81. The Medieval Paupers| Lectures In Medieval History | Dr. Lynn H. Nelson, Emeritu
The Medieval Paupers, a lecture by Lynn Harry Nelson, Emeritus Professor of Medieval History, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. Nelson examines Medieval paupers by categorising them into three groups, physically incompetent, socially marginalised and economically deprived and examines factors contributing to this state, as well as outcomes of this state.
http://www.vlib.us/medieval/lectures/paupers.html |
Lectures in Medieval History The Medieval Paupers Who Were the Medieval Paupers? About 20% of the medieval population were destitute and homeless, wandering the roads of Europe looking for work or for charity, and climbing beneath a roadside hedge to die. Although they were ubiquitous, they have been neglected by historians because of the lack of sources discussing them directly. One exception was the starving beggars who followed "King" Tafur on the First Crusade. They were utterly without fear and, when food was low, would go out and capture one of the Muslim opponents. They would then roast and eat him. Leaders of both Muslims and Christians feared the beggars and finally conspired to lure them out into a waterless desert and abandon them there without supplies. Only a few survived. Why Were Some People Paupers? Most paupers fell into one or another of three groups. The physically incompetent : the mentally retarded, blind and deaf, halt and aged, the deformed, maimed or mutilated, "lepers," epileptics, emotionally disturbed, and others. The socially marginalized : widows and orphans without protection, any criminals who had been "marked," captured soldiers who had been maimed, old women, the "immoral," and others cast out of their own societies. | |
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