What Was Life Like for Medieval Peasants?中世紀農民的生活是怎樣的？

露西·戴維森　陳曉璐/譯

For the average person in Medieval Europe， life was nasty， brutish and short. Around 85% of medieval people were peasants， which consisted of anyone from serfs who were legally tied to the land they worked， to freemen， who， as enterprising smallholders untethered to a lord， could travel more freely and accrue more wealth.

中世紀普通歐洲人的生活骯臟而野蠻，壽命短暫。大約85%的中世紀人是農民，其中包括農奴到自由人等各類人群：農奴被依法束縛于他們勞作之地；自由民則可以更自由地行動并積累更多財富，他們是有進取心的小農，不受領主束縛。

Peasants lived in villages

農民以村落為居

Medieval society was largely made up of villages built upon a lords land. Villages were comprised of houses， barns， sheds and animal pens clustered in the middle. Fields and pastures surrounded them.

中世紀社會主要由建在領主土地上的村莊構成。村莊由兩個部分組成：房屋、谷倉、棚屋和畜欄聚集在中間，田野和牧場圍繞在四周。

There were different categories of peasants within the feudal society. Villeins were peasants who had legally sworn an oath of obedience on the bible to their local lord. If they wanted to move or get married， they had to ask the lord first. In return for being allowed to farm the land， villeins had to give some of the food they grew each year to him. Life was hard： if crops failed， peasants faced starvation.

封建社會的農民分為不同類別。其中，農奴對著《圣經》宣誓并從法律上服從他們的領主。如果他們想搬家或結婚，必須先征得領主的同意。農奴們必須每年向領主上貢一些種植的糧食，以回報領主賜予土地耕種之恩。農奴們的生活很艱難：一旦莊稼歉收，他們就會面臨饑餓問題。

Towns and villages in the medieval period were unhygienic due to a lack of sanitation. Animals roamed the street and human waste and waste meat were commonly thrown into the street. Disease was rife， with unsanitary conditions leading to the outbreak of deadly plagues like the Black Death.

由于缺乏衛生設施，中世紀的城鎮和村莊臟亂不堪。動物在街頭亂竄，腐肉和人類排泄物常被傾倒街上。疾病肆虐，不衛生的條件導致黑死病這樣的致命瘟疫暴發。

Most peasants were farmers

大多數農民以耕地為生

Daily medieval life revolved around an agrarian calendar （centred around the sun）， meaning in the summer， the workday would start as early as 3 am and finish at dusk. Peasants spent most of their time farming their strip of land assigned to their family. Typical crops included rye， oats， peas and barley which were harvested with a sickle， scythe or reaper.

中世紀的日常生活遵循農歷（以太陽為中心的計時法）。這意味著在夏天，工作日最早會從凌晨3點開始一直到黃昏才結束。農民大部分時間都在耕種指派給他們家庭的土地。典型的農作物包括黑麥、燕麥、豌豆和大麥，而農民們主要用鐮刀、釤刀或收割機來進行農作。

Peasants would also work cooperatively with other families when it came to tasks such as ploughing and haying. They were also expected to carry out general maintenance such as road building， forest-clearing and any other work the lord determined such as hedging， threshing， binding and thatching.

針對犁地和制干草等農活，農民們也會與其他家庭合作。他們不僅要參與一般維護工作，如修路、森林清理等，還要完成領主安排的其他任務，如修剪樹籬、打谷子、捆綁干草和蓋茅草屋頂等。

Church feasts marked sowing and reaping days when both a lord and his peasants could take a day of rest. Peasants were also required to work for free on church land， which was highly inconvenient as the time could be better used working on their lords property. However， nobody dared break the rule since it was widely taught that God would see their lack of devotion and punish them.

播種和收獲的時節有宗教節慶活動，領主和他的農民們都可以休息一天。農民們還要在教堂的土地上勞作且沒有報酬。這十分麻煩，因為農民們本可以更好地利用這些時間在他們領主的土地上干活兒。然而，沒有人敢打破這一規則，因為人們普遍相信，上帝會看到他們缺乏奉獻精神，從而懲罰他們。

However， some peasants were craftspeople who worked as carpenters， tailors and blacksmiths. Since trade was an important part of town and village life， goods such as wool， salt， iron and crops were bought and sold. For coastal towns， trade might extend to other countries.

除此之外，一些農民是手藝人，做木匠、裁縫和鐵匠之類的活兒。貿易是城鎮和鄉村生活的重要組成部分，各類商品如羊毛、鹽、鐵和農作物等都會進行買賣。至于沿海城鎮，貿易可能會擴張到其他國家。

Women and children stayed at home

婦女兒童留守家中

It is estimated that around 50% of infants during the medieval period would succumb to illness within the first year of their lives. Formal schooling was reserved for the wealthy or located within monasteries for those who would go on to become monks.

