Medieval Towns
After the collapse of Rome, many cities lost their significance, power and weight. Because of the decrease of threats, war and invaders, people started moving outwards from the cities towards the countryside. However, this peace came to an end around 300 A.D. Threats, invaders and war were on the rise again, and people were on the move. Many farmers still living, self-sustained and happy in the countryside, started to feel this heat and the threats, and started to seek protection.
Before the Medieval towns, however came the manors – the basis of feudalism. Countrymen made sacrifices, such as their freedom, for protection. Many of them became serfs or freeholders. The manors were much like a community of farmers, however, there …show more content…
A merchant is someone who purchases local crafts people’s goods to trade with other foreign merchants, for foreign goods, and then brings the new goods to sell back in his hometown. This would put towns on the map as trade hubs and trade routes. This would also promote new people, and crafts people to come to the town, and develop and grow the town further.
Housing in Medieval towns for the average serf or freeholder would not be the prettiest sight. Houses in most towns would be 4-6 stories tall because of steep land prices and the priority of staying inside the wall. This would make streets narrow, houses crowded and a rather dark atmosphere. People would also have to share their houses with their livestock if they wanted to keep their livestock.
Although medieval society had evolved with towns, peasants still remained in the class system and doing the same jobs with the same rights. This kept peasants farming the fields that supplied food to the town. The three field system remained, however there was usually more fields added to the system. There were also other advances made to the system, such as water-powered mills, and the trading of local food to other …show more content…
The castle was where the lord lived, and the servants worked. There were also lavish parties with games, gambling, entertainment, and fine foods held for the lords in the great hall. The castle was surrounded by stone walls featured many rooms on the inside. It also featured works of art, and decorations based on the lord.
To keep order in a medieval town, laws had to be made to keep people in line. These laws were very basic, about murder, rape, and treason – like other federal crimes that we know today. There were also laws about paying certain fees to the lord, and the church. Appeals were addressed in manor, royal and church courts depending if you were clergy or not, or the severity of the offense. Most of the laws were made by the lord for the manor, and were enforced strictly.
One of the main attractions of a medieval town was the walls that surrounded it. Because of the size of the town, the castle became too small to facilitate every citizen under siege. Therefore, wall were built around the towns to secure the citizens. Walls would have towers at certain points for guards to keep a watchful eye on surroundings of the town. The wall, because of the limited space it created in the town, made all buildings tightly packed to stay inside of the walled
After the collapse of Rome, many cities lost their significance, power and weight. Because of the decrease of threats, war and invaders, people started moving outwards from the cities towards the countryside. However, this peace came to an end around 300 A.D. Threats, invaders and war were on the rise again, and people were on the move. Many farmers still living, self-sustained and happy in the countryside, started to feel this heat and the threats, and started to seek protection.
Before the Medieval towns, however came the manors – the basis of feudalism. Countrymen made sacrifices, such as their freedom, for protection. Many of them became serfs or freeholders. The manors were much like a community of farmers, however, there …show more content…
A merchant is someone who purchases local crafts people’s goods to trade with other foreign merchants, for foreign goods, and then brings the new goods to sell back in his hometown. This would put towns on the map as trade hubs and trade routes. This would also promote new people, and crafts people to come to the town, and develop and grow the town further.
Housing in Medieval towns for the average serf or freeholder would not be the prettiest sight. Houses in most towns would be 4-6 stories tall because of steep land prices and the priority of staying inside the wall. This would make streets narrow, houses crowded and a rather dark atmosphere. People would also have to share their houses with their livestock if they wanted to keep their livestock.
Although medieval society had evolved with towns, peasants still remained in the class system and doing the same jobs with the same rights. This kept peasants farming the fields that supplied food to the town. The three field system remained, however there was usually more fields added to the system. There were also other advances made to the system, such as water-powered mills, and the trading of local food to other …show more content…
The castle was where the lord lived, and the servants worked. There were also lavish parties with games, gambling, entertainment, and fine foods held for the lords in the great hall. The castle was surrounded by stone walls featured many rooms on the inside. It also featured works of art, and decorations based on the lord.
To keep order in a medieval town, laws had to be made to keep people in line. These laws were very basic, about murder, rape, and treason – like other federal crimes that we know today. There were also laws about paying certain fees to the lord, and the church. Appeals were addressed in manor, royal and church courts depending if you were clergy or not, or the severity of the offense. Most of the laws were made by the lord for the manor, and were enforced strictly.
One of the main attractions of a medieval town was the walls that surrounded it. Because of the size of the town, the castle became too small to facilitate every citizen under siege. Therefore, wall were built around the towns to secure the citizens. Walls would have towers at certain points for guards to keep a watchful eye on surroundings of the town. The wall, because of the limited space it created in the town, made all buildings tightly packed to stay inside of the walled