Could You Survive One Week as a Medieval Peasant?

What was life really like for a medieval peasant? Follow Walter, an English villein in 1347, through one full week of work, food, taxes and church. The week ends just before the Black Death changes everything. On a Monday morning near St Albans, Walter's wife Alice pulls back an old sack to reveal two round stones: a hand mill that is against the law to own. Why would a family be forbidden to grind its own flour? To answer that, we go back to William the Conqueror, the Norman Conquest of 1066 and the Domesday Book. From there we follow how feudalism and serfdom bound millions of English peasants to the land for almost 300 years. In this animated history documentary you'll discover: Why peasants owed their lord two or three days of unpaid work every week How the word "villein" (a medieval farm worker) became "villain" Why the lord's watermill was a hidden tax on every loaf of bread How the open-field strip system worked, and where you can still see medieval ridge and furrow today Where the words furlong, acre, tithe, lord and lady come from What medieval peasants actually ate and drank: dark bread, pottage, herring and ale The myth that people drank ale because water was unsafe How manor court rolls let historians see into ordinary medieval lives The abbot of St Albans who confiscated his tenants' millstones and paved his floor with them How the Black Death, the Statute of Labourers, the poll tax and the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 brought serfdom in England to an end If you enjoy stories about medieval history, the Middle Ages, feudal England and everyday life in the past, consider subscribing for more animated history documentaries. CHAPTERS: 0:00 A Monday Morning in 1347 0:29 Walter's Week Belongs to the Abbot 0:48 Paying for Weddings, Priests and Death 1:09 How Did a Farmer End Up Owing So Much? 1:17 William the Conqueror and the Norman Conquest 1:53 What Was a Medieval Manor? 2:05 The Domesday Book 2:22 What Was a Villein? (And Why He Became a Villain) 2:53 The Abbot's Mill: A Hidden Tax on Bread 3:36 The Parchment Roll 3:49 Tuesday: Ploughing the Open Fields 4:27 Where "Furlong" and "Acre" Come From 4:45 Medieval Fields You Can Still See Today 5:00 Wednesday and Thursday: The Tithe 5:33 Friday: Fast Days and No Meat 5:50 What Did Medieval Peasants Eat? 6:16 Did They Really Drink Ale Instead of Water? 6:37 The Surprising Origin of "Lord" and "Lady" 6:55 Saturday: Fences, Firewood and Brewing 7:12 Manor Court Rolls: Pigs, Fights and Fines 7:39 Sunday and Medieval Holidays 8:04 Could You Survive the Week? 8:16 The Abbot Who Seized the Millstones 8:54 The Black Death Arrives 9:27 Higher Wages and the Statute of Labourers 9:42 The Poll Tax and the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 10:14 The Revolt Is Crushed 10:26 How Serfdom Really Ended 10:44 Epilogue: The Ridges in the Grass #MedievalHistory #MiddleAges #HistoryDocumentary #MedievalPeasant #BlackDeath #Feudalism #AnimatedHistory