HIS109Y1 Lecture 4: Lecture 4 - Manorial Economy.doc
Document Summary
Agriculture was the largest industry in the middle ages. Farming was the source of wealth for both the peasants and the land lords. the ownership of land gave you status. 450-750: population declined because of plague, invasions of barbarians, starvation and the collapse of roman empire meant no roads for trade of food. No experimentation for types of crops or how crops were produced; agriculture was primitive and did not develop much. Simple technological innovations like change from 2 field to 3 field system added to the health of the population. This meant that by planting certain crops that added nutrients to the soil, farmers would not have to leave half of their fields open for a season to recover. Healthier people meant an increase in the fertility rates of the population and a replenishment of the population. Another inno- vation was the adding lyme to fields for increased nutrients.
