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Penance

Holy Orders

Matrimony

Anointing of the Sick

sacraments are

very little known about the detailed life of peasants in Europe because the lords and the clergy did not keep records of the peasants

only

early records were concerning

duties

peasants owed their masters

slaves and serfs.

manors were divided into two:

Those who were full time servants would work every day of the week and would get a break to attend Mass on Sundays. Peasants were forbidden from leaving the lord’s manor without seeking permission. The condition of serfdom was hereditary and one would be tied to his master unless he saved enough to purchase some land or if he married a free person.  At the end of the twelfth century, the ties that bound peasants to their masters began to loosen.

Peasant life in the Middle Ages was confined to the manors,

The lords had great influence over the lives of the peasants;

Majority of the peasants worked three days a week in their lord’s land but they would work longer during the harvest and plantation periods

was where the peasants worked, tilled the land, planted and harvested on

he Church offered help to the neediest peasants in the form of food and necessities.

behalf of the lord

he peasants would receive a larger piece of land as long as they adhered to the condition that they work on the lord’s land before working on their own.

The plows and horses were so few and the peasants themselves spent the entire day working in the “demense”.

peasant also tended to the horses and cattle in meadows

Most peasants did not do much other than working, going to church and the occasional celebration.

hardly travelled outside their villages but they did have a sense of community amongst themselves

Peasant life was generally marked by having few possessions in the home

houses were basic shacks with benches, stools, wooden cups, bowls and spoons. Most households had a chest of drawers where the family would keep their valuable items. Peasants hardly slept on beds; they slept on straw mattresses on the floor. Given that they had few possessions even in terms of personal attires, they typically slept with their work apparels and covered themselves with animal skin.

Women

a small garden behind their house.

one part of the land, the “demense”

Church was also a source of education mainly for the peasant’s children who attended the local school that was part of the church. The peasants looked to the priests for baptism, marriage, and performance of last rites for the dying.  Christianity guided the moral decisions that peasant men and women made in their day-to-day life.

Education was meager and only available to a select group of boys.

young girls helped with chores in the house and they were married off as soon as they attained maturity; this was usually at the young age of thirteen or sixteen years.

Societal and economic development saw the rapid rise of cities and towns. As the ties between serfs and their masters became lose, the peasants were able to rent land and some even migrated to the towns. Catastrophes such as the Black Death, a plague that killed thousands of peasants made it difficult for lords to find peasants to work in their farms.

"heraldry"

coat of arms was used to distinguish one knight from another. When a knight had on his full armor, including plate mail and helmet, even his friends couldn't recognize him. Because of this, knights began to paint symbols on their shields.

job of people called heralds to keep track of the different coats of arms.

A coat of arms belonged to the family of the knight. He would pass the coat of arms down to his eldest son.

Knights and nobles in the Middle Ages often had a coat of arms.

original coats of arms had fairly simple designs

As there became more and more

designs became more complicated in order for each one to be unique.

profoundly affected by the rulings of the church.

One of the most unifying elements of the Middle Ages was the Roman Catholic Church.

In the Middle Ages, there was a definite structure in society.

Following the pope, in order of rank, there were bishops, priests, monks and nuns.

Bishops

Priests

Monks

were very holy and lived in a convent.

Bishops had become so powerful that it was mandatory for the king to take orders and consult the Bishop in everyday affairs over the state.

f you were born in one class of the society, you belonged to that class for your entire life with no chances of improving your status through hard work.

They were generally from a noble family or a wealthy family from some town.

He used to take tours around the country to many churches within the country. There was a seat reserved for the Bishop in every church in the country.

Listening to the plights of all the priests and clergymen below him; Levy taxes on the peasants; Settling of important issues such as annulment of marriage; Maintaining an army of his own to assist the king during war; Leading his army in the war was common in the Early Middle Ages for Bishops; Take care of the spiritual soundness of his diocese; Implement the code of the church in the diocese; Take care of the business of the church in their diocese and supervise the priests, nuns and monks in their activities.

Since most people could not read, heraldry was invented.

design and short saying

They put their coat of arms, showing their heraldry, on banners, shields, tapestries and anything else they could think of.

coat of arms has a specific meaning

brave as a lion

place where travelers could stay during

helped to feed the poor, take care of the sick, and provided education to boys in the local community.

day in the Middle Ages was spent praying, worshiping in church, reading the Bible, and meditating.

different jobs depending on their talents and interests.

Abbot - The Abbot was the head of the monastery or abbey.

A part of this vow was that they were dedicating their life to the monastery and the order of monks they were entering.

They were to give up worldly goods and devote their lives to God and discipline. They also took vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.

Monks and nuns were generally the most educated people during the Middle Ages. They spent much of their day in silence.

A scribe may spend over a year copying a long book like the Bible.