Can you solve the time travel riddle?

Powers of 10!

Check out this video from 1977 to get a sense of the what it means to go up or down by a power of 10.

Research Finds Racial Disparities in Prison Sentences

Link: Research Finds Racial Disparities in Prison Sentences
Click the link above to listen to a news segment on prison sentencing in the United States today.

Think about this story and how it connects to Chapter 18 in The Inquisitor's Tale.  In Chapter 18 King Louis leaps out of his carriage and into a dispute between a Lombard moneylender and two Jewish moneylenders after he speaks openly against peasants and Jews in the carriage. Quoted below is the section of the story where King Louis announces punishments/fines for the moneylenders.

(Note: usury is illegally lending money. Usurious is also referring to illegally lending money.)

     "For disturbing the king's peace," the king announced "the fine is five silver livres. All three of you will pay this fine. Do you understand?"
     The three moneylenders nodded, bowing their heads, their eyes averted.
     "For assaulting one of the king's Jews," Louis went Louis went on, "the fine is fifteen livres." The Lombard looked up at the furious king, and raindrops splashed off his freckled cheeks. He looked shocked. "Can you pay twenty livres?"  the king demanded. "Or will you go to prison?"
     "I can pay!" the Lombard said. "I can pay!"
      "What is your name?"
     "Johann Montefiore, of Lombardy!" the man said, groveling.
     "Johann Montefiore, of Lombardy, if you do not report to the Hall of Justice tonight, you will be found and thrown into prison."
     "Yes, my king! Thank you, my lord!"
     Louis stepped around the groveling Lombard. "And you!" he said, addressing the Jewish men, their cloaks covered in mud.
     He pointed in their faces. "You will report to the Hall of Justice as well, and you will render every livre of every usurious loan you've made to the chancellor. If you did not persist in your wicked usury and your incomprehensible refusal to acknowledge the Gospel of Christ, good Christians would not strike you in the streets! You have no one to blame but yourselves!" (pg. 224)

Now listen to this story about debtor's prison and think about how it relates to this scene.
Link: As Court Fees Rise the Poor Are Paying the Price


Write your thoughts about how these news stories are connected to this scene from The Inquisitor's Tale in your Reading Notebook.

Oliver's Outline on Diseases in the Middle Ages

1. There were both advantages and disadvantages to being a freeman in the Middle Ages.
1. Freeman were a very special kind of peasant.
1. Freeman were free from the lord and did not have to pay taxes, rents, or fees .
2. Other peasants did have to pay the lord.
3. Freemen were allowed to move from land to land without the Lord’s permission.
2. There were many advantages to being a freeman.
1. Freeman could own their own lots of land, which they could rent a portion of to other peasants.
2. Freemen were often wealthy.
3. In some places a very wealthy freeman could rise to lower nobility.
3. There were some disadvantages to being a freeman.
1. There were few freeman so it was unlikely to be one.
2. The lord would not be required to feed a freeman in times of famine or if the freeman’s family was starving.
3. The lord would not be obliged to defend a freeman.
1. This was particularly dangerous for a freeman in times of war.
2. A freeman was a special kind of peasant who might own his own land and was not under the protection of the lord.
1. Freeman did not have to work on the lord's demesne.
2. They did not have to pay as many as peasants did.
3. They were wealthy and at the top of the peasants.
4. To be free, a serf (peasant) could run away for 101 days without being caught by the lord. Or rent a portion of land.

1. If caught he/she would be severely punished.

III. You would find a freeman in the middle ages on the lord's manor(country side).

1. They were wealthier than peasants and lived in larger houses and much cosier.
2. Because they were wealthier they could own up to 40-100 acres of land which is rich
3. Freeman were rare they accounted a small percent of the peasant population which meant they were few in number

IV. The middle ages was a time in history that was in between ancient times and modern times.

1. After the middle ages came the renaissance which was part of modern times.
2. The main government of the middle ages was the feudal system

1. At the top of the system which were the most powerful were the kings (Queens) or lords (Ladies) and the pope all people were noble or leaders the church
2. The bottom were the peasants

                C. There were Knights and crusades

    D. It was the time of the silk trade China - Europe.

    E.It lasted from about 500 ad-1500 ad (Fall of the roman empire to the renaissance

    F. Most of the people were peasants

1. They accounted about 90% of the population

1. There were both advantages and disadvantages to being a peasant in the Middle ages.

1. Peasants were at the bottom of everything in the feudal system.

1.One daily life for one of these people was very hard.

2.”Really” owning a good bed was hard enough.

3. They were poor and had to work for the lord for there living.

         a)They had to pay taxes,rents,fees,fines to the lord

     B. There were Advantages to being a peasant.

1. They could go to church gatherings on sundays and usually got to skip work

2.For their hard work they could go to feasts hosted by the Lord.

