The Smell Wasn’t As Bad As You Think
If you’ve ever watched a medieval movie, you probably imagine cities smelling like human waste and rotting garbage. But recent historical research suggests this stereotype is wildly exaggerated. Contrary to popular belief, medieval towns were not excessively dirty or unhygienic. Kitchen waste was often composted and there were efficient methods of waste disposal. The streets were not covered in garbage and mud, as is often portrayed. Instead, there were pavements and well-maintained paths, especially in the central areas of the cities. Historian Dolly Jørgensen, who has extensively studied medieval sanitation, found that people did not accept living in a proverbial pigsty, and the complaints from the era can be interpreted to show people did not accept living in a proverbial pigsty. Cities like Nuremberg, which seems to have been one of the cleanest towns in Europe thanks to its enlightened council, had 14 public baths.
Medieval Cities Were Greener Than Modern Ones
Here’s something that might blow your mind: medieval cities were actually packed with green spaces. Many medieval cities, including Trier, had agricultural land within the city walls. These areas were used to grow fruit, vegetables and herbs. The idea of overcrowded and densely built-up cities only applies to a few large cities such as London or Paris. In most medieval cities, buildings were looser and there were plenty of green spaces. This setup wasn’t just about aesthetics – it was pure survival. People needed fresh food, and with no refrigeration or modern transportation, growing it locally made perfect sense. Modern reconstructions and historical city maps help to paint a realistic picture of medieval cities. A plan of the city of Cologne from the 16th century shows a similar layout to Trier: an urban city center and lots of greenery on the outskirts.
They Actually Had Sophisticated Water Systems
Medieval cities weren’t just hauling buckets from the nearest river. Fortunately, many of the larger towns tended to be situated near rivers or coastlines in order to facilitate trade, so the supply of water and the disposal of waste was less problematic in these places. Canals, water conduits, wells and fountains provided (relatively) fresh water to the urban populace. These were maintained by town councils who also imposed sanitary measures on local businesses and the population in general. Some cities even had complex engineering systems. In north German towns, with Göttingen as an example, water supply was provided by private wells and by public infrastructure, such as water pipes. Archaeological evidence for both exists and examples are given. Some towns needed a Wasserkunst (waterworks) to lift the water in the pipes with sufficient pressure.
People Had Toilets (Sort Of)
Medieval folks weren’t just doing their business in the streets like Hollywood suggests. Where the poorer classes lived in greater concentrations households often shared a single outside toilet or a number of toilets with their waste leading to a communal cesspit. Lined with stone, the cesspits also received any other household rubbish and were regularly emptied by a professional labourer dedicated to that specific and unenviable job. There were regulations prohibiting the tipping of waste into the street but these were often ignored. The toilet is usually a privy in the stable yard. A few city houses have a ‘garderobe’ off the sleeping-room, over a chute to a pit in the cellar that is emptied at intervals. ideally, such a convenience is built out over the water, an arrangement enjoyed by the count’s palace on the canal.
Cities Had Dedicated Sanitation Officials
Medieval cities weren’t just hoping for the best when it came to cleanliness. Records from Ypres seem to be the earliest testimonies that Netherlandish cities appointed officials to sanitize and supervise certain spaces, as they document in 1280, for instance, that a fine for the disposal of filth could be ‘collected by the mud officials, each in his station’. This short reference suggests three things: there were several of these mud officials; they were regularly stationed in various places in town; and, third, they generated income by prosecuting environmental offences. These weren’t just token appointments either – they were serious positions with real authority. Some cities even had specific officials called “coninc” who coordinated sanitation efforts across the urban area.
Medieval Trade Was More Global Than You’d Expect
Some towns grew wealthier because local people specialized in making specific types of goods. For example, towns in Flanders (present-day Belgium and the Netherlands) were known for their fine woolen cloth. The Italian city of Venice was known for making glass. Other towns built their wealth on the banking industry that grew up to help people trade more easily. With the growth of trade and commerce, merchants grew increasingly powerful and wealthy. They ran sizable businesses and looked for trading opportunities far from home. Merchant guilds came to dominate the business life of towns and cities. This wasn’t just local bartering – we’re talking about international commerce networks that stretched across continents.
The Guild System Was Like Medieval Labor Unions
Medieval guilds weren’t just social clubs – they were powerful economic forces that controlled entire industries. The inhabitants of towns largely made their livelihoods as merchants or artisans, and this activity was strictly controlled by guilds. The members of these guilds would employ young people—primarily boys—as apprentices, to learn the craft and later take position as guild members themselves. In towns that had become independent, members of merchant guilds often sat on town councils or were elected mayor. These organizations set prices, controlled quality, and even decided who could work in certain professions. Think of them as the medieval equivalent of both professional associations and labor unions rolled into one.
