Various Annual Incomes

There is only fragmentary evidence to go on in terms of attempting to determine what people earned. Even great lords did not keep comprehensive records. The records they did keep were often in several languages (French, Latin, and English), and were maintained by several different clerks, not all of whom used the same accounting system. Double entry accounting was not invented until the 14th century (by Italian cleric Luca Pacioli) and these new bookkeeping methods took over a century to spread throughout Europe.

There are some fairly complete figures available for the Spanish Order of Calatrava in the early fiftenth century. There were 300 villages in fief to them, with some 200,000 souls, making for about 666 [aha!] souls per village. Income from these totalled 1.5 million reales, some 8.5 million ducats. This was enough to keep the order's manpower at 2,000 men-at-arms, not counting peones --spearmen-- and peasant cavalrymen owing feudal service. It also permitted the order to keep in good repair the numerous castles and 75 priories and houses which it ran.

Some other figures for annual income (not counting "payments in kind," especially food, clothing and housing provided for commoners.):

Duke of Lancaster                                           7,200,000 ducats              
(Mid-14th C)                                                                              

Average Earl                                                1,800,000                     

Laborer:                      Florence                      1,125                         

                              England                       1,000*                        

Artisan:                      Florence                      2,250                         

                              England                       1,500*
                        

*Assumes a 200 day work year

Most people worked the land, in a rotation system leaving 1/3 or 1/2 the fields fallow each year. On average, about one acre was required to support one peasant at the subsistence level (a common state). To buy food for this level of existance required 400-500 ducats a year, but most of the peasantry raised their own.

The impression is that a skilled worker could knock down about 10 ducats a day, which wasn't bad, but that he may only have worked 100-150 days, depending upon type of work and seasonal conditions.

Expenses.

Junior level lord                           6,500                                       

Squire                                      3,650                                       

Yeoman                                      2,700                                       

Groom (menial servants in general)             900
                                      

It is unclear as to whether these figures include clothing, upkeep of animals, or servants wages.

Some figures are available for several households, but there is no indication of the size of the family, or of its entourage, or the number of horses which they were keeping. Nevertheless:

RANK                                        DUCATS                                      

Wealthy baron                               785,000                                     

Very rich knight                            150,000                                     

Wealthy esquire                               66,000                                    

Modest esquire                                30,000
                                    

A lord might easily spend as much on the care and feeding of his war horse as an unskilled laborer might make in a year, some 1,100 ducats.

Surprisingly, several inventories of peasant's property --excluding animals and foodstuffs on hand-- come to 460 to 1,000 ducats. On the other hand, in 1397 the Duke of Gloucester had 21,760,000 ducats in goods at his home in London and castle at Pleshy, exclusive of horses and some other properties.

Interestingly, the food allowance for a monk in a Hospitalers Commandery in this period was about 750 ducats; that for a cowherd 500.

Cost of Weaponry

Sword: A peasant might get a cheap sword for 15-20 ducats. A top of the line sword would go for several hundred ducats. Most other weapons, including various types of battle axes and pole weapons, fell in between.

Armor: Easily several hundred ducats for an obsolete outfit, with a decent suit running several thousand, and plate, when it comes in, several times more than that.

Horses, 500-5,000 ducats and up for superior stock and up to 50,000 ducats for a world class "Destier" (heavy war horse).