Occupations of Medieval Europe

1. Occupations of Medieval Europe By: Jessica Joy and Sarah Carter McClanahan

2. Introduction to the Feudal System • Feudal system- • 4 main groups- kings, nobles, lords, and serfs • It was a society status and social standing • Many different kinds of jobs were available • King gave land to nobles and lords in return for security and support • Knights served in the armies which provided their needs • Lords gave knights in trade for a manor • Peasants to farm their land

3. "Bread and Butter Jobs" • Cover everyone’s basic needs • Clothing, food, and drink. • Workers almost always had work • Not well paid, further down in class • Peasant, serf, yeoman (family farmer), housewife, butcher, beggar, brewer, miller (grain grinder), baker, weaver, cobbler (shoemaker), or blacksmith • Surnames- Smith, Weaver, Miller, or Baker • Bakers – only ones with ovens • Naturally cobblers were in business • Blacksmiths always in demand • 55 kilogram armor

4. "Religious Jobs" • Christianity and Catholicism were popular, Judaism not so much • Well respected because they helped your soul have eternal life • Varying pay and class • Logically, the pope was second only to God • Life-long job • Chaplain (head of a castle, manor house, chapel, or monastery), cardinal (which equaled a king), monks and nuns (very simple folks), bishops, and parsons, or poor priests.

5. "Castle Jobs" • Careers inside the walls of a castle • Plenty of jobs • Living in the castle= a great advantage • Generally fed with necessities taken care of • Knights worked for the lords and given to the king • Pages, squires, and knights • Other jobs included Heralds (messengers), armorers, bailiffs (somewhat like the chaplains of a manor), cooks, marshals (like today’s CEO position), archer, jester, chamberlain (bedroom servant), almoner (one who gives noble’s money to the poor), butlers, or regular servants • Fun fact- Many newspapers are still called “The Herald” today!

6. "Wonder Worker's Jobs" • Masters of their trade • Generally well paid with average respect • Hired by a king or noble= boost credibility and high pay • A majority of these jobs sound so fun; they could be mistaken for hobbies! • Inventor, artificer (or technician for stage machinery), architect, engineer, scribe (Equal to today’s modern Xerox machine), and bookbinder

7. "Life and Death Jobs" • Refer to the jobs of those who provide medical help and attention • Doctors refused to treat peasants, so other folks had to fill in • Barbers doubled as surgeons- amputated or bloodlet • Because it was believed that having too much blood caused numerous diseases, bloodletting was a practice used frequently. • Surgeries were primarily done by surgeons • No anesthesia or pain numbing • Assistants held down patients • Doctors often made diagnoses by studying astrology and looking at the stars • Apothecarists were somewhat like pharmacists of the modern world • Used herbs to concoct new medicines

8. “Sit-Down Jobs” • Considered a luxury • Some examples are: • A teacher, philosopher, polymath, alchemist, clerk, astrologer, and a nonfiction author. • Polymath: • someone who knows everything there is to know • Roger Bacon likely was closer than anyone else to knowing everything. • Alchemist had two goals in their job: • figure out how to turn other metals into gold • the philosopher’s stone • Nonfiction Author: • wrote practical books such as histories or “self-improvement” books

9. “Artistic Jobs” • “Artistic jobs” were hard to make a living off of. • Artists had to be businessmen in order to sell the work, as well as an artist in order to make their work. • Some examples are: • stained-glass artist, painter, embroiderer, wood-carver, sculptor, playwright, player (actor), illuminator, and a poet. • Painter: • To be a painter you need the talent, a steady hand, determination and not too much imagination. • Poet: • make his/her living at other jobs. • have to cut and sharpen their own quill pen, mix their own ink and write on vellum or parchment

10. “Dirty Jobs” • “Dirty jobs” refer to dirty in two different ways; • Some are dirty because you have to work in nasty conditions • Others were dirty because you hunted, cheated, or bullied your victim • Some examples are: • a street cleaner, gong farmer (latrine attendant), bathhouse attendant, miner, pardoner, and witch hunter. • Bathhouse attendant: • you would carry water, soap and wash the hair of your customers • Pardoner: • sell fake pardons from God for the forgiveness of sins

11. “Law and Order Jobs” • A “law and order job” would not have been easier in that time because the medieval legal systems were not simpler than ours today. • Some examples are: • a lawyer, provost, summoner, headsman, torturer, money changer, sheriff, bandit, and an enforcer of laws against rich clothes. • Pardoner: • finds the person who has been charged with an offence or called as a witness, explains the charge and warn him/her to appear in court. • Torturer: • someone who used torture to make someone confess to a crime • Money Changer: • must know the value of different coins and it’s weight

12. “Traveling Jobs” • People traveled for many reasons: business, diplomacy, pilgrimage, carriage of goods by land or sea, messages, study, consultation, war, and curiosity. • Some examples are: • a messenger, minstrel, troubadour, town crier, innkeeper, pilgrim, carter, traveling merchant, importer/exporter, and an explorer. • Town Crier: • carry news and make announcements. • Explorer: • had a lot of courage to be put to sea in a small boat not knowing whether or not the map they have is right or wrong.

13. Conclusion • Since then, we’ve made great technological advances • Some job methods formerly practiced seem ridiculous and silly now • Created paths for many industries we still have around today • Families passed down their line of work through many generations • Each job was very important and affected many people • Intertwining web of professions that depended on other professions

14. Thank You!