RESEARCH - Medieval England - Post 3: Daily Life and Towns/Villages/Cities

 Peasants

It's all well and good to discuss the nobles of 15th century England (see previous post). But what was life like for the majority of people? 

Think of medieval peasants and dirt and squalor spring to mind. This wasn't necessarily the case. Yes, there was a lot of mud in the countryside and horse manure was everywhere, but cleanliness was important. There were such things as public baths. Nonetheless, I was very tempted to nab an image from Monty Python And The Holy Grail; the one where the peasant moans of being repressed!? 

Anyway, life expectancy was 33-35 years of age. However, it is important to bear in mind that the incredibly high infant mortality rate affected this. The general rule of thumb was that if your child survived until 20 years old, they'd probably reach around the age of 50. Only 5% reached the age of 60+, and these were often bishops! 

There is a very informative article (written by someone else), about daily life in Chaucer's era - click here.

Towns, Villages and Cities

Of course, not everyone was a farm labourer. Although, around 90% of the population lived in the countryside. There were towns, cities and villages. 

Definitions:

{ City - a large town. City status conferred by royal charter.

{ Town - built around a market. Would have a borough charter, taxation as a town or summons of parliamentary representatives. 

{ Village - no market

NB The existence of a cathedral does not necessarily indicate a city.

Also, these definitions are woolly. There were not actually clear distinctions at the time, and are the source of much debate amongst historians.

Cathedral cities, such as Bath, Canterbury or York existed. In 1170, Thomas Becket was killed. Thereafter, Canterbury Cathedral (where he had been archbishop) became a popular site of pilgrimage. 

Towns were smaller than we expect today, and were usually owned by a lord. Villages would usually be no more than 8 miles away from a town. They could be seen as dangerous places; crime rates were high. However, market towns were popular, as trading would take place here. This is where you would find the most merchants and shops. 

Goods, such as food, clothing and household items were traded. 

Both towns and cities often had walls, or at least fences, surrounding them, to ensure some degree of protection. Entrance was via guarded gates. They were busy, crowded, noisy, dirty and smelly. There were no bin men - refuse piled up quickly! Sewage was also another issue. 

Mop fairs took place in market towns, coinciding with quarter days (when rents would be collected). Serfs looking for new posts would gather, waring a badge/emblem of their trade, offering themselves for hire. 

In 1377, tax records indicated the population levels. However, as there have always been tax dodgers, this was not entirely accurate. Approximate populations: 

{  London – 23,314

{  York – 7,248

{  Bristol – 6,345

{  Coventry – 4,817

{  Norwich – 3,952

Today, London homes around 9 million people! But even with its smaller population in medieval times, London was one of the largest, most important economic centres of Europe. 

In London, there were 12 trades who dominated political and social life - clothworkers, drapers, fishmongers, goldsmiths, grocers, haberdashers, ironmongers, mercers, salters, skinners, tailors and vintners.

Incidentally, there was a St Paul's Cathedral on Ludgate Hill. But the current one, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, was built 1675-1710.

The total population in England in 1500 was around 3 million. 

Travel between these places was hard and perilous; bandits often roamed trade routes. Also, don't forget the languages I mentioned in my first post. 

This guy is fun to watch, and here, he looks into medieval villages and towns (of Italy, but still gives a good idea): click here.

Fun fact: signs were hung outside shops with painted symbols of the shop's wares due to low levels of literacy. 

Look, life was hard for all. Whichever social class you were in, there was toil and stress aplenty. I'll be looking into farming later, but it played a vital role in survival. Disease and medicine will also be investigated further; it may not be as you expect. 

Always in love and light,

TL

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My book, Love in the Roses is available for pre-order (click here).

To protect her family, she must marry the enemy!

The fictitious tale of a knight’s daughter, living life as it very well may have been in 1484.

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