Medieval life: farming, wool and towns

Most medieval people lived in villages and worked the land. But wool made England rich, and towns grew around trade.

Practise this lesson free (6 questions)

The village and its fields

Most people lived in the countryside. Many were villeins (serfs), who were not free to leave the manor.
Villages often used an open field system: two or three huge fields split into long strips. Each family farmed strips scattered across the fields.
One field was often left empty (fallow) each year so the soil could recover. Villeins also had to work on the lord's land for free.
In some places you can still see the bumpy lines of ridge and furrow left by medieval ploughs.

England's wool

Wool was England's most important export. Much of it went to weavers in Flanders (in modern Belgium).
Kings taxed wool to pay for wars. In the 14th century Edward III had his Lord Chancellor sit on a bale of wool, the Woolsack, to show how important the trade was. The Lord Speaker still sits on it in the House of Lords.
Rich wool merchants paid for grand 'wool churches', for example at Lavenham in Suffolk.

Towns, markets and guilds

Towns grew where people met to trade. Lords and kings sold towns charters, which gave townspeople rights such as running a market.
Craftworkers and merchants joined guilds. A guild set prices and standards and looked after members who were ill.
A boy learned a trade as an apprentice, usually for several years, before he could become a qualified craftsman.
Worked example

Why did the wool trade matter so much to medieval kings?

  1. Wool was England's biggest export, so there was a lot of money in it.
  2. Kings could tax wool to raise money, especially for wars.
  3. The Woolsack in Parliament was a symbol of this importance.

Answer: Wool brought wealth into England and tax money to the crown.

Key idea

Most people farmed in villages; villeins were tied to the manor. Open fields split into strips, with one field fallow. Wool was England's main export, mostly to Flanders; Edward III's Woolsack symbolised it. Towns grew through trade, with charters, markets, guilds and apprentices.

Common mistakes
Quick check

Try two quick questions

See if it has sunk in. Answers are marked straight away.

Extra practice

2 more questions

Try each one, then tap to check.

  1. Why could a villein not simply leave the manor?

    1. He owned the manor
    2. He was a knight
    3. He had been sent to prison
    4. He was tied to his lord's land
    Show the answer

    Answer: He was tied to his lord's land

    Villeins were not free.

  2. Why were each family's strips scattered across the fields?

    1. To make farming harder
    2. Because the king farmed the best strips
    3. To keep sheep apart from crops
    4. To share good and poor land fairly
    Show the answer

    Answer: To share good and poor land fairly

    Scattered strips shared out the land.

Check you have got it

Answer 6 quick questions with instant marking. If you get one wrong, GCSE-ready shows you why and gives you another go. It is free, and you do not need an account.

Practise this lesson free (6 questions)All KS3 History lessons

Video for this lesson coming soon. Subscribe on YouTube

Sources and references

Checked by the GCSE-ready editorial team, 17 October 2026. Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.

Related lessons