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Life in a Medieval Village

By: Frances Gies, Joseph Gies
Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
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Publisher's summary

Life in a Medieval Village, by respected historians Joseph and Frances Gies, paints a lively, convincing portrait of rural people at work and at play in the Middle Ages. Focusing on the village of Elton, in the English East Midlands, the Gieses detail the agricultural advances that made communal living possible, explain what domestic life was like for serf and lord alike, and describe the central role of the church in maintaining social harmony. Though the main focus is on Elton, c. 1300, the Gieses supply enlightening historical context on the origin, development, and decline of the European village, itself an invention of the Middle Ages.

Meticulously researched, Life in a Medieval Village is a remarkable account that illustrates the captivating world of the Middle Ages and demonstrates what it was like to live during a fascinating - and often misunderstood - era.

©1990 Frances and Joseph Gies (P)2017 Tantor
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History
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Critic reviews

"Using the English village of Elton, the Gies vividly detail the everyday lives of people during the Middle Ages." ( School Library Journal)

What listeners say about Life in a Medieval Village

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Very thorough and informative.

A great reference for medieval English life. I found myself having to go back to catch something missed due to the density of information.

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1 person found this helpful

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it gets very dry but still interesting

if you're interested in medieval life, then it will keep your attention no problem. however it does go on quite long with just reading old records.

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a reliable academic text

I wish the chapters were titled by audible but ice complaints go that's really kind of petty LOL

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Simply Insightful.

Easy to understand narration at a decent pace. Easy to pick and up and continue on without confusion even mid phrase.

Chapter divisions were at sinple placements for stoppages and left little less breaks to be desired.

Content is insightful and full of colorful vocabulary, most of which is came across then defined in terms or in contextual distinction of the times. Not only paints a proportioned picture of an aversge village life in Medieval England of which this is centered, but also gives a wider bredth into how it was different from that on the content of Europe

Enjoying listen and Id assume an enjoying read aswell.

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A step back in time

Using a English village as the template, this book shows you what life was like in a medieval village. It busts a lot of misconceptions I had and helps to really make these people feel like real people.

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Short but Good Survey of Village Institutions

Focusing on social institutions such as landholding, law courts, and the parish, and including prologue and epilogue histories before the Normans and after the Black Death, this is a good survey of information available on the Medieval village. Includes a number of primary but also tertiary source quotations.
The narration is not monotonous but repetitive, unfortunately. And there is a noticable affectation for deepening the voice artificially when reading quoted material. Otherwise very clear narration.

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