The crofters during the Middle Ages

Abstract

During the medieval period, the agrarian society underwent great changes. One of them were the formalisation of tenant farms and the established system of crofts and crofters at the noble estates. The knowledge of how the crofter lived and organised life during this time is virtually unknown. In this article, three aspects of how to characterise medieval crofts and crofters are examined. The material contexts, the spatial contexts and the social contexts are investigated in order to highlight and increase the knowledge of this social group in society, mostly forgotten in archaeology. The article stresses the fact that essential for studying the crofters are a greater awareness of the remains of their material culture in the landscape, which leads to the question of how to locate the site of the crofters. Other important aspects concern consciousness of their historical setting in a specific local society. The crofter’s life and living environments varied accordingly.