History of the Germans Ep. 67: Germany in the Year 1200 - The Peasants
This is about the peasants, no kings, emperors, popes, bishops at all. Ok one brother of a duke at the end because I simply cannot help myself. But yes, peasants. What was the life of a peasant in Germany in around 1200 really like? How much do we actually know about their living conditions? Did it differ much from country to country?
The correct answer to all of these is – we are not really sure. These sections of the podcast are always the hardest ones. Following some king or emperor around is fairly straightforward. That s what the sources are focused on and you can compare them as well as the different interpretation and you get a half decent picture of what is likely to have happened. But nobody has written a chronicle about the poor Michel, sharecropper on the lands of the count of Pfullendorf. Let alone a second one from the perspective of the count.
Still we try.
As always, this episode has a dedicated website with the transcript and maps, pictures and additional comments to read along. It is to be found at Episode 67 Germany in the year 1200 - The Peasants • History of the Germans Podcast
The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.
As always:
Homepage with maps, photos, transcripts and blog: www.historyofthegermans.com
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To make it easier for you to share the podcast, I have created separate playlists for some of the seasons that are set up as individual podcasts. they have the exact same episodes as in the History of the Germans, but they may be a helpful device for those who want to concentrate on only one season.
So far I have:
Salian Emperors and Investiture Controversy
Fredrick Barbarossa and Early Hohenstaufen
The Holy Roman Empire 1250-1356
The Reformation before the Reformation