14. Misreported Fact: Medieval Peasant Workload
Peasants had it rough in the Middle Ages. They lived in cramped quarters without many amenities we take for granted, sanitation was abysmal, they performed backbreaking work, and were exploited by aristocrats. They often had to worry about war, famine, and plague. We might envy them one thing, however: they worked fewer hours than us and had way more vacation time. We often view medieval peasants as exploited, downtrodden, brutalized, oppressed, and overworked minions. For the most part, they actually were exploited, downtrodden, brutalized, and oppressed.
Medieval peasants were placed at the bottom of the social pyramid, with fewer legal rights and protections than the nobles and clergy above them. A significant chunk of the fruits of their labor went to support their social betters. A peasant in Middle Ages Europe might have been reduced to the status of an outright serf, bound to the land and unable to leave without the proprietor’s permission. He might be required to put more time and effort to tend a noble’s fields than his own. However, when it comes to whether they were overworked, well – as it turns out, not so much. As seen below, modern Americans work longer hours, with less vacation time and fewer holidays, than medieval peasants.
