How did medieval cities expand?
Medieval towns tended to grow around areas where people could easily meet, such as crossroads or rivers. Cities such as York and Canterbury had city walls that served the same purpose – but a town would not have had enough wealth to build such an expensive protection. A successful town attracted many merchants to it.
How was the medieval city spatially organized?
Medieval European settlements were controlled by a variety of hierarchically-organized social institutions such as political authorities, religious organizations, guilds, classes, and kinship groups operating across the urban system [1,3–6,19,63–65].
What was considered the heart of the medieval city?
Wealthy families such as the Colonna and Orsini were important occupants of the area, and many palaces and towers built by these families dot medieval maps. As the city of Rome began to grow in the 12th and 13th centuries, the abitato emerged as the beating heart of populated Rome.
When did cities stop having walls?
City walls and moats became obsolete in most of Europe by the mid 18th Century. Instead cities attempted to defend themselves by a ring of forts around their cities, which would occupy the land that enemy artillery needed to site their mortar and cannon in order to attack the city.
How did medieval cities work?
New towns developed around religious buildings, castles or trade routes. These towns were crowded, noisy and smelly. At dawn, a bell would ring to begin the day. Townspeople would attend their first religious mass of the day.
How was a typical medieval city governed?
The city flourished best when free from feudal lords, though some cities were ruled by bishops or barons. Even so, cities needed to manage their own legal affairs and their own fiscal affairs.
When a town gained it’s freedom in the Middle Ages what was it called?
Communes
Communes are first recorded in the late 11th and early 12th centuries, thereafter becoming a widespread phenomenon. They had greater development in central-northern Italy, where they became city-states based on partial democracy. At the same time in Germany they became free cities, independent from local nobility.
What did Medieval cities look like?
A Medieval city was considerably smaller with a limited population. Its streets were not paved and there were no tarmac roads like there are today. Medieval cities were quite dirty and muddy although as the medieval period progressed medieval cities became more organised and structured.