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1/ There is a fairytale that we are taught at school and that gets repeated endlessly by economists, namely, that capitalism put an end to serfdom and feudalism in Europe.
Not true. In fact it was peasant rebellions that put an end to serfdom in the 14th and 15th centuries.
Not true. In fact it was peasant rebellions that put an end to serfdom in the 14th and 15th centuries.
2/ As the historian Silvia Federici shows, these rebellions gave peasants independent control over their own land and subsistence. Wages rose massively as a result and living standards for commoners shot up.
And this is where things get interesting...
And this is where things get interesting...
3/ At the end of the 15th century, nobles and the bourgeoisie organized a counter-revolution, kicking peasants off the land, destroying their independence, putting them at the mercy of hunger so they would be forced to work for a pittance.
4/ This process of enclosure and dispossession marked the birth of capitalism.
Capitalism did not end serfdom. It ended the revolution that had ended serfdom. In fact, it *restored* key features of serfdom by destroying commoners' control over the means of production.
Capitalism did not end serfdom. It ended the revolution that had ended serfdom. In fact, it *restored* key features of serfdom by destroying commoners' control over the means of production.
