Peasant Life and Manorialism in Medieval Europe
PEASANT LIFE AND MANORIALISM
Medieval peasant agriculture described as an "organic economy" according to E.A. Wrigley.
The land served as the source of food and all useful materials.
Industrial production (e.g., shoemaking, ironmaking) relied on vegetable or animal raw materials or on the burning of wood or charcoal.
The annual cycle of plant growth sets the production horizon for organic economies.
Medieval Civilization: Defined as the Latin term "medius" meaning "Middle".
Divisions of society can be categorized into three groups:
Those who prayed: the clergy
Those who fought: the nobility
Those who labored: the peasantry
I. Manorialism
Defined as the social and economic system by which the lord of the manor exploits his landed estate and the peasants who live and work on the manor.
Manor: Consists of the peasant village, its fields, and commons.
Demesne: The lord's land.
Lord of the Manor: Can be a leader of the church (e.g., bishops and abbots) or a member of the feudal class (e.g., lords and vassals).
Hunting of Red Deer, Wild Boar, Wolf, and Bear reserved typically for lords.
Example illustrated by the Queen Mary Psalter (created 1310-1320).
Serfs: Defined as unfree peasant farmers.
Historical example: Elton manor near Cambridge, England during the late 1200s featured around 1900 acres and a total population of 500 to 600 peasants; the lord of the manor was the abbot of Ramsey.
Roles of management within the manor:
Steward: Oversees manor management.
Bailiff: Manager who meets with the peasants.
II. Peasant Life and Labor
Luttrell Psalter (1320—1340): Illustrates daily life of peasants.
Peasant families cultivate crops and rear animals on their individual holdings.
Primary goal of peasant agriculture: To fulfill subsistence needs for their family and additionally support the lord of the manor and the parish church.
The Great Famine (1315-1322):
Resulted in the death of 10 to 15% of the northern European population.
In England, numerous plants including 150 species flourished in wheat and barley fields.
Statistical breakdown:
1 harvest in 4 = Bad
1 harvest in 6 = Famine
III. Lords and Peasants
Under the manorial system, the lord exercised extensive control over the lives of peasants.
Lords would:
Collect rents and labor services.
Control their persons.
Hold certain rights of jurisdiction.
THE RISE OF THE UNIVERSITY
I. Origins of the University (1000-1200)
Interaction between Islamic, Christian, and Jewish scholars led to significant educational advancements.
Importations include:
Hindu-Arabic numeral system
Paper making technology
Rediscovery of Aristotle's works.
Locations of scholarship included Islamic Spain and Sicily.
By 1300, 10 to 15 percent of the Western European population resided in towns or cities with populations exceeding 1000.
Populations of key cities in this period:
Paris: approx. 200,000
Venice and Genoa: each approximately 100,000.
Bourgeoisie: Class that emerges in urban centers.
Guilds: Including classifications of apprenticeship (apprentice, journeyman, master).
II. The First Universities
Term universitas (Latin for “corporation”) used for the first time in 1221 in Paris to refer to masters and students: "nos universitas magistrorum et scolarium” (the university of masters and students).
Major early universities include:
University of Bologna
University of Paris
III. Life and Study at the First Universities
By the early 1200s, three main universities existed:
University of Bologna
University of Paris
Oxford University
Enrollment figures around 1250:
University of Paris: approximately 7000 students
Oxford University: approximately 2000 students
Seven Liberal Arts:
Trivium:
Grammar
Logic
Rhetoric
Quadrivium:
Arithmetic
Geometry
Astronomy
Music
Insight into book production:
More than 500 calfskins required to create a single Bible; this process could entail months of labor by a professional scribe.
Teaching methods employed:
Lecture
Disputation
THE COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE
I. Columbian Exchange of Diseases, Plants, and Animals
Source: Alfred Crosby, The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492 (1972).
Major diseases introduced:
Smallpox
Measles
Typhus
Population decline:
The Native American population of Mexico plummeted from around 25 million (1518) to 2 million (1578).
Native American population in what is now the US: Estimated around 5 to 10 million in 1492, dropping to around 600,000 by 1800.
Discussion surrounding syphilis as a potential introduction from the New World to the Old World.
Old World crops and domesticated animals introduced to the New World include:
Wheat, olives, grapes
Post-1492 importation of African crops to the New World included:
Coffee, watermelon, black-eyed peas, okra, and bananas.
Notable New World crops:
Potatoes: vital for Ireland
Corn: significant for Africa and China
Sweet potatoes, peanuts, and chili peppers emerged in these global exchanges.
Population growth in the Old World (Asia, Africa, Europe) from 1650 to 1850:
Rose from around 530 million to 1.1 billion.
Modern example: Typical American fast-food meal consisting of
Chicken (domesticated in China)
Potatoes (from South America)
Corn (from Mexico)
Black pepper (from India)
Coffee (from Ethiopia)
II. Columbian Exchange and the Migration of Peoples
Between 1500 and 1800:
Approximately 100,000 Portuguese migrated to Brazil.
