Topic: Medieval Population Dynamics In Britain

[Jubal]

MEDIEVAL POPULATION DYNAMICS IN BRITAIN

Key Events: Summary
1050 Approx. start of medieval period, population grows steadily but strongly
1300 Population reaches zenith (estimates from 3 to 6 million), begins to decline
1315 Several years of bad weather and crop failures
1349 Black Death, population drops by 1/3 to 1/2
1370s Good harvests, price of grain drops, but little upswing in population
1400s Population fairly stagnant, little increase

Major Questions
What was the major driving factor behind population dynamics
- Malthusians (), Thesis that population growth outstripped the amount of land and intensity of farming available and so population grew to 1300 then naturally receded.
- Marxists, Thesis that crisis of subsistence was caused by class conflict and arbitrary restrictions on serf working class by landlords, with increasing surplus extraction until population began to recede.
- Neo-Marxists, broadly accept Malthusian causes for subsistence crisis but posit this as the backdrop to larger class conflict.

See Also