3. The lord had to promise to feed the peasants when starving and protect them or else he would lose all of them

a) this was good because the lord would protect them in war

b) The lord would have to also make sure they were up and going (healthy)

4. Owning a horse or ox ment being rich!!

     C. There were also disadvantages to being a peasant.

1.Peasants were very poor and did not own a ton of land(Some did not).

2.They had to first care for the lord up hand.

1. This meant they had to save the lords crops first in case of stroom or flood

3. They had to pay numeros taxes,fees,fines,rents to the lord

     a) This was pretty much why they were at the bottom.

4. They had to wake up very early and sleep early. They worked Dawn to Dusk.

II. A peasant was a farmer who was poor but could get protection from the Lord

                A.They lived in very simple houses and did not own a lot of stuff.

                    1. A barn was attached to the house for animals to come in during winter

          2.The houses were one roomed houses

                 B. There were two kinds of peasants

1. One of them was villain
2. The other was a serf

      C. The food that they most commonly ate was pottage.

                  1.It was anything boiled up for 2 hours.

      D.The only way they could make money is if they go to town to sell goods

                 1. Men were paid twice as women

E. A reeve was put in charge of the peasants.

1. The reeve was voted by the freeman

III  You would find a peasant on a lord's estate (A.K.A the countryside)

A. They were not aloud to leave the manor without the lord’s permission

B.  These farmers owned very little land (1 acre or so)

C. They sometimes would go into the city

1. In the city they would sell goods.

D.They accounted a majority of the era.

IV. They had many,many tasks to complete  

A. At the start of the day they would wake up at dawn

B. The tasks that were to be completed included light plowing,sowing grain, scythe hay,trample grass,shear sheep,herd pigs,collect firewood,and repair any broken stuff.

C. If it storms or floods you must save your lords crops first nomather what.

1. This is why some families are very poor

D.Sticks known as flails are used to beat grain into sheaves.

1. It was stored in a place called a granary.

a)It was used to keep mice and rats away.

V. The lord was a noble who was in charge of the manor and the peasants.

A. He owed the peasants protection from hazards.

B. He had knights that fought/protected him.

C. The main job of the lord was to protect/fight for the king which was a rank above him

1. If the lord was not doing well,the king could expel him or her and replace another one in charge

D. The lord's wife the lady (of the manor) was in charge of all servants in the manor house.

E. Lords lived in a manor house which was pretty big.

I. I would say in terms a freeman was better but a peasant was still Okay

A. Both of these jobs involved hard working but in the end they got rewards

1. The freeman did not have to pay as much as a peasant did yet they could not get protection(They were on their own)

2.The peasants had to pay more than a freeman yet they got protection from the lord/lady

B. A freeman was wealthy and owned a lot of stuff (peasants did not).

C. The freeman could move freely around yet the peasants did not have to worry of enemies since that was the lords jod (freeman did).

II. In my opinion I would say they had better advantages than disadvantages.

1. Freeman were at the top of the peasants and would own a lot of stuff
2. Peasants were at the bottom or middle of peasants.
3. There differences between these two classes (middle was a little like the bottom)

1.To be classified as being rich you could own a horse or ox

1. You could also own a boat
2. Best was you could own land!!
3. You also could own a coach or bed
4. You just did not get protection

      2. To be classified as being poor,you did not own a whole ton of stuff.

     a) The best you could probably own was a straw bed.

     b)You might just own 10 items

     c)You could just own a few tools (best of all a hoe)!!

     d)Yet you got protection!!

   D.Both of these classes had and lacked one thing (protection).

III. In the middle ages it was easy to classify the. Every relied on the feudal system.

In this case a freeman was better.

1. A freeman was better because they had a higher rank in the feudal system
2. A  peasant was worse because they had a lower rank down
3. Still the freeman were just a little higher

IV. What was the feudal system?

1. In the middle ages the feudal system was the government

1. It was sort of like a ranking from top to bottom

1. At the top were kings,barons,lords,and dukes
2. At the bottom were peasants and beggars
3. There were specialists and some rich farmers and knights in between
4. The church was also powerful and at the top
5. Everyone agreed that god was at the top

2. In the middle ages christians believed that god put people where they belonged

1. If you went up the feudal system that was god’s plan
2. If you tried but didn’t that was not god’s plan yet the devils
3. Usually it was rare to move up or down  the feudal system

3.People in different ranks had to do stuff for the ranks below or above.

                a) The top of the feudal system had to serve protection and defense to the ranks below

      (1)This was the nobles and the church's responsibility

    b)The bottom had to produce the goods and food to the ranks above and themselves

(1) This was the peasants and specialists responsibility

4. There was really no such equality than!!

V .Both a freeman and a peasants jobs were similar and I would consider a life for them hard

1. Both of these jobs were farming jobs and involved working from dawn to dusk
2. Both of these 2 jobs still had some rewarding

1. Freeman in the end did not have to pay the lord as much as peasants did.

2. Peasants got defense/protection from lord which was great in times of war.

     C. I could consider these two as hard jobs and in a harsh time in history.