Life in the Middle Ages 1066 - 1215

The Serfs Write down what you notice about serfs in the Middle Ages. What inferences can you make based on what you see?

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Nobles Write down what you notice about serfs in the Middle Ages. What inferences can you make based on what you see?

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Extras

What does this poem tell you about medieval serf lives? The Cuckoo Song Sumer is icumen in, Lhude sing cuccu! Groweth sed, and bloweth med, And springeth the wude nu —                        Sing cuccu! Awe bleteth afer lomb, Lhouth after calve cu; Bulluc sterteth, bucke verteth, Murie sing cuccu! Cuccu, cuccu, well singes thu, cuccu: Ne swike thu naver nu; Sing cuccu, nu, sing cuccu, Sing cuccu, sing cuccu, nu! [ Summer is arriving, Loudly sing cuckoo! Seeds are growing, meadows blowing, And woods renewing —      Sing cuckoo. Ewes bleat after lambs, Cows low for calves; Bullocks are shying, bucks are leaping, Merrily sing cuckoo. Cuckoo, cuckoo; well may you sing cuckoo, You should never stop singing cuckoo].   One of the earliest surviving examples of English verse, dating from the early 13th century, The Cuckoo song shows the rural concerns of an agricultural country.

The Manor

The Manor What buildings did a manor have The Manor What buildings did a manor have? What materials are they made of? Comfortable or uncomfortable?

A medieval peasant's house Wood was in short supply in medieval England so only the frame of the house was constructed of timber. There were no foundations, but the timbers were sometimes placed on stone supports to discourage damp and rot. The spaces in the walls were filled with branches and twigs, caked together with mud, and the whole surface was then coated with a limestone wash to render them waterproof. This system was called "wattle and daub." The roof was generally thatched with straw. The floor was simply earth, which was covered with straw (periodically thrown out and replaced) to reduce dust and dirt. The internal floor-plan tended to be very simple - the house was divided into a byre for livestock and supplies, and a living area for people with a central hearth. Generally, there was no chimney - smoke merely escaped through a hole in the roof.

A medieval peasant's house Wood was in short supply in medieval England so only the frame of the house was constructed of timber. There were no foundations, but the timbers were sometimes placed on stone supports to discourage damp and rot. The spaces in the walls were filled with branches and twigs, caked together with mud, and the whole surface was then coated with a limestone wash to render them waterproof. This system was called "wattle and daub." The roof was generally thatched with straw. The floor was simply earth, which was covered with straw (periodically thrown out and replaced) to reduce dust and dirt. The internal floor-plan tended to be very simple - the house was divided into a byre for livestock and supplies, and a living area for people with a central hearth. Generally, there was no chimney - smoke merely escaped through a hole in the roof.