What was the daily life of a serf like?

Answer 1

1st AnswerA serf was a slave so he worked from sunup to sundown on the lands and other things on the manor. It was a hard, cold, dirty life. He had no standing as the lowest in the feudal system and had to do what he was told. 2nd AnswerA serf was not a slave. A serf was not free because he was bound to the soil he worked, so he was not allowed to leave the manor. But he had the right to be on the manor, and if it was sold, neither the new owner nor the old had the right to move the serf off the land. He gave the lord part of his production in exchange for a place to live, fields to work, and protection. It was a matter of mutual obligation. Serfs of medieval Europe were not bought or sold.

Serfs were assigned lands to farm by people called reeves. The reeves acted as go between for the serfs and the lord who owned the manor. The reeve was not assigned by the lord, but was elected by the serfs themselves.

Serfs lived in small cottages with dirt floors and simple construction of stone or wattle and daub. What windows they had were unglazed. They had no fireplaces, as chimneys were an invention of the 11th or 12th century, and only rich people could afford them. The fire, when there was one, might have been on the dirt floor, and the smoke went out through a hole in the roof or high on the walls. Cooking was done indoors only when heat was needed in the house, and otherwise was outdoors.

Serfs went to church regularly, possibly once a week and possibly more often. Even the villages we would call small had churches.

Serfs were clean, as they believed that a clean body was an indicator of a good soul. They also believed that diseases were carried by foul air, and a foul smell was a possible disease vector. Many small towns had public baths, and those who could not get to the baths would bathe wherever they could. Sometimes this meant bathing in a brook in the winter.

The food was simple. It was largely made up of cereal grains in gruel, bread, porridge, root vegetables, cabbage, onions, leeks, peas, fava beans, and so on. Serfs of some places were required to be armed with a bow at all times and encouraged to shoot rabbits and other vermin that could get into the fields (not deer). The purpose of this was to be able to raise an army easily and quickly. But the immediate benefit to the serf was that he had a source of meat. Serfs also age pork and chicken, but they were not allowed to eat large cuts of meat such as steaks or roasts under the sumptuary laws of some places.

In the Early Middle Ages, the large majority of people were serfs, except for areas such as Scandinavia, where they existed in very small numbers, if at all. Later, the number of serfs declined and the number of freemen increased. By the end of the Middle Ages, there were no serfs to speak of in many areas such as Scotland and England.

Answer 2

It varied, of course, with time and place, but in general, serfs worked six days every week. They often had their own plots of land and a certain amount of time they were required to work on the lord's land. In other places they worked as sharecroppers, working their own plots but providing the lord with a part of the crop. In exchange for this they got the place they lived in and protection.

On Sunday they went to church. In England, they competed at Archery after church in many or most places. They were encouraged to be as good at archery as possible, and were often allowed to shoot rabbits for food, if the rabbits got into their fields.

Their food, clothes, and lives were simple. They were not, however, dirty, as I found out doing research for another Wikianswers question; it seems they bathed regularly and felt it was important not to smell bad.

About a third of the children of the middle ages died before they were two. The life expectancy at birth is said to have been 37, in much of Europe. Calculated out, this means that the life expectancy of a child of 2 was close to sixty, so the idea that they all died young would seem to be a misunderstanding.

Answer 3

Worse than an American slave. Russia is frigid, and there were monarchs, so there was no cap to the cruelty. Also, serfs were given away as gifts, by the thousands. You slept in a cramped cabin, and wore inadequate clothing.

Answer 4

The living conditions were pretty hard. They had to work 2-3 days per week. They had to do extra work during the especially busy season such as ploughing. Serfs also had to make payments to the Lord which could include money, grain, honey, eggs or other produce whenever they used the Lord's grainery or on other occasions. The serfs also had to build there own house from scratch, make their own clothes and make/grown there own food.

Answer 5

Serfs were agricultural labourers, so their lives were the same as any of the agricultural labourers who were freemen. As with all people involved in agriculture, the rhythms of their lives were closely attuned to the passage of the seasons. The status of serf did not affect the serf's lifestyle; it only prevented him from leaving the manor to which he belonged.

Answer 6

A serf was a slave so he was up at dawn, eat a bit, and then go to work for the day until sunset.