HIST 1003 Chapter : Society Before 1700
Document Summary
Four major points: vastly unequal distributions of wealth and privilege, less in england and. Dutch republic: life expectancy and course unlike ours, 18th century diet more like ours as american plants are adopted (tomato, potato, etc, revolutions in law and economics, with social changes following, lie between them and us. Merchants, government agents, professionals, master craftsmen, journeymen, apprentices, and servants. (ca. 2-5% of total population, except england where ca. Note: townspeople usually had legal freedom that was denied to rural persons. (middle ages: towns are corporations: other sorts of commoners. Nobles (less then 2% of the population, except for poland; 10%) Landless laborers (sharecroppers, cotters, serfs: tied to the land) Vagrants and other road people (looking for work) England, 65% of total population, mostly free (enclosures for commercial agriculture) Poland, 85-95% of total population, only 20% free (rest are serfs) 95% of total population, less then 2% free, rest are serfs. The great nobles (magnates, grandees)- the few families.
