The Moral Economy of the Countryside
Anglo-Saxon to Anglo-Norman England

Shows the 'moral economy' of early medieval England transformed by 'feudal thinking' in the aftermath of the Norman Conquest.

Rosamond Faith (Author)

9781108720069, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 31 October 2019

244 pages
22.8 x 15.4 x 1.4 cm, 0.37 kg

'Like her previous works, this is a dynamic contribution to the study of an often neglected but vital segment of society. Though attempting, as she does, to get into 'the hearts and minds' of the English peasantry is always fated to be an uphill struggle given the nature of the surviving sources … this volume will become a valuable touchstone for future scholars studying medieval social relations.' Stuart Pracy, Agricultural History Review

How were manorial lords in the twelfth and thirteenth century able to appropriate peasant labour? And what does this reveal about the changing attitudes and values of medieval England? Considering these questions from the perspective of the 'moral economy', the web of shared values within a society, Rosamond Faith offers a penetrating portrait of a changing world. Anglo-Saxon lords were powerful in many ways but their power did not stem directly from their ownership of land. The values of early medieval England - principally those of rank, reciprocity and worth - were shared across society. The Norman Conquest brought in new attitudes both to land and to the relationship between lords and peasants, and the Domesday Book conveyed the novel concept of 'tenure'. The new 'feudal thinking' permeated all relationships concerned with land: peasant farmers were now manorial tenants, owing labour and rent. Many people looked back to better days.

1. Introduction: the moral economy
Part I. Rank: 2. Lordship
3. Our island story
4. Honour and respect in peasant society
Part II. Reciprocity: 5. Hospitality
6. Hearth, household and farm
Part III. Reputation and Witness: 7. Neighbours and strangers
8. Markets and marketing
Part IV. The Wolf Sniffs the Wind: 9. HWILOM WÆS: Archbishop Wulfstan's old social order
10. Land, law and office
Part V. The Aftermath of Conquest: 11. New words in the countryside
12. Narrating the new social order
Part VI. In the World of the Manor: 13. Establishing custom
14. Thinking feudally
15. From rank to class
16. Conclusion: forward into the past
Appendix. The family farm in peasant studies
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500 [HBLC], British & Irish history [HBJD1]