strong sense of god: believed that God rewarded the good with peace
and health; Believed that the devil was everywhere in search of sinners, associated with
darkness and blackness (Roots of racism)
15. Peasants were taught to believe that the soul was immortal after death of the body
- People believed that they didn’t go right to heaven/hell, the went back to the places
that they used to frequent during their lives (belief of ghosts)
- Church then affirmed existence of Purgatory, and said that they waited there before
finding out whether they went to heaven or hell
- Indulgences (papers with the pope’s name) were sold to try and secure salvation
- Pilgrimages to the tombs of saints were made as well to try and secure salvation
III. Those Who Fight:
A. Nobility influenced all aspects of medieval culture: political, economic, religious,
educational, artistic (even though they made up a small percent)
B. Nobility held the real political and social power in Europe until 19th century
C. 10th-11th Cent’s: social structure around Europe varied
Germany- descendents of Carolingian empire were rulers
France- Before 13th century, nobility was an open class
D. Nobility had special privileges: free personally and in his possessions, immunity from
outside authorities, raised troops and commanded them, made political decisions, nobility
was inheritable
E. Noblemen were professional fighters: encouraged to express chivalric values, had to fight
to protect the poor, weak, church by fighting, knights were to be loyal to their lords
- When not loyal, a “felony” was committed (treachery to one’s lord)
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F. 11th Century: “chevalier” was coined (“horseman”,”knight”)- connotated moral values,
consciousness of family
G. Those who wanted to be in the aristocracy wanted a castle, symbol of feudal
independence
- Poor knights could ascend to nobility through valor, marriage, service to the lord
H. Ministerials: unfree German knights, fought as warriors or served as stewards for nobles
- Not considered noble, they were considered servile
I. Nobles had mixed attitudes towards peasants (aka “rustics”) (From biblical story)
- Elite nobles thought the peasants were dirty, dark, hairy- their work in the sun
Considered them poor, dumb, dull
- Some nobles respected them for their work and thought they were beloved of god
J. Infancy and Childhood:
1. Rate of infant mortality was staggering: natural causes (disease, insufficient food),
infanticide wasn’t that common
2. Abandonment was very common: poverty/local disasters, unable to feed it, illegitimate,
Parents thought it could have a better life, unhappy with sex, deformity, etc.
3. Oblates (Latin “offering”): superfluous (extra) children given to monasteries
Parents gave kids as an offering, they were nurtured and educated and came to have
many opportunities as monks or nuns
- Winchester England- 85% of monks b/w 1030-1070 were oblates
4. Abandonment was common until 1000 (increases in agriculture and prosperity)
Nobles still gave away children, to keep estate intact for oldest son
- Some nobles gave sons estates to marry young and be militaristic
- Some nobles practiced birth control, married late and had few kids
5. Birth6 y.o.=Play; 6-12= tender years (becomes a servant and learns arms)
Learned to ride a horse, use a sword, shoot bow and arrow, some to read
Formal training ended at 21 y.o.- Ceremony of knighthood (very important)
K. Youth:
1. Young men remained a youth until he was financially ready to marry (Father died)
2. KnightedTravel for 2-3 yrs and pick group of people to protect and guide him
Tournament (many men compete on horseback) is practice for battle
3. Girls were married young- they could produce more kids
4. Age gaps between father and son caused problems: younger men wanted “a piece of
the action” and didn’t want to wait until their father died
Women helped mediate fights between diff. generations
5. Sexual tensions arose due to age differenced: young men wanted women (used
prostitutes and peasant girls)
L. Power and Responsibility:
1. Land meant that a noble male was an adult (Including authority over people and land)
2. Nobles weren’t supposed to attack the church- many did (Peter of Dreux)
3. Wanted rewards immediately (arms)
4. Jurisdiction over large pieces of land allowed lords to live lavishly
Social Standing: clothes, number of horses, freedom to spend money
5. Nobles had work to do: (depended on social status) work for lord (40 days a year),
stand guard for lord, attend Lord’s court, go to weddings, “gracious aid”
6. Up until 13th century: French/English nobles had power over knights and peasants on
their estates- They managed the manorial courts and could be mean/nice
7, Women were important: managed “inner economy” (cooking, sewing, weaving, etc.)
When husband was away- managed rest of stuff (herds, barns, etc.)
8. Women stayed at home (Pregnancies, afraid to put them in danger)- they took over
supervision of the family’s estate while he was gone
If men died, widows still managed property
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9. Fighting was the dominant feature of Noble lifestyle (church couldn’t stop violence)
10. Saint Maurice- model knight and declared patron of HRE, no evidence he actually
existed besides a cult following, refused to renounce Christian faith
11. Petty warfare was encouraged by lateness of inheritance, with military ethos of culture
12. 13th Century: Kings used the middle class to lay foundation of a good central gvt.