Over 500,000 Spanish migrants settled in the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central and South America.
85% of Spanish migrants were male; similar higher percentages for Portuguese men migrating to the New World.
From 1600 to 1800: Approximately 1 million English, Scottish, Irish, German, Dutch, and French migrants arrived in North America.
Many British migrants prior to 1776 entered as indentured servants (4 to 7 years of labor in exchange for passage to American colonies).
Between 1718 and 1776, around 50,000 British convicts were transported to American colonies (contract times varied from 7 years to life).
Post-1518: About 12 million Africans arrived in New World as a result of the Atlantic slave trade, outnumbering European migrants four to one.
MARTIN LUTHER AND THE GERMAN REFORMATION
I. Martin Luther (1483-1546) and Indulgences
Historical context: Germany in the early 1500s was fragmented, part of the loosely organized Holy Roman Empire, consisting of over 200 separate states and territories.
Key locations:
University of Wittenberg
Duchy of Saxony
Notable figure: John Tetzel known for preaching:
“As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs.”
95 Theses (1517): Document detailing criticisms against the Church, primarily the sale of indulgences.
1521: Pope Leo X excommunicated Luther and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V supported the papacy, rendering Luther an outlaw.
II. Luther's Theology
Key tenets introduced:
Justification by faith alone
Primacy of the Scriptures
Priesthood of all believers
III. The Spread of Luther's Ideas: the State and Print
By 1530, nobles within Germany began to adopt and implement Lutheranism.
Key regions: Northern German territories, as well as Denmark, Norway, and Sweden where it became the state religion.
Luther's recognition of the impact of print technology:
“Print is the best of God’s inventions.”
Contributions of Johannes Gutenberg:
Invented printing with movable type, first producing a Bible around 1454, with a print run of 180 copies.
Book production statistics:
More books produced between 1450 and 1500 (around 8 million) than in all previous European history combined.
By 1500 there were printing presses in nearly 300 cities.
From 1517 to 1527, around 2 million copies of Luther’s pamphlets circulated in German-speaking territories.
THE ENLIGHTENMENT
I. The Enlightenment (Reason, Natural Law, and Progress)
Scientific Revolution (1543-1687): Introduction of the scientific method calling for rational thought and observation, changing perceptions of the physical universe.
Publication of Isaac Newton’s Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy (1687) terminated the geocentric vs heliocentric debate.
Establishment of mathematical proofs to demonstrate existence of natural laws governing the universe.
Notable figures: Thomas Jefferson and Voltaire, along with discussions surrounding Monticello.
In 1827, an auction put up for sale 130 enslaved individuals from Jefferson's community at Monticello in a bid to resolve his debt.
Philosophes: Enlightenment thinkers who predominantly gathered in coffee houses and cafes, notably Voltaire.
II. Critique of Religion
Historical event: St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre (August 24, 1572)
Catholics massacred thousands of Protestants in Paris and surrounding towns.
Also cited: Thomas Paine's stance on religious duties emphasizing justice and compassion:
“I believe in the equality of man…”
III. Critique of the Law
Example of punishment: Description of the execution of Robert-Francois Damiens (1715-1757) detailing gruesome methods of execution.
Concept examined: Regicide, debating its implications on laws and governance.
Inquiry of the death penalty's necessity and societal function by Cesare Beccaria in "On Crimes and Punishments (1764)".
Britain classified 225 capital crimes as late as 1815.
IV. Critique of Despotism
Description of the absolute monarchy as a prevalent government form in the 1700s.
Example of Louis XIV (1643-1715) who ruled by divine right and made all key policy decisions.
Famous declaration: “I AM THE STATE.” (1651)
Discussion of the Divine Rights of Kings.
Ideas from Jean Jacques Rousseau in "The Social Contract (1762)": Advocating for direct democracy and criticism of aristocratic privilege.
Montesquieu's Spirit of the Laws (1748): Introduced the importance of the separation of powers in governance.
Context of the Constitutional Convention (Philadelphia, May-September 1787) centered around governance reforms.
THE ATLANTIC REVOLUTIONS, 1750-1830
I. Atlantic Revolutions Overview
Notable revolutions:
American Revolution (1776-1788)
French Revolution (1789-1799)
Between 1791 and 1830, various revolutions dismantled New World empires:
Haiti ended French colonial rule.
Portugal lost control of Brazil.
Spain withdrew from much of its New World territories, excluding Cuba and Puerto Rico.
Significant document: Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (August 1789) influenced by figures Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson.
II. Causes of the Atlantic Revolutions
Major factors include:
War, taxes, and the diffusion of Enlightenment ideas.
Key event: Seven Years’ War (1756-1763) led by Prime Minister George Grenville (1763-1765), underlining British fiscal dominance.
Financial strain: By the late 1780s, around 50% of France's budget devoted to national debt interest payments.
King Louis XVI's involvement with the Estates General (May 1789) indicating a response to increasing societal pressures.
