22. Medieval Peasants Did Not Work More than the Modern Worker
We might comfort ourselves on long workdays with the thought that least we don’t have it as bad as medieval workers. No, sir, at least we are not like our peasant ancestors who toiled from dawn to dusk, or medieval artisans who began work at sunup, and kept at it past sunset and well into the night with candlelight. We could console ourselves thus, but it would be consolation based on an inaccurate perception. Long hours and the frantic rat race we’re familiar with are a feature of the modern era and its innovative linkage of work to a regular schedule and the clock. Back in the days, however, people did not work very long hours, life’s tempo was slow, and the pace of work was relaxed.
Our peasant ancestors might not have been rich, and they lacked many of the creature comforts we take for granted. However, one thing they had more than we do is free time. For example, an average American in 1987 worked 1949 hours annually. By 2015, that figure had dipped to 1811 hours a year. An improvement, but still almost 200 hours more than a thirteenth century adult male English peasant, who worked an average of 1620 hours annually. A typical medieval workday stretched from dawn to dusk, and the labor could be backbreaking. However, there were many breaks for breakfast, lunch, an afternoon nap, and dinner. There might also be midmorning and midafternoon refreshment breaks. After a harvest, peasants might enjoy up to eight weeks off of slack times. And that does not count all the holidays and religious feast days.