Introduction During the medieval times, social classes functioned actively. The kings occupied the highest social class, followed by the lords and the peasants occupied the lowest social class. Medieval peasants suffered so much because they languished in poverty often depending on the lords for their income and money for existence.
Discussion The medieval peasants relied on the protection of lords who subjected to other powerful lords. The religious beliefs and practices that existed during medieval times contributed in keeping peasants pacified. The religion taught them that although they suffered, their goodness would help them get to heaven. This theory meant to oppress the peasants and favor the kings and lords who owned land and property and was misplaced (Whiting 1). Peasants did not revolt because of their ignorance. They blindly followed and believed all that religion taught because of ignorance.
Peasants had no education, something that made them loyal to lords. In addition to that, people during the medieval times had no property rights. Land belonged to the king who rented it to the lords with the promise that they would pay tax. Therefore, peasants could only get a place to live, if they agreed to wor for them or work as carpenters, blacksmiths, or bakers and agree to pay the lord a form of rent. The court systems at that time protected the will of the kings and lords. Therefore, the peasants had no moral or social obligation to fight for property because medieval laws did not allow that to happen.
The peasants occupied ninety percent of the population during the medieval age. Therefore, they could not revolt because it seemed to be a normal life for almost everyone in the society (Whiting 6).The Black Death had many economic effects on Europe. The plague hit most parts of Europe and killed many people.
This affected the economy because it killed may people who could contribute towards the betterment of the economy. Had the plague not taken root, Europe would have progressed immensely in terms of its civilization. Europe would have accumulated taxes from the people who died. This would have helped the continent start projects that would have increased its economy.
The plague reduced the birth rate in Europe. If this could not happen, Europe would have accumulated enough human resource that could help the continent rise economically. Key areas of the economy in Europe such as, production agriculture, manufacturing, technology and industry could have improved considerably if the Black Death could not occurr. The prices of goods today have not increased by a high margin because the continent made no progress economically for a whole century (Mankiw 409).
The plague had certain positive changes for the European continent. The plague acted as a natural population control method. It killed many people and reduced the number of people in Europe. The plague also changed family structures because people did not take children as an essential part of them, therefore, not worth the trouble. The demand for agricultural and industrial workers enabled the survivors has a new bargaining power.
They demanded higher wages. Many people travelled from the rural areas to the urban areas. This helped to change the economic structure of Europe from land-based wealth to the use of money, skills and services. The effects of the plague helped to bring up towns and cities.Conclusion The medieval times marked an age where many people suffered because of ignorance and unfair treatment in the court systems among other things.
The Black Death affected Europe both positively and negatively. The economic structure of the continent changed because of the reduction in the population of people. This affected the civilization of Europe majorly with a shift from agriculture to industries.