III. Comparing the Atlantic Revolutions
Women’s Influence: Notable quote from Abigail Adams to John Adams in March 1776, "Remember the Ladies."
Constitutional Convention (1787): Central topics include the Electoral College and practices of gerrymandering (1812).
Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins: Advocated for the Constitution of 1793 establishing a republic and universal male suffrage; concurrently abolished slavery (February 1794).
Faced a paradox: Banned women's political organizations despite their earlier roles.
Saint-Domingue: Highlighting the life of Toussaint L’Ouverture in Haiti, the island seeing substantial devastation post-revolutions with significant population loss—two-thirds of the white population deceased or departed, and over one-third of formerly enslaved individuals deceased.
Reparation demands from France created economic inhibitions following the Haitian Revolution (1825), initially set at 150 million francs, eventually negotiated to 90 million francs (about $21 billion in 2004 U.S. dollars).
IV. Global Impact of the Atlantic Revolutions
Conceptualization of politics shifted with terms (left versus right) originating from seating arrangements in the National Assembly in 1789—supporters sat right, opponents sat left.
Emergence of the concept of Revolution and “The People” as a significant force (Quoting Ho Chi Minh):
“Men are born, and always continue, free and equal in respect of their rights.”
INDIA, BRITAIN, AND THE COMING OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
I. Industrial Revolution and the World Economy
Historical context states Europe held a trade deficit with Asia from Roman times until the early 1800s, leading to significant gold and silver flow to pay for luxury goods like spices and textiles.
Technology and Innovation in China (700-1200): Including but not limited to:
Gunpowder, magnetic compass, printing with moveable type, paper, and water-driven spinning technology.
Comparative wealth from 1700 to 1890: Europe’s GDP share rose from approximately 23% to 40%, while China and India’s shares decreased to roughly 13% and 11% respectively.
By 1900, Europe and North America together produced about 86% of the world's manufacturing output; combined output from China and India was about 8%.
II. The Industrial Revolution, the Indian Cotton Industry, and the World Market
Origins of the Industrial Revolution:
Initiating primarily in the cotton industry and centered within greater Manchester, Lancashire (NW England) in the late 1700s.
Seven Years' War implications (1756-63): Establishment of British alliance against the French alliance.
In 1750, Indian cotton industry recorded 25% of global manufacturing output, largely under Mughal empire control.
Global demand for Indian cotton goods, known as “calicoes”.
British legislation (Calico Acts of 1701 and 1721) restricted Indian goods entering British markets, subsequently witnessing a tenfold increase in the British cotton export from 1750 to 1770.
III. The Industrial Revolution and the Rise of the British Cotton Industry
By the 1790s, the marriage of Crompton's spinning mule, factory infrastructure, and coal provision through steam engine exemplified the Industrial Revolution's machinery integration.
Example advertisement from 1815: A Manchester newspaper promoting a "large" cotton factory, measuring 26 yards by 13 yards across five stories.
James Watt’s steam engine created in 1781, initially marking a shift in energy production.
In 1700, coal provided approximately 50% of domestic energy in Britain; by 1811-1875, coal output increased over sevenfold.
Consequential health impacts with bronchitis and tuberculosis accounting for 25% of all deaths in Britain.
STEAM, WORK, AND TIME DISCIPLINE IN THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
I. First Industrial Revolution (1790-1840): Cotton
The Industrial Revolution initiated within the cotton industry and the Greater Manchester area.
Luddites: Movement of workers resisting industrialization under legendary figure Ned Ludd.
Projections from 2013 indicate up to half of all jobs in the U.S. could be rendered obsolete due to machines in an impending 20 years (Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael Osborne).
Work dynamics depicted as favorable in agriculture compared to industrial work:
Workers' interests opposed to manufacturing owners’ interests without a social hierarchy common in agriculture.
II. Second Industrial Revolution (1840-1870): Coal, Iron and Steel, and Railroads
Development of the Liverpool and Manchester Railroad (1830), encompassing roughly 32 miles with an original travel duration of about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
III. Industrialization and Work
Transformation of labor marked by division of labor principles and factory discipline mechanics.
Travel time from London to Manchester was reduced significantly from 80 hours in 1750 to only 8 hours by 1845.
Influential works: Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations (1776) discussing labor and economy.
Work regulations:
Example rules at the Royal Overseas Trading Company in Berlin (1844) emphasized strict adherence to times and behaviors, leading to penalties for tardiness and inappropriate conduct.
Listing of regulations articulated an oppressive work environment where idleness and communication among workers were strictly forbidden.
Impact on daily life:
Workers moved from rural areas to urban centers, leading to rapid urbanization and the development of new social classes.
The factory system introduced long working hours (often 12-16 hours a day, 6 days a week) in monotonous and dangerous conditions.
Child labor became widespread, with children performing crucial tasks in factories and mines due to their small size and cheap labor.
The separation of home and work became more pronounced, as production shifted from domestic settings to factories.
The introduction of time clocks and shifts imposed a new, stricter sense of time discipline on workers, contrasting with the more flexible rhythms of agricultural work.