and the peasants.The nobility believed in divine right to rule, with the King being granted that right by God, passing the title on to his heirs. The King appointed members of the noble class, granted them fiefs, and they in turn, pledged homage and fealty to the King, before God and in a written charter. This feudal system was used for lesser nobles as well, with all but the King owing allegiance to the nobleman above him. This upper class thought they were superior to the ones below, and expected them to serve all of their needs to include making their clothes and dressing them, growing their food and cooking for them, and producing any goods or service they needed to carry out their daily lives. In exchange, the nobles offered protection and security. Nobles were trained as knights from an early age, and they protected the lord’s lands from invaders and fought in their battles. The lords also provided their people the basics they needed to live; food, clothing, and shelter, although all were meager compared to the luxuries the nobles enjoyed. The people were also heavily taxed. The noble class formed the government and legal system for those people living on their lands, so the lower classes thoughts and opinions of the fairness of this system did not count. The nobility were the entitled class
, being better educated, having better clothes and food, with free time for hunting and falconry.
, being better educated, having better clothes and food, with free time for hunting and falconry.The merchants were the middle class of the feudal society in the Middle Ages.They lived in towns producing goods and services for the nobility, and were organized into guilds that regulated training, wages, pricing and competition, and quality of goods. The merchants lived in buildings whose first floor served as their shops where they could sell their wares, but they were heavily taxed by the lords. They were free people, permitted to travel when trading or selling commodities, but journeys to foreign lands were dangerous due to bad weather and pirates.The merchants were skilled workers who were masters at their crafts, but they were not permitted to rise to the social level of the nobility, regardless of their success in their field. The middle class no doubt thought about the lack of opportunities for advancement, and resented the nobility’s privileges due to birthright, but were probably too busy working to get by, providing for their families, supplying the upper class, and paying taxes to dwell on what they could never ha
ve.
ve.The clergy were a class unto themselves in the Middle Ages, with their own hierarchy. The Pope, due to his powers of excommunication, was an influential person in society.Everyone in medieval times from the king to the serfs were Christian, attended church regularly, and were God-fearing people, as stated in the Canterbury Tales, “For though Fortune may noon aungel dere, from heigh degree yet fel he for his synne, doun into helle, where he yet is inne”(http://www.canterburytales.org/canterbury_tales.html). Since religion was so important, so was the Church. The arch-bishops and bishops were on par with nobility, and were often involved in politics and government in Europe.The Church charged taxes of all the people for their salvation, and accepted gifts as well. The local abbeys were run by abbots and occupied by monks, and often owed some type of feudal obligation to lord of the manor.Medieval monastery life consisted of a routine of eight daily services, Bible reading, prayer and meditation, and manual labor keeping up the monastery. A Medieval monastery also copied manuscripts and performed works of charity and healing and religious education and training for boys. Monks were devoted to God, and their day was spent thinking about how they could better serve Him and his children.
The lower class in the
Middle Ages were the peasants, the majority of which were serfs who belonged to the land they lived on, and thus the lord who owned that land. Serfs had no political rights, paid taxes and fees to the manor and the Church, and were expected to do any and all work as needed.Many were farmers working the land granted by the lord to support their families, with a percentage of the food or animals they raised going back to the manor. Their thoughts were of survival and they prayed for good health, good weather, and good harvests. They could be traded with the land they lived on, as serfs were property. Those transferred to monasteries saw themselves as fortunate, since they were granted rights of possession and disposal of their goods, and generally were treated more humanely. Being a serf was the hardest life of all of the members of the social classes, and this group had the most right to be resentful of their position in life. Their only hope was to escape to a town, where if they could live undetected for a year and a day, they could stay and train to be a craftsman or merchant.
The nobility, the merchants, the clergy and the peasants had very different lives in the Middle Ages, and therefore very different thoughts. The caste system dictated their thoughts in many ways, as they were born into their positions in life, and most of their life experiences were chosen for them based on their social class.
"Chaucer's Canterbury Tales ~ Presented by ELF." Chaucer's Canterbury Tales ~ Presented by The Electronic Literature Foundation. Web. 30 Apr. 2010. (http://www.canterburytales.org/canterbury_tales.html.)
“Medieval Monastery.” The Middle Ages Website. Web. 30 Apr. 2010. (http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/medieval-monastery.htm).
"The Feudal Structure of the Medieval World ." Medieval Fiefdom Website. Library Thinkquest, April 2007. Web. 23 Apr 2010.(http://library.thinkquest.org/10949/fief/hifeudal.html)
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