What Was Life Like In Medieval England Under The Feudal System? | Medieval Life | Absolute History

I studied Mediaeval history for much of my life. I have read literally hundreds of village court rolls and other documents over the years. Serfdom never, in reality, was as brutal as described. In order to pay for the land they lived on and farmed, serfs were required to put in a certain amount of labor to whoever actually owned the land. This service was usually two mornings a week. While working for the landowner, be it lord or monastery. They were fed and given ale while they worked. When reading the court rolls from various villages, these victimized individuals show up all over the place, usually buying or selling pieces of land. Odd behaviour for people tied to their land. My expertise is mainly centered on England and Ireland from around the sixth through the fifteenth century, so I don’t claim to have much intricate knowledge of the condition of ordinary people on the continent.

Nevermind the background music mismatch. I'm here for the content. Great content by the way, simple and direct.

Baroque music in Middle Ages? Something’s not right…

"Dennis, there's some lovely filth down here."

I just love these videos! The acting makes the picture so so real in my head of what these people were doing back then! Absolutely fascinating! Thanks!

Great I can watch this while having my meals 😊😊

What’s this? A prediction of how our lives are going to be within a very few short years! We will own nothing & they reckon, we will be happy:)

Just keep voting the same way and we will all soon find out what medieval life in Britain was like first hand

I can’t listen to this. Pointless music as loud, if not louder, than the narrative. Why?

Q: What Was Life Like In Medieval England Under The Feudal System? A: Solitary, Poor, Nasty, Brutish, and Short

There is a small village near Nottingham, Laxton, where they still farm on a medieval basis -- the last place where this is done...

I was actually waiting for someone to notice the music wasn't of the time period. Great as it is though!

You know... This documentary made me grateful because in my country, a person can change their social standing within a single generation. No matter how hard life is, no matter how challenging careers can be, it's still bearable. And one has so much hope and avenue for growth.

Love the content. The music is too loud and actually not necessary.

Pillars of the Earth...great book on medival England. Loved it

Monty Python and the Holy Grail: documentary?

Wow. They had to work 3 days a week for their lord. Very harsh. My paycheck is my own.... except for fed tax, medicaid/Medicare, social security, state income-tax, health, vision, dental, union dues, 401k. Then I have to pay property tax, school tax, fuel tax, telecom tax, sales tax on everything I buy, don't forget financing charges (interest), and inflation (invisible tax).... therefore I probably end up working for someone else 3 days a week....

It's interesting to see these old documentaries, and the academic biases of their times. This one looks to be from the late 90s or so, and shows quite a few over-corrections of the popular misconceptions that were common during the time before it. The filthy peasants were particularly amusing, and had more in common with Monty Python than the early medieval era. No one with sound faculties has ever willingly lived in such wretched, dirt-caked conditions, covered in mud and muck, when a broom and a wet cloth could so easily solve the problem.

Rip Professor Lowry, wish there has been more videos of his knowledge online besides this.

I really wanted to enjoy this, but the background music was way too loud.