Brittany CortésHistory 269The gradual decline of serfdom in medieval EuropeSerfdom played a fundamental role in the medieval European economy as well as in its social structure. Throughout the medieval period, as slavery began to slowly decline, a comparable mode of servitude began to emerge, providing free or cheap labor to aristocratic landowners. Serfdom is a form of servitude. Unlike the institution of slavery, where everyone was considered property that could be bought, traded, and sold, leaving them with no legal rights, serfs were considered to some extent free because they could not be either bought or sold. During the early Middle Ages, the transition from slavery to serfdom in rural Europe occurred almost imperceptibly. Its consequences constitute one of the great milestones in labor history and undoubtedly constitute a decisive factor in economic development. Just as serfdom and the peasant class of the medieval period were important to both the development and decline of the economy, so was the village that provided them with housing as well as a place to work: it served as a community. The medieval village was the main site in which they would contribute to the success of the local economy as well as providing a stable income for their local lord. On the contrary, the land, which literally provided them with their daily bread, was rather the village. The serfs and peasants were as much in their village, roaming the furrowed strips as in the dusty streets and alleys in the corner of the village. Medieval serfdom took many different forms and their rights and obligations differed from place to place. Serfdom tied man to the land, which prevented him from moving or in this... middle of paper... and the work of serfs and free peasants, not only the economy would suffer, but also social class as such. GOOD. The upper nobility needed the wealth that the serfs provided them to maintain their current position or claim a higher one. Many factors contributed to the slow decline of the manorial system and the institution of serfdom, from the plague to the peasant revolt. , the rise of trade and the development of cities: all of this gave the peasant class the motivation they needed to change the social structure of the medieval period. Even if the peasant revolt and the effects of the Black Death ultimately did not favor the peasants, the events nevertheless made them aware of the impact they had on the economic market and on the development and maintenance overall villages. Everything depended on the continued work of serfs and free peasants..