Agricultural History Review, Volume 61 Part 2 (2013), pp. 187–205

The later fourteenth century is often considered a period of rising standards of living, attributed in part to falling grain prices and diminished population pressure in the aftermath of the Black Death. Yet data from Oakington, Cambridgeshire, obtained from unusually complete tithe accounts, suggests that smallholding peasants in this region remained constrained by competing needs of production and consumption, even at the end of the fourteenth century. This article examines resource allocation and decision making on peasant land, and considers the effects of falling grain prices on standards of living in a region dependent on arable husbandry. By modelling a hypothetical peasant holding, this article argues that peasants at Oakington prized stability of yield, flexibility of crop use, and the calorific value of the land for people and, crucially, livestock. This allowed peasants to meet their consumption and contractual needs, but hindered their ability to respond quickly to changing economic circumstances. 

Complete Volume PDF