Life in a Medieval Village [Paperback]

Medieval history comes alive in Joseph and Frances Gies’s classic bestseller on life in medieval villages

This new reissue ofLife in a Medieval Village, by respected historians Joseph and Frances Gies, paints a lively, convincing portrait of rural people at work and at play in the Middle Ages. Focusing on the village of Elton, in the English East Midlands, the Gieses detail the agricultural advances that made communal living possible, explain what domestic life was like for serf and lord alike, and describe the central role of the church in maintaining social harmony. Though the main focus is on Elton, c. 1300, the Gieses supply enlightening historical context on the origin, development, and decline of the European village, itself an invention of the Middle Ages.

Meticulously researched,Life in a Medieval Villageis a remarkable account that illustrates the captivating world of the Middle Ages and demonstrates what it was like to live during a fascinating—and often misunderstood—era.

Reissued for the first time in decades, Frances and Joseph Gies’s classic bestseller on life in medieval villages

InLife in a Medieval Village, acclaimed historians Frances and Joseph Gies reveal what life was actually like in the Middle Ages. Focusing on the village of Elton, in the English East Midlands, the Gieses detail the agricultural advances that made communal living possible and the social and economic divisions that separated lord from serf that made life so difficult for so many.Life in a Medieval Villagetakes modern readers through every aspect of day-to-day life, describing the villagers’ diet (centered around a bland stew called pottage lacking in nutrients), how they harvested crops, and the central role of the church in maintaining social harmony. We learn the clothes villagers wore, their (sometimes lacking) standards of personal hygiene, and the bizarre treatmenlóS