Agriculture During the Middle Ages the technology and techniques of

agriculture improved

At the start, manors produced only enough food to support the peasants and the Lord's family

Better technology and improved technique allowed peasants to produce more food, and population grew

The Wheeled Plow with Iron Blades allowed workers to cut the soil deeper with less work

The Horse Collar allowed horses to work the plows rather than oxen

Watermills and windmills were used to grind wheat into flour

Crop Rotation – fields were planted in thirds (1/3 planted in fall, 1/3 planted in spring and 1/3 fallow), meaning that 2/3 were being used to plant

Trade

Because of the improvement in agriculture, fewer peasants were needed to work the fields so some started producing metal and cloth goods.

Nobles heard of luxury items from the East such as sugar, spices, silks and dyes and demand for these goods grew

Some towns grew into trading cities, and Europe developed two major markets: one in the north, France and Flanders and one in the south, Italy

As trade grew, merchants started to use gold and silver coins for currency

Wealthy merchants established banks

Flanders and France

The region of Flanders, in modern Belgium, became a center of trade for Northern Europe

Towns such as Bruges and Ghent became famous for their high quality woolen clothes, attracting merchants from all over Europe

In northern France, trade fairs were established, and merchants from northern Europe would trade wool, honey, furs, and tin with merchants from Italy who carried metal weapons, cloths and silks, dyes, and spices from the East

Italy Cities in Italy started to grow from trade in the

Mediterranean Sea

Cities such as Venice, Pisa and Genoa grew to be large trading centers and built a vast fleet of merchant ships

By 1200, the Italian cities were competing with the Byzantine Empire for control of the Mediterranean trade.

Governments

As towns and cities grew, a middle class emerged from the merchants, bankers and artisan crafters.

These townspeople grew tired of being controlled by the nobles and used their wealth to gain basic rights such as freedom from military service, self-government, and the right to buy and sell property.

Towns established city councils which were elected by the citizens (only males could be citizens) to create laws and serve as judges.

City Life

Although city people enjoyed extra freedom, wealth and the protection of huge stone walls, life in the cities could be quite difficult at times

Houses were crammed together

Heat came from fire so smoke and ashes filled the air

Streets were used as toilets and were rarely cleaned

Women managed the house, the children and the finances and still had to help out with their husband's trade