Crime Was Handled Very Differently Than Today
Medieval justice was brutal, but it was also more nuanced than most people realize. In the early Middle Ages, theft was often considered a personal offence. If someone stole from you, it was up to you or your family to seek retribution, and laws at the time focused more on compensation for the victim than punishing the thief. However, as society evolved and centralized governments gained power, attitudes towards theft began to change. By the late Middle Ages, theft was seen as a crime against the state, not just the individual. Interest in fines and financial penalties, which have often been neglected in research, has been rekindled by the important role they played in the regulation of medieval conflicts. Other more original penalties, such as redeemable judicial pilgrimages, have allowed some to venture the notion of a penal fiscal economy, notably in medieval cities.
Disease Outbreaks Changed Everything
The Black Death wasn’t just a historical footnote – it fundamentally changed how cities operated. The Black Death, which peaked from 1347 to 1352 CE, was just one (albeit the deadliest) of many waves of plagues and diseases which hit medieval Europe. Carried by fleas on rats, the bubonic plague killed anywhere between 30% and 50% of the population wherever it took hold. The low standards of medieval hygiene certainly helped it along. The Black Death prodded people to become more concerned about city sanitation. The reason why they carted waste out to public trash dumps, and they did this, hinges on a change in understanding of waste and its impact on health and well-being. I think the connection between bad smells and disease became increasingly accepted.
Jewish Communities Faced Systematic Discrimination
Not everyone prospered, however. In Christian Europe, there was often prejudice against Jews. Medieval towns commonly had sizable Jewish communities. The hostility of Christians, sometimes backed up by laws, made it difficult for Jews to earn their living. They were not allowed to own land. One opportunity that was open to Jews was to become bankers and moneylenders. This work was generally forbidden to Christians, because the Church taught that charging money for loans was sinful. This forced specialization in financial services actually made many Jewish families wealthy, but it also made them targets during economic downturns when people needed someone to blame for their financial troubles.
Cities Were Surprisingly Noisy Places
Besides being unhealthy, medieval towns were noisy, smelly, crowded, and often unsafe. Pickpockets and thieves were always on the lookout for vulnerable travelers with money in their pouches. Towns were especially dangerous at night because there were no streetlights. But the noise wasn’t just from crime – it was from legitimate business. Blacksmiths hammering metal, cart wheels on cobblestones, merchants hawking their wares, animals being driven to market, and the constant sound of construction. With towns also packed with horses and donkeys, and farm animals being transported elsewhere or to the butchers, the streets were usually filthy and this combined with the ever-present rats, mice and other vermin meant that urban centres became the ideal breeding grounds for disease.
Fire Was The Ultimate Urban Nightmare
With structures mostly made of wood and thatch and open hearths for cooking, fires were a constant worry in both villages and larger cities. A single errant spark could spread rapidly, turning entire settlements to ash in no time. The lack of organized firefighting efforts left people mostly at the mercy of the flames. Losing your home and possessions to a fire could be an insurmountable setback from which it was almost impossible to recover. Medieval cities were tinderboxes waiting to explode. There were no fire departments, no hydrants, and no building codes. When a fire started, the best you could do was form a bucket brigade and pray the wind didn’t shift in your direction.
The Population Numbers Were Staggering
Think medieval cities were tiny? Think again. In a medieval city with a population of 10,000, people typically produced 900,000 litres of excrement and nearly three million litres of urine annually. That’s just for one medium-sized city! We use as the basis for our model data from England around the 11th or 12th century; the population then was around 2 million. (Earlier in the Dark Ages it might have been half or one-quarter this level; later in the High Middle Ages it would be around 5 million, and then collapsing back down to 2 million at the time of the Black Death.) These weren’t sleepy villages – they were bustling urban centers with all the problems that come with density.
Medieval Cities Were Political Powder Kegs
At the beginning of the Middle Ages, towns were generally part of the domain of a feudal lord—whether a monarch, a noble, or a high-ranking Church official. As towns grew wealthier, town dwellers began to resent the lord’s feudal rights and his demands for taxes. They felt they no longer needed the lord’s protection—or his interference. In some places, such as northern France and Italy, violence broke out as towns struggled to become independent. These weren’t peaceful negotiations – they were often bloody conflicts as emerging middle classes fought for political control. The rise of independent city-states completely changed the political landscape of medieval Europe.
Medieval cities weren’t the backwards, filthy places we see in movies. They were complex, organized communities dealing with the same urban challenges we face today – just with different tools and solutions. The people living there were innovative, resourceful, and far more sophisticated than popular culture gives them credit for. Next time you’re stuck in traffic or dealing with city bureaucracy, remember that medieval folks were wrestling with similar problems centuries ago. Pretty fascinating how some things never change, isn’t it?