How did peasants build their houses?

Answer 1

They used stone and lime mortar which is basically the same as cement! Lime mortar is made by crushing limestone.

Hope this helps as I'm in the process of doing a castles project! Thanks.

Answer 2

It depended very much on the available materials, but in general oak was used in England to build the framework.

In south-west England and parts of Wales, where stone was freely available everywhere, the foundations and lower parts of walls would be built of stone, then cob was used to build the upper parts of the walls - cob is something like adobe, made of a mixture of soil, clay, straw, sand and water. This dries as hard as concrete and will last a very long time if moisture is kept away from the top and bottom edges.

In other parts of England and Europe, oak beams were simply set in shallow trenches in the ground to form a foundation. Holes drilled in these beams allowed for uprights to be set up, with A-shaped frames at each end of the house. The gaps were then filled in with wattle (a kind of wickerwork) that was finally plastered over with daub (a variable mixture that could include water, clay, chalk dust, cow manure, soil, sand, straw, hair and hay). The daub was finally given a coat of whitewash to help keep out rain.

Roofs were thatched with whatever material was available, mainly straw or reeds.

Answer 3

The typical peasant's home was very simple. I was typically a wooden structure, often about 15 feet wide, and of varying length. It would have been framed with wooden posts, which were sometimes sent on foundation stones, sometimes simply sunk into the earth, and wooden beams. The walls were made of a substance called wattle and daub, which is a lattice of thin branches or brush (the wattle) which is then covered in a layer of mud, clay, straw, and sometimes animal dung (the daub). Once dry the wattle and daub panels would be affixed between the posts and painted with a white lime wash inside and out. This made the outside resistant to the weather, and brightened the inside, helping reflect the limited light.

Simple peasant cottages were often just one room, although sometimes they had a separate room for sleeping quarters. Although the myth of medieval people having the family cow in their living room is false, sometimes a byre would be directly attached to the building. This provided heat from the animals in the winter, and made caring for animals simpler as they were immediately available. During good weather when forage was available the animals would be herded in fallow fields to let them graze and enrich the land with their manure.

The roof was made of thatch, a thick layer of bundled and tied plant material. Thatching is a complex skill, and if done properly a thatch roof if wind a water proof, and can last for many years.

Furniture was simple and sparse. A fire was built on a central hearth, essentially a low stone platform in the middle of the house, an smoke exited through rough vents, probably covered with a lantern shaped louvered structure. Later in the period fireplaces became available. There would have been a few stools and benches (chairs were rare) and a trestle table. A simple bed stand would hold a straw mattress. If the cases of considerable poverty, the mattress would be directly on the floor. The floor itself was covered with rushes or straw, which was periodically changed. Storage was accomplished by chests. Houses would not typically have closets or cabinets.