The High Middle Ages

[Lady Mage]

What, history? I really enjoy it!

[Lex]

Your good at it!

[Lady Mage]

Thank you! I should have a new one posted soon... I'm on the wrong computer now.

[Lex]

Hehe, I wait anxiously for an update.

[Lady Mage]

And here is Part Six of my High Middle Ages Series. Enjoy!

Those Who Worked- the Townspeople

Townspeople had been rare in Europe in 1000, but this changes through the High Middle Ages. With the revival of urbanization in Europe and Italy, two groups appeared in cities- the Populo Grosso (the fat people), and the Populo Minuto (the little people). The Populo Grosso was comprised of rich merchants, and townspeople who were landlords somewhere. The Populo Minuto was comprised of retail merchants, artisans, craftsmen, and farmers who had land outside of the city.

The Populo Grosso held certain privileges in the cities: they regulated what clothes people of certain classes could wear, how lavish funerals could be, the number of guests and candles lit at a wedding, and many other things.

However, the townspeople still needed a protection from noble violence. The urban solution was commune—a sworn association in a town of mutual defense. Every town had one, and everyone was a member. So if one member of the commune was attacked by nobles, everyone would help you out. The commune also existed to keep peace in the town, and the consuls, officials elected every year, made sure this happened. There were usually anywhere from 4 to 16 of these.

What did the commune mean by defense of the other commune members? Well, what they called defense, we would call vengeance. The consuls would demand the noble criminal to appear in town, and judge him and make him pay a penalty fine. However, usually the noble didn’t show. When this happened, chosen members of the commune would ride out and visit the noble. This was not a friendly visit; the commune would wreak as much havoc as possible. Now, since the noble was usually holed up inside his castle, this meant finding relatives of the noble and injuring him through them. It meant attacking the nobles’ vassals wherever they were found, especially the serfs. The peasant’s houses were burned down, crops trampled, fruit trees cut down, and the deaths of many peasants.

Needless to say, kings, bishops, and nobles had mixed feelings about communal life. They were somewhat sympathetic, but didn’t like methods and feared that feuds would go on for generation after generation. There was also trouble often when a member of the aristocracy granted the right for the people of the town in their jurisdiction to form a commune, and took back the privilege when they had second thoughts.

Nevertheless, most of the time of townspeople was spent in economic pursuits, not in warfare. Merchants had little or no specialization, but dealt mostly in small luxury goods, so the expense of the ship and travel would not be in vain. They preferred to have fewer sales, and charge exorbitant prices for them. Manufacturing units were small- and usually consisted of a family and whatever apprentices were attached. No regular hours were kept- when there was no work to be had, none was done. Instead of making many products, then selling them, craftsmen worked solely when someone asked for something.

In addition to the commune, the guild system protected the interests of all those who practiced a specific trade. For instance, in a town like Genoa, Italy, there was only one commune, but anywhere from 100-200 guilds. There was a bakers’ guild, a silversmithing guild, an artist’s guild, etc. The purpose of the guild was to protect the interests of the producer at the expense of the consumer. Guilds standardized production, and attempted to keep everyone on the same level- they eliminated competition between guild members by regulating raw materials, regulating tools used, regulating working hours, and forbidding advertising. Despite all these restrictions, guilds did a lot of good- they provided social services to any one who needed them.

With all this development, the middle class had new needs. They needed to know how to count systematically, they needed to know how to write in order to sign contracts, they needed to be aware of time constantly, and they needed to keep accurate records. The merchants realized the need for a number system better than Roman Numerals, and so on their travels, they brought back Arabic Numerals. Arabic numerals were much more accurate, and had a number for zero.

[Lex]

but these changes through the High Middle Ages

Shouldn't 'these' be 'this'? Again very interesting, I like the introduction of arabic numbers idea.

[Lady Mage]

Thank you about the sp tip. I've fixed it.