Commoners of Callidore

Commoners on Callidore
The vast majority of the people of the Five Duchies are peasants in various states of freedom who live in villages and hamlets.

## The Manor

### Description:

The area around a Manor where the peasants work and live

A peasant is an agricultural laborer or farmer with limited land ownership and pays rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. There are three classes of peasants: slave, serf, and free tenant (freeman). Peasants hold title to land either in fee or by any of several forms of land tenure.

### Slave

Slavery is currently illegal across the Five Duchies, during the rebellion of Southern Alshar; the rebellious Counts, working with the *Brotherhood of the Rat,* saw the return of the lucrative industry of slavery. Being a slave changes a man's status from being a person to being somebody's property. As a slave there is no freedom or control of over their own life, they are subject to the whims and mercies of their owner, can be traded or sold the same as any other commodity.

### Serf

Serfs are not allowed control of property. They live on the property of a noble vassal, and, in order to repay the vassal for letting the serf live on his property, the serf works the land and is at the disposal of the lord of the Manor.

### Freemen

Freeman or free peasants have a share of the common fields in addition to working a third of the fields for the domain. Freeman usually make just enough money to live on. They sell their crops and may work with a trade. Wives of freeman sometimes do “stay-at-home” trades, such as brewing ale or spinning wool into thread. They pay their rents to the reeves or Yeoman.

### Villein, (Bondsman)

Most of the year they do odd- jobs. Their labor is essential during plowing and threshing seasons. The rest of the year they do whatever they can to survive, they usually owe several days a week work to the Manor, anything beyond that the Manor has to pay them, usually a penny and a loaf a day. Villein can't do much of anything without their Lord's permission, this includes getting married. A Peasant becomes a bondsman or Villein because they owe too much in rents, taxes and/or fines or because of a criminal matter. If they owe money they can in theories buy their freedom, but many Lords purposely inflate what they owe and add more to it each year to keep them in servitude. When a villein dies their family as in children and grand children still owe the Lord the moneys, so for many once they become a bondsman they and their descendants stay villeins.

### Yeomen, (Reeve/ Headsman)

Their rights and privileges are in excess of the common freeman. Which includes the right to sup at the castle’s table once a week, if they chose.

Yeomanries are districts and their exact nature varies across the duchies. Some are more militant in nature then others, but they all have to provide military and arms when the Lord of the Manor needs them.

They generally supervise the planting, harvesting and animal care within their area of responsibilities, collect any rents that are due, care for the people (ideally) within their district, pay tax to the Lord of the Manor and report any problems, too.

The Yeoman is his own master, sworn to bear arms if he is able, render service upon demand, and act in the lord’s stead to protect the lord’s interests.

## Artisan

The artisan class of the Five Duchies is extensive and fairly large; industries from winemaking to cotton to wool are practiced, with some regions becoming famous for their products. Distilling is known and well-practiced. The cotton gin has not been forgotten. In places, advantages and enchantments created in the distant past still serve the present-day inhabitants of Callidore.  Magi have traditionally been seen in this society as high in the artisan class, one of the few literate professions still around.