Neighborhood in the Middle Ages and in the early modern period: a comprehensive consideration

Social life and the way people lived and treated each other in the Middle Ages and in the early modern period are topics that, due to the sparse sources, can be difficult to reconstruct in detail. Despite the few documents and written records available, historians and researchers have tried to draw a picture of howneighborhood coexistence in these diverse epochs. Literature and the traditions of that time rarely reflect the everyday life of people, but mostly concentrate on the great heroes, knightly fights, magical beings or the dramatic love that shaped medieval thinking. The neighborhoods only appear in a few places in theFocus, mostly in the form of short mentions or through a few documents that only begin to light up the social structures and coexistence. A significant conference, which took place at the University of Hamburg in 2023, was dedicated to exactly this topic, namely the search for a social and community form that becomes visible in the literature of the Middle Ages and early modern times.It became clear that the literary works primarily describe the borderland between civilization and wilderness, while actual interpersonal coexistence is rarely explicitly presented. The authors of these works focused on the adventures, magic and dangers lurking in the forest and wilderness, avoiding the daily interaction of thefocus on people. The Artus novels, which are among the most important literary testimonies of this time, report primarily on places that are close to castles or dominions and draw a picture of a world in which nature becomes mystical and dangerous space in which no neighborhood exists in a modern sense.

The lack of neighborly representation in the literature

The literature of the Middle Ages and the early modern period is hardly a source for the social interaction of people in their neighborhood. The works that have been handed down to us from this period are primarily the heroic deeds of the knights, the dramatic love stories or the magical events that shaped the world view of the people of the time. The representation of the everydayLiving together, which we would call neighborhood today, is rarely found in the written traditions. Instead, themes such as heroic deaths that end in battles against monsters or enemies dominate, as well as unfulfilled love sung by Bards and whose tragedy is the focus. These works are primarily an expression of the great emotions and theAdventures that permeate the culture of that time, while social relationships are hardly visible in everyday life. Nevertheless, the Middle Ages is an important epoch in which the foundations for the development of a legal framework were laid that regulated the coexistence of the neighborhoods. Even before the emergence of cities, there were communities in the country that weretraditions and norms were held together. From the twelfth century, the first major urban settlements were created, which drew the picture of a more closely connected community in which people no longer lived in isolation in their fields, but in the immediate vicinity of each other. Living together in the cities brought new possibilities of mutual help,But also new challenges that arose from the density and the narrow development. People had to learn to deal with the conflicts and problems that arise from the immediate proximity to each other and developed appropriate social norms and orders in order to shape life together.

The social structure in the country: community and norms

Life in the country was characterized by a close community based on common needs and mutual support. The sociologist Bernd Hamm, who dealt with the topic of neighborhood intensively, describes in his work the differences between the relaxed urban society and the closely connected village community. Living together on theCountry was characterized by a multitude of everyday necessities, which were only regulated by social norms and mutual obligations. The people lived in the midst of nature, were dependent on their own work and were in close alliance with their neighbors, who were then called Nahegiburen at the time. When the harvest time was due, the villagers met toWorking together in the fields, scoring grain, turning hay or bringing in the harvest. Building a new village well was organized jointly, with everyone making their contribution. The spatial proximity was also reflected in the common culture: The same religion was shared, celebrated the same festivals and feared the same strokes of fate. If the weatherThe villagers were affected together when the harvest was threatened or storms threatened. In material terms, too, one lived on a comparable level, even if the fields of a farmer were larger or more fertile than those of a neighbor. The social hierarchy was limited to the distinction between the noble sovereign and the unowned auxiliary staff. The auxiliary staff consisted ofservants, maids and migrant workers who were integrated into the community but were well below the landowners in their position. Although this order was shaped by a stand, there was a high level of mutual support and solidarity in everyday life, which held the social structure together in the countryside. The common life was shaped by rituals, established norms and astrong bond, which ensured cohesion in the small communities and formed the basis for stable coexistence in rural society.

City life: diversity, rules and social norms

In contrast to the quiet and relatively stable country life, city life was characterized by a much greater variety of people, social stands and cultures. The city was a place where different ways of life met, reflected in the narrow streets and on the busy marketplaces. The social structure was more complex, since different classes such as merchants,Craftsmen, dealers and also service providers met and interacted with each other. The study of the social space in the cities shows that there is hardly any reliable knowledge about who the residents actually considered their neighbors. The municipal regulations in which the duties and rights are given in particular provide information on the neighborhood awareness.of the residents were regulated. In the late Middle Ages in Zurich, for example, it was mandatory to help with a fire in the neighborhood. The regulation stipulated that only those people were considered neighbors who lived in the same section of the street or in the same quarter and were no more than three to five houses apart. In such limits, mutual help in the caserequested in an emergency. These regulations show that social coexistence in the city was regulated, but was not a feeling of community that was felt on a large scale. Rather, they were practical obligations that were activated in case of an emergency to protect the community. Social life in the city was thus characterized by a mixture of legal requirementsand informal relationships that regulated coexistence and ensured social cohesion in the narrow urban spaces.

