Rise of Towns and Trade

Rise of Towns and Trade Chapter 27

Introduction • Life was good in Europe • People wanted luxury items like sugar, spices, silks, and dyes from the East • Travel and trade increased

Trading Centers • Two important trading centers arose: Venice and Flanders • Venetian merchants developed a banking system • Flemish merchants turned raw materials into finished products (wool into cloth)

Merchants • Learned to read, write, use money, and keep records • Traveled by land and sea • Stopped to trade with each other at yearly fairs sponsored by feudal lords • Lords collected taxes on the sales

Merchants • Set up booths to display wares such as pots, swords, armor, leather goods, and clothing • Bartered at first, then began paying with money

Growth of Towns • Merchants wanted a permanent settlement • Chose places near waterways or road crossings along a trade route, and near castles, fortresses, or monasteries for protection

Growth of Towns • Towns developed from merchant settlements • Towns came to be called burgs • Grew and attracted more people • Held weekly fairs • Became communities of merchants, runaway serfs, traders, wanderers, and artisans

The Black Death • Towns were crowded, dirty, unhealthy places to live • In the 1300s, diseased rats brought the Bubonic Plague to Europe • Millions died • Probably 1 out of 3 Europeans died of the plague • People left towns and fled to the countryside to escape it

Burghers and Lords • Burghers (rich merchants and artisans) gained more wealth and power • Feudal lords did not like the burghers having power • Burghers developed a sense of loyalty to their town and worked together to build schools, hospitals and churches

Communes • Towns formed political groups called communes to oppose the feudal lords • The communes became independent city-states • Towns received charters from the king that allowed them to control their own affairs

The Rise of Guilds • Merchants, artisans, and workers formed guilds, or business groups whose purpose was to ensure equal treatment for members • Couldn’t compete with one another • Worked same hours • Same number of workers • Same wages

Becoming a Guild Member

Cultural Changes • As townspeople grew richer and more powerful, they began turning away from feudalism and looking to kings to provide leadership • Why?

Rise of Towns and Trade