Age of Feudalism in Western Civ?

Question

Contrast urban and rural life in the age of feudalism. Which offered more security? Which offered more opportunities?

Answer 1

Complex question, but to keep the answer simple:

Urban (small village to town life, peasants) - These people could own land, start businesses (with permission of the Lord) and were free to move about in order to seek better opportunities elsewhere.

Rural life, specifically that of the Serfs, was much more restricted. The serfs were bound to the land they lived on for life. They could not leave it, ever. They were required to work the land, but in exchange the land owner (Lord) was required to provide protection for the serfs.


That question could really be answered with an essay, but that's where I'd begin.


(FYI: A serf who ran away and stayed away for a year and a day was considered legally a freed man. If caught before that time, however, he could be executed.)

Answer 2

Feudalism

Feudalism was the system of loyalties and protections during the Middle Ages. As the Roman Empire crumbled, emperors granted land to nobles in exchange for their loyalty. These lands eventually developed into manors. A manor is the land owned by a noble and everything on it. A typical manor consisted of a castle, small village, and farmland.

During the Middle Ages, peasants could no longer count on the Roman army to protect them. German, Viking and Magyar tribes overran homes and farms throughout Europe. The peasants turned to the landowners, often called lords, to protect them. Many peasants remained free, but most became serfs. A serf was bound to the land. He could not leave without buying his freedom, an unlikely occurrence in the Middle Ages. Life for a serf was not much better than the life of a slave. The only difference was that a serf could not be sold to another manor.

Serfs would often have to work three or four days a week for the lord as rent. They would spend the rest of their week growing crops to feed their families. Other serfs worked as sharecroppers. A sharecropper would be required to turn over most of what he grew in order to be able to live on the land.