During the feudal era, there were many processes that completely changed the prevailing social and economic relations. The factors that caused these changes were mainly the Environment, use of land and new agricultural technology.
From the 5th century to the 10th century, most parts of Europe were covered by dense forests. Naturally, these were very little agricultural land. Dissatisfied farmers ran away into the forests to escape from persecutions by their angry lords or knights. At this time Europe had a very cold climate. Extended winter periods adversely affected agriculture and crops. Production was drastically reduced.
But from the 11th century, there were changes in the environment. The climate became warmer and the average warmth increased. This change in the climate was suitable for agriculture. Since there wasn’t much snow and ice, the farmers could plough and cultivate the land for longer periods.
Environmental historians show that in many parts of Europe forests receded. This helped in increasing agriculture. In the beginning, the agricultural technology was very primitive. They had only wooden ploughshares, pulled by bullocks. By using this plough, only the upper parts of the land could be ploughed. So they could not make use of the fertility of the deeper soil. Naturally, agriculture needed a lot ‘ of efforts. The lands were deepened by using hands. This was done once in four years and it needed a lot of physical efforts.
The biggest change in the economic sphere was the use of money. From the 11th century, money was used for transactions. Because of this personal relationship that was the basis of feudalism began to weaken. Nobles started demanding their taxes and shares in the form of money and not services.
