Medieval Working Lives Flashcards
When was the Middle Ages, also called the Medieval period?
Around 1100 to 1450.
Name 3 jobs the peasant did directly linked to farming.
Breaking the soil, sowing the seeds, weeding, harvesting crops, storing food for winter.
Name 2 other methods peasants used to get food.
Hunting, keeping animals e.g. sheep, pigs or chickens, picking fruit.
Give three SKILLS peasants had.
Making baskets, smoking meat, shearing sheep, spinning wool, brewing beer.
Why was life so hard for peasants? Give two reasons.
Everything had to be done by hand, it was hard to grow enough to eat, no money so the only way to get other supplies (e.g. candles) was to try and make them yourself or trade any extra crops you had at market, farming was at the mercy of the weather.
Why did more towns (like Chipping Campden) pop up in the Middle Ages?
Trade (e.g for Chipping Campden it was the wool trade) or control (the Normans developed towns with castles like Warwick to take control across England)
A stronger kingdom under the Normans created new jobs.
Who was the Exchequer?
This was the man who was responsible for the King’s money, e.g. taxes paid to him by the nobles and knights.
New towns needed builders. What was a mason?
A bricklayer. Often they had to cut stone into bricks by hand. It as a well respected skill.
New towns had markets. What was a costermonger?
A fruit seller.
England became a powerful country in the Middle Ages. What was a diplomat?
A diplomat negotiates with foreign countries over trade, war, marriages of kings/queens/princes and princesses etc.
Unfortunately, medieval towns also attracted criminals. What was a diver?
A diver was a pickpocket.
People travelled more between towns in the Middle Ages. What was a wheelwright?
Someone who makes wheels for carts, wagons or carriages.