Early forms of community documentation and social rituals

Some so-called neighborhood books have been handed down from Westphalia and the Rhineland, which represent an early form of community administration and social organization. These books were used to record the rights, duties and responsibilities of the members within a community or neighborhood in writing. It was a kind of common registryIn which it was regulated who was responsible for which tasks, how the road maintenance was organized and who took over the organization at festivals, weddings or funerals. An example is the neighborhood book of the Kirchpforte in Andernach, which was kept in July 1634. This book has recorded obligations, such as improving the city’s defenses, andalso contained complaints from residents, for example about an unauthorized stove construction in Korngasse in 1624. Anyone who violated the rules set had to reckon with sensitive sanctions, similar to those in antiquity. The worst punishment was the so-called de-neighborhood, in which the person concerned was excluded from the community. This exclusion meant socialisolation and was a hard measure to maintain the order and cohesion of the community. Reintegration was possible, but expensive and involved with great effort. For example, a citizen from Coesfeld paid his debt with half a ton of double-brewed beer, which shows how important the social structure was. The documentation of such community rules and ritualswas therefore an important part of the social organization in the cities and served to secure social peace and to settle conflicts. These early forms of neighborhood documentation show how people were already trying to structure coexistence through written agreements and to anchor social norms.

Beer, customs and common rituals in everyday life

In the Middle Ages and early modern times, beer was not only a popular drink, but also an important part of social life, which had a significant impact on the neighborhoods and communities. It was not a luxury good, but rather a staple food, since it was sterile due to the boiling of the water and was therefore a safe alternative to often contaminated water.The art of brewing was widespread in many households, and it was allowed to distribute surpluses to neighbors, which strengthened social cohesion. These customs were firmly anchored in everyday rituals and were regulated by social norms that regulated the order of serving and organizing the brewing. in cities like Erfurt, which was an important one in the Middle AgesThe trading city was, in 1417, a total of 22 bakers, 13 butchers and 65 brewers were in an amazingly large community that shaped the brewing industry in the city. The brewers were mostly resident in the city’s households, and the beer was brewed in small rooms, the so-called pubs, which were often in the families’ kitchens. Public brewing was made by bureaucraticStrictly regulated regulations to avoid disputes and bottlenecks. For example, the brewers had to apply for a license, whose output was precisely regulated, so that there was always enough beer and no disputes arose when cone. The city administration made sure that the supply of beer went smoothly by regulating the order when serving. Even theEmperor Rudolf von Habsburg showed interest in brewing beer and was celebrated at a meeting in Erfurt with a foaming jug. The beer culture was thus closely linked to social rituals and coexistence in the neighborhoods, as it not only quenched thirst, but also acted as a social event and community experience.

Festivities, rituals and the importance of communal life

In addition to everyday customs and production, joint celebrations on festive occasions played an important role in the social life of the neighborhoods. Especially the so-called women’s mines, which are known above all in Rhineland-Palatinate and Württemberg, represent a tradition in which women come together on certain days to celebrate, drink andto recover from everyday life. These rounds were often the only festive occasions when women gathered in a larger circle to entertain each other and strengthen their community. An example from 1836 in Ochsenbach near Ludwigsburg documents that 135 women consumed a total of 126 liters of wine and 135 awakens in such a mine. Such celebrations wereNot only an expression of joy, but also an opportunity to strengthen social ties, cultivate a sense of community and keep traditions alive. The women organized themselves in these customs, which enabled them to have a certain independence and self-determination. The abolition of the women’s mines by the municipal administration was determined by the resistance of the womenUndo that defended their traditions. They slashed an oak tree to preserve their celebrations, which shows how important these rituals were for social life in the neighborhoods. The so-called childbed or church mines, which joined the mother’s first service after the birth of a child, are also an expression of the living neighborhoodculture. Neighbors, friends and relatives came together to celebrate the newborn, to drink a glass of wine or beer and thus consolidate the social bond. These rituals helped strengthen the sense of community, strengthen social ties and promote mutual support in everyday life. They were an important part of social life in the Middle Agesand in the early modern period and reflect the importance that neighborly coexistence had for the coexistence of people.