IV. Those Who Pray:
A. Prayer was believed to be vital in the Middle Ages (Monks were looked up to)
B. Monks were seen as the educated elite: kept remains of classic culture alive and tried new
styles of architecture and art
C. Recruitment:
1. Orderic Vitalis was given to monks as a child by his fatherBecame a leading scholar
Hat no doubt god wanted him to be a monk, but was forced to be one by parents
2. Monasteries: religious institutions whose structure fulfilled need of feudal nobility
- Most men who became monks were believed to be child oblates from parents
3. 13th Century: monks began to come from middle classes
D. The Nuns:
1. Kings/Nobles established convents for their daughters (Entrance was restricted to
women of the founder’s class)
Convents were given large gifts by high nobles (Were able to be larger)
2. Abess/Prioress: head nun, usually went to a nun of high social status
Prioress was a woman of local prominence and importance
3. Nun’s Daily Activities: religious duties, business duties, sewing, embroidery,
copying manuscripts
4. Hildegard of Bingen: had brains and talent, went to found convent of Rupertsberg
Record Scivias (Know the Ways)- mystical visions that incorporate bible
Record Physica (On the Physical Elements) a play, medical work
5. Isabella of Lancaster: became abbess in 1343- maintained a separate home away
from the convent, but managed all convent business, had secular interests, but was a
skilled nun
E. Prayer and Other Work:
1. Many more monasteries of men than women, different customs and routines
All however- life centered on liturgy
2. Monks prayed 7 times a day and 1 time a night
3. Prayer justified the purchase of things connected to prayer: clothing, incense,
Gospel books decorated with gold leaf, relics of a saint, art
4. Monastic manors were set up to administrate the abbey’s estates
Choir monks were aristocrats- didn’t till the land themselves
Cellarer- financial manager, responsible for supervising peasants who worked the
fields and “Lay Brothers” (vowed religious from servile classes with simpler
duties than choir monks)
Almoner- Responsible for feeding and caring for the poor
Novice Master- responsible for training recruits and teaching them Rule (chant),
Scriptures, traditions of the house
5. Several orders forbade monks from studying law/medicine- often ignored
12th-13th Cent’s- monks had reputations for knowledge and experience in canon
law of church and civil law of countries
Before 1066- much literature on medicine in England- The Leech Book of Bald
(leech=medical)- tells of lung/stomach diseases and possible cures
6. Raising of horses helped monasteries get money (Horses were needed for war and
travel)
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7. Cistercian Expansion: Cistercian monks cultivated swamps and wasteland
They turned rolling land of French Burgundy into vineyards
Turned rocky land in England into land for sheep- large role in production of wool
8. Some monasteries mined iron and lead (Cistercian abbey of Furness- 40 forges)
9. Some monasteries lent surplus to nobility and peasantry- Abbey of Savigny in
Normandy was a banking house- provided loans at interest
10. Monks operated schools, served as hotels for travelers
F. Economic Difficulties:
1. Expenses in older monastic houses increase more than income: Cluny- monks lived
lavishly (clothes, food), Hugh rebuild abbey church (very expensive)- largest church in
Christendom
Revenue came from hundreds of monasteries- wasn’t enough
Cluny relied on cash reserves- they had to pay bailiffs to watch manors
Cluny decided to borrow money- and fell into debt
2. Suger, superior of royal abbey of Saint-Denis near Paris was opposite
Suger was a shrew manager, who watched money, even though he spent a lot to
keep the monastery beautiful
3. Agricultural depression in 14th Century forced nobility to reduce their donations
Led to decline of recruits because monasteries couldn’t afford that many monks
4. Monasteries resembled secular colleges (Many applicants, few spots)
V. Summary:
A. Generalizations about peasants life in the Middle Ages is difficult because it differed
depending upon the manorial customs
B. Though peasants led hard lives, reclamation of wastelands allowed for migration and
social mobility
C. 1100: Knightly class is united in ability to fight on horseback
D. Nobles devoted considerable time to fighting
Still had political, economic responsibilities
E. Monks and Nuns had a profound impact on spirit
F. Improved technology brought larger crop yieldsPop. Growth
VI. From Merchant To Monk:
A. Godric of Finchdale was a serf on a manor who became a wealthy businessman
by trading
1. Used unfair and unethical methods including dishonesty
2. He then sold his business, disposed of his wealth and became a hermit
B. He didn’t want to become a farmer, he wanted to become a merchant
1. He learned the basics like bargaining and he advanced
2. He wasn’t afraid to do unethical things if it meant that he wouldn’t be poor
3. He started domestic but then came to trade abroad and took ships there
4. He and his partners bought a half of a ship, then another
C. After 16 years as a trader he thought of giving it up to charity and his life to god
1. He became a steward in a house
2. He took a pilgrimage to Jerusalem
3. He wanted to follow Christ more freely so he sold all his things and gave it to the
poor
4. In the end he discovered that what he wanted all along was the life of a hermit
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