露西·戴维森　陈晓璐/译

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.

中世纪普通欧洲人的生活肮脏而野蛮，寿命短暂。大约85%的中世纪人是农民，其中包括农奴到自由人等各类人群：农奴被依法束缚于他们劳作之地；自由民则可以更自由地行动并积累更多财富，他们是有进取心的小农，不受领主束缚。

Peasants lived in villages

农民以村落为居

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.

中世纪社会主要由建在领主土地上的村庄构成。村庄由两个部分组成：房屋、谷仓、棚屋和畜栏聚集在中间，田野和牧场围绕在四周。

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.

封建社会的农民分为不同类别。其中，农奴对着《圣经》宣誓并从法律上服从他们的领主。如果他们想搬家或结婚，必须先征得领主的同意。农奴们必须每年向领主上贡一些种植的粮食，以回报领主赐予土地耕种之恩。农奴们的生活很艰难：一旦庄稼歉收，他们就会面临饥饿问题。

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.

由于缺乏卫生设施，中世纪的城镇和村庄脏乱不堪。动物在街头乱窜，腐肉和人类排泄物常被倾倒街上。疾病肆虐，不卫生的条件导致黑死病这样的致命瘟疫暴发。

Most peasants were farmers

大多数农民以耕地为生

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农历（以太阳为中心的计时法）。这意味着在夏天，工作日最早会从凌晨3点开始一直到黄昏才结束。农民大部分时间都在耕种指派给他们家庭的土地。典型的农作物包括黑麦、燕麦、豌豆和大麦，而农民们主要用镰刀、钐刀或收割机来进行农作。

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.

针对犁地和制干草等农活，农民们也会与其他家庭合作。他们不仅要参与一般维护工作，如修路、森林清理等，还要完成领主安排的其他任务，如修剪树篱、打谷子、捆绑干草和盖茅草屋顶等。

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.

播種和收获的时节有宗教节庆活动，领主和他的农民们都可以休息一天。农民们还要在教堂的土地上劳作且没有报酬。这十分麻烦，因为农民们本可以更好地利用这些时间在他们领主的土地上干活儿。然而，没有人敢打破这一规则，因为人们普遍相信，上帝会看到他们缺乏奉献精神，从而惩罚他们。

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，一些农民是手艺人，做木匠、裁缝和铁匠之类的活儿。贸易是城镇和乡村生活的重要组成部分，各类商品如羊毛、盐、铁和农作物等都会进行买卖。至于沿海城镇，贸易可能会扩张到其他国家。

Women and children stayed at home

妇女儿童留守家中

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.

据估计，中世纪时期，大约50%的婴儿会在出生一年内死于疾病。正规的学校教育只服务于富人，或存在于修道院内，以培养今后可能成为僧侣的人。

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.

孩子们没有接受正规教育，而是学习耕种、种植粮食和饲养牲畜，或者成为当地手艺人（如铁匠或裁缝）的学徒。年轻女孩还会学习与母亲一起做家务，例如在木轮上纺羊毛来制作衣服和毯子。

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.

大约20%的妇女死于分娩。在像城镇这样较大的定居点，有些女性能够成为店主、酒吧老板或布料商，尽管如此，人们仍希望女性留在家中打扫卫生和照顾家庭。有些人还可能在富裕家庭中做仆人。

Taxes were high

税收高昂

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.

农民必须从他们的领主那里有偿租用土地，并向教堂缴纳所谓“什一税”，这种税意味着农民需将自己当年生产总值的10%用来缴税。什一税可以用现金或实物支付，如种子或设备等。

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.

什一税可以成就或毁掉一个农民家庭：如果不得不放弃种子或设备等需要的东西来缴税，第二年你可能会举步维艰。

Houses were cold and dark

房屋阴冷黑暗

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.

农民通常住在只有一个房间的小屋子里。这间屋子由抹灰篱笆墙构成，只有一个茅草屋顶，没有窗户。屋子中央有一个灶台用来烧火，一旦烧上，就会烟雾缭绕。屋子里面，大约三分之一的面积需用来饲养牲畜，牲畜与农民一家一起生活。

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，家具则是几张凳子、一个放床上用品的箱子和一些炊具。床上用品通常生满臭虫和其他咬人的昆虫，而所有由油脂制成的蜡烛都会散发出刺鼻气味。

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.

到中世纪末期，住房有所改善。农民的屋子变大了，一家拥有两间房的并不少见，个别还会有两层楼房。

The justice system was harsh

司法系统严酷

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.

中世纪没有警察系统，这意味着执法工作一般由当地人组织。有些地区要求所有12岁以上的男性加入一个称为“十家区”的团体，充当准警察部队。如果有人受到伤害，他们会大声叫喊，以此呼唤其他村民追捕罪犯。

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

轻罪通常由当地领主处理，而国王任命的法官会前往全国各地处理重罪。

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.

如果陪审团无法决定一个人是无辜还是有罪，则可能会宣布通过“神明裁判”进行审判。人们必须完成一些痛苦的任务，如在滚烫的煤块上行走、用手从沸水中取出石头或者手持炽热的铁块。如果伤口在三天内愈合，就会被认定为无辜；如果没有，則会被判定为有罪并可能受到严厉的惩罚。