據估計，中世紀時期，大約50%的嬰兒會在出生一年內死于疾病。正規的學校教育只服務于富人，或存在于修道院內，以培養今后可能成為僧侶的人。

Instead of formal schooling， children learned to farm， grow food and tend to livestock， or would become an apprentice to a local craftsperson such as a blacksmith or tailor. Young girls would also learn to do domestic activities with their mothers such as spinning wool on wooden wheels to make clothes and blankets.

孩子們沒有接受正規教育，而是學習耕種、種植糧食和飼養牲畜，或者成為當地手藝人（如鐵匠或裁縫）的學徒。年輕女孩還會學習與母親一起做家務，例如在木輪上紡羊毛來制作衣服和毯子。

Around 20% of women died in childbirth. Though some women in bigger settlements such as towns were able to take up work as shopkeepers， pub landladies or cloth-sellers， women were expected to stay at home， clean and look after the family. Some might have also taken on work as a servant in a wealthier household.

大約20%的婦女死于分娩。在像城鎮這樣較大的定居點，有些女性能夠成為店主、酒吧老板或布料商，盡管如此，人們仍希望女性留在家中打掃衛生和照顧家庭。有些人還可能在富裕家庭中做仆人。

Taxes were high

稅收高昂

Peasants had to pay to rent their land from their lord， and a tax to the church called a tithe， which was 10% of the value of what a farmer had produced in the year. A tithe could be paid in cash or in kind， such as seeds or equipment.

農民必須從他們的領主那里有償租用土地，并向教堂繳納所謂“什一稅”，這種稅意味著農民需將自己當年生產總值的10%用來繳稅。什一稅可以用現金或實物支付，如種子或設備等。

Tithes could make or break a peasants family： if you had had to give up things you needed like seeds or equipment， you might struggle in the coming year.

什一稅可以成就或毀掉一個農民家庭：如果不得不放棄種子或設備等需要的東西來繳稅，第二年你可能會舉步維艱。

Houses were cold and dark

房屋陰冷黑暗

Peasants generally lived in small houses which normally consisted of only one room. Huts were made from wattle and daub with a thatch roof and no windows. A fire burned in the hearth in the centre， which， would create a very smoky environment. Inside the hut， around a third was penned off for livestock， who would live alongside the family.

農民通常住在只有一個房間的小屋子里。這間屋子由抹灰籬笆墻構成，只有一個茅草屋頂，沒有窗戶。屋子中央有一個灶臺用來燒火，一旦燒上，就會煙霧繚繞。屋子里面，大約三分之一的面積需用來飼養牲畜，牲畜與農民一家一起生活。

The floor was normally made of earth and straw， and furniture usually consisted of a few stools， a trunk for bedding and some cooking utensils. Bedding was normally riddled with bedbugs and other biting insects， and any candles made of oil and fat created a pungent aroma.

地板通常由泥土和稻草制成，家具則是幾張凳子、一個放床上用品的箱子和一些炊具。床上用品通常生滿臭蟲和其他咬人的昆蟲，而所有由油脂制成的蠟燭都會散發出刺鼻氣味。

Towards the end of the medieval period， housing improved. Peasant houses became larger， and it wasnt uncommon to have two rooms， and occasionally a second floor.

到中世紀末期，住房有所改善。農民的屋子變大了，一家擁有兩間房的并不少見，個別還會有兩層樓房。

The justice system was harsh

司法系統嚴酷

There was no organised police force during the medieval period， which meant that law enforcement was generally organised by local people. Some areas required every male over 12 to join a group called a ‘tithing to act as a quasi-police force. If someone was the victim of a crime， theyd raise the ‘hue and cry， which would summon other villagers to pursue the criminal.

中世紀沒有警察系統，這意味著執法工作一般由當地人組織。有些地區要求所有12歲以上的男性加入一個稱為“十家區”的團體，充當準警察部隊。如果有人受到傷害，他們會大聲叫喊，以此呼喚其他村民追捕罪犯。

Minor crimes were normally dealt with by the local lord， while a king-appointed judge would travel the country to deal with serious crimes.

輕罪通常由當地領主處理，而國王任命的法官會前往全國各地處理重罪。

If a jury couldnt decide if a person was innocent or guilty， a trial by ordeal might be pronounced. People were subjected to painful tasks such as walking on hot coals， putting their hand in boiling water to retrieve a stone and holding a red hot iron. If your wounds healed within three days， you were deemed to be innocent. If not， you were considered to be guilty and you could be severely punished.

如果陪審團無法決定一個人是無辜還是有罪，則可能會宣布通過“神明裁判”進行審判。人們必須完成一些痛苦的任務，如在滾燙的煤塊上行走、用手從沸水中取出石頭或者手持熾熱的鐵塊。如果傷口在三天內愈合，就會被認定為無辜；如果沒有，則會被判定為有罪并可能受到嚴厲的懲罰。