Essay Example: Life in The Middle Ages

📌Category: History, Life, Medieval Europe
📌Words: 897
📌Pages: 4
📌Published: 23 March 2022

Most people in the Middle Ages lived in a manor. A Manor system consisted of villages, fields, castles, churches and more. Some people in the manors held more power than others. First came the kings and queens. Then came the lords and ladies. After them came the knights. Lastly were the peasants and serfs. They each had different powers and responsibilities in a manor system. Kings and queens had to make sure everything in a manor was going well. Lords controlled lands in a manor and helped the king. Ladies were in charge of the stores. The knights were given land in return for their service of battle or protection. Peasants and Serfs mostly worked on growing crops, but they also worked on other resources.  

Education in the village was only for wealthy people and it was mostly for boys. There were no schools, so they had to learn from home. Unless the school belonged to a church. Some things they learned were math, grammar, art, science, and music. Since the schools they went to belong to a church, they also learned about religion. Boys learn to play sports like wrestling, archery and more. There were colleges and universities but only a few went. Students had to stop learning when a war occurred. Lords would sometimes ban serfs and peasants from education. 

Laws and punishments were very brutal. If someone was guilty, they got a really bad punishment. Thieves got their hands cut off. If a woman committed murder, they would be burned to death. If they caught someone hunting in royal land, their ears were cut off. People in charge of making laws thought people would only follow the laws if they were scared of the punishment. This is the reason why they had really brutal punishments. 

Markets were the main way people bought what they needed. Some things you could buy in the market were food, wool, salt, coal, leather fish and more. There were two types of markets. Some people sold local goods while others sold goods from far. Every town had its own market. In their markets, they could go, buy and sell goods. There weren't many permanent shops. The fairs there were only occurred once a year. Some clothing was sold in markets. Wealthy people dressed differently from peasants and serfs. They wore woolen clothing. Wealthy men wore jackets and coats. Wealthy woman wore gowns.  

Merchants traded things like cloth, fur, silk, luxury, wine, food and more. Merchants were people that traded to get different goods in return. Merchants were known as businesspeople. There weren't many merchants. Tradesman traded between Arab and Europe. Tradesmen were in charge of transporting goods to far places and trading their goods for new ones. It was safer for them to travel in boats or ships. The cost was also lower for them. Trade fairs were when tradesmen got the chance to gather and trade what they had for other goods. Trade fairs occurred mostly in large towns and were only held annually. 

Religion at this time was Christianity, but Christianity was thought in a form of Catholic religion. Almost everyone was Catholic. One out of ten people were monks and nuns. Monks and nuns served God for all their life. Nobles helped maintain the village church. People are famous for their huge and beautiful cathedrals they built. Cathedrals had windows with lessons and teachings from the bible and God, along with paintings.  

Farming was important because it was one of their main resources. Wheat and Barley were the most important crops. The most common crops were beans, peas, oats, fruits and vegetables along with wheat and barley. A non– wealthy farmer farmed in about three to four acres while wealthy farmed in more. Sometimes people would exchange their land for a type of service. Farming was a very important and common occupation for the serfs and peasants. The reason why it was important was because peasants that worked as farmers grew crops for the lords and their own family.  

Children were expected to help at home with tasks at a young age. Boys sometimes attended church schools. Noble boys sometimes had to begin their knight training at the age of seven. Girls learned how to run a household. Girls also learned how to make clothes and more. They learned how to be responsible for throwing a feast for hundreds of people. Young boys and girls were educated in very different ways. 

It was very common for people to get sick. They believed superstitions influenced being cured. They also believed superstitions influenced how healthy they were. It was sometimes difficult for people to be cured. Since it was hard for them to be cured there was a chance of death. Sometimes the reason why people got sick was because their towns weren't very clean. They also didn’t have someone who knew how to cure diseases. Peasants taught that if they got sick, they had sinned and had gotten a punishment.   

Village life in the Middle Ages was simple. The kings and queens made sure everything went well. Lords were in charge of helping the king. The ladies were in charge of the stores. They made sure everything in the village stores were running well. The knights protected the castle and were trained to be ready for battle. Serfs and peasants were in charge of growing crops for the village and for themselves but had to give a portion the lords and the church.  Everyone in a village had tasks and responsibilities they had to take care of. Even children and boys were sometimes educated if they were wealthy.  They also began knight training at the age of seven. Girls learned to run a household and to be responsible for throwing a feast.

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