Crisis and Change: The 14th Century · Summer Term

The Working Woman: Peasantry and Trade

Exploring the daily tasks of women on the manor and the 'brewsters' and 'silkwomen' in the towns.

About This Topic

Year 7 students investigate the working lives of women in 14th-century England, focusing on peasant women on manors and town tradeswomen such as brewsters and silkwomen. They compare farm workloads and responsibilities between women and men, including dairying, brewing, spinning, and fieldwork. Students also analyze urban economic opportunities and explain how the Black Death created labor shortages that raised wages and expanded women's roles in trades.

This topic aligns with KS3 standards in social and economic history, and the study of women in medieval society. Within the 'Crisis and Change' unit, it highlights how plague-induced population decline shifted power dynamics, allowing women greater access to guilds and markets. Primary sources like manor court rolls and guild records provide evidence for these changes.

Active learning benefits this topic because students can role-play daily tasks, simulate town markets, and handle replica sources in groups. These approaches make distant lives relatable, build skills in evidence analysis, and encourage discussions on gender roles that connect past inequalities to modern perspectives.

Learning Objectives

• Compare the daily tasks and responsibilities of peasant women and men on a medieval manor.
• Analyze the economic contributions and opportunities of women in medieval urban trades like brewing and silk production.
• Explain how the Black Death altered the social and economic standing of women in 14th-century England.
• Classify the types of evidence used to study the lives of working women in the medieval period.

Before You Start

Introduction to Medieval Society

Why: Students need a basic understanding of the feudal system, manorialism, and the structure of medieval towns before exploring specific roles within them.

Basic Medieval Farming Practices

Why: Familiarity with common agricultural tasks is necessary to compare the workload of men and women on the farm.

Key Vocabulary

Brewster	A woman who brewed and sold ale. This was a common trade for women in medieval towns, often operating from their own homes.
Silkwoman	A woman involved in the silk trade, which could include spinning silk thread, weaving silk cloth, or selling silk goods. This was a more specialized and sometimes higher-status trade.
Manor	The principal house of a landed estate, along with the land and villages controlled by the owner. Peasant women worked on the land and performed domestic duties within the manor system.
Guild	An association of artisans or merchants, often in a particular trade. Guilds regulated trade, quality, and training, and sometimes admitted women, especially after the Black Death.
Dairying	The process of making milk and milk products like butter and cheese. This was a significant task often undertaken by women on medieval farms.

Active Learning Ideas

Role-Play: Manor Workday

Pairs receive role cards for a peasant woman and man. They act out a full day of tasks using simple props like aprons and tools, timing each activity. After 15 minutes, pairs switch roles and compare notes on workloads in a short discussion.

⏱ 30 min·Pairs

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Market Simulation: Town Trades

Small groups represent brewsters or silkwomen, setting up stalls with 'goods' like drawn ale labels or silk samples. They negotiate trades with other groups, first pre-Black Death with low prices, then post-plague with higher wages. Groups chart earnings changes.

⏱ 45 min·Small Groups

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Source Carousel: Evidence Hunt

Set up four stations with manor records, guild lists, and artwork showing women's work. Groups rotate every 8 minutes, extracting evidence on tasks and Black Death impacts. Each group presents one key finding to the class.

⏱ 40 min·Small Groups

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Timeline Debate: Role Changes

Whole class builds a shared timeline of women's opportunities pre- and post-1348. Pairs prepare arguments for or against 'improved status,' then debate in a structured format with evidence cards.

⏱ 35 min·Whole Class

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Real-World Connections

Modern craft breweries are still run by individuals and small teams, continuing a long tradition of brewing that was historically dominated by women in many communities.

The rise of gig economy work today, where individuals take on varied short-term jobs, can be compared to the flexible and often essential roles women played in medieval trade and agriculture, especially after labor shortages.

The impact of pandemics on labor markets, seen with the Black Death, is a recurring historical theme. For example, labor shortages following the 1918 Spanish Flu also led to shifts in employment opportunities.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

Medieval women only did domestic chores at home.

What to Teach Instead

Peasant women worked fields and livestock alongside men, while townswomen ran breweries and silk trades. Sorting source images into 'home' versus 'public work' categories in small groups helps students reframe assumptions with visual evidence.

Common Misconception

The Black Death reduced women's economic opportunities.

What to Teach Instead

Labor shortages increased wages and opened trades to women. Wage comparison charts built collaboratively reveal these shifts, allowing students to model economic cause and effect through data handling.

Common Misconception

Town trades were open to all women equally.

What to Teach Instead

Women dominated food and textile trades but faced guild restrictions. Role-play negotiations in markets expose these limits, prompting group reflections on gendered barriers.

Assessment Ideas

Exit Ticket

Provide students with two scenarios: one describing a task on a medieval farm and another describing a task in a medieval town trade. Ask students to identify which scenario is more likely to involve a woman, and to explain their reasoning using at least one key vocabulary term.

Discussion Prompt

Pose the question: 'How did the Black Death change life for women in 14th-century England?' Facilitate a class discussion, encouraging students to reference specific economic opportunities and social changes discussed in the lesson.

Quick Check

Display images or brief descriptions of different medieval jobs (e.g., spinning wool, plowing a field, selling ale, weaving silk). Ask students to write down whether the job was typically done by men, women, or both, and to provide one piece of evidence from the lesson to support their answer for at least two jobs.

Frequently Asked Questions

What daily tasks did peasant women perform on 14th-century manors?

Peasant women managed dairying, poultry, spinning wool, brewing ale for the household, and fieldwork like harvesting. They often worked from dawn, sharing heavy labor with men but handling more childcare. Sources show their contributions equaled men's in sustaining the manor economy, challenging views of separate spheres.

How did the Black Death impact women's roles in medieval England?

The 1348-49 plague killed up to half the population, creating labor shortages. Women filled gaps in fields and trades, earning higher wages and entering male guilds. This boosted social status temporarily, as court records note more female brewsters and landholders, though gains faded by the 15th century.

What were brewsters and silkwomen in medieval towns?

Brewsters were women who brewed and sold ale, a staple drink, often from home-based operations regulated by assizes. Silkwomen imported and sold silk fabrics, dealing in luxury goods. Both navigated urban markets independently, with Black Death labor needs expanding their businesses and visibility in records.

How can active learning engage Year 7 students on medieval working women?

Role-plays of manor tasks and market simulations let students experience workloads firsthand, building empathy through physical activity. Source carousels encourage collaborative evidence hunts, while debates on Black Death changes sharpen analysis skills. These methods make abstract history concrete, boosting retention and critical thinking on gender dynamics.