The biggest changes came on the farms. For those peasants who survived, the future looked promising. Lords needed men to work on the land, but there were less men. Labourers could ask for higher pay and get it. Instead of earning lp a day, a man who cut corn could now expect 3p a day and free meals.
The Black Death gave some villains a chance to break free from their lord. Wages were higher so they would rather be paid to work for a lord instead of being given land to use. Some left their own village and went to work for someone else. There were usually lords, desperate for workers, who would employ them.
The new law said that people should be paid no more than they earned before the Black Death. Any lord who did pay more could be fined. The law also said that no one should move to a new village to get work, unless his lord agreed.
Some lords solved the problem by not growing corn. They kept sheep instead, because fewer workers were needed to look after them. The peasants were angry but there were ways round these laws. Often, if the lord needed workers, he would help the peasants. But the next few years were not easy. Food was dear and taxes were high to pay for wars against France. Even the plague did not go away. Five more times it returned before 1400. Some whole villages were wiped out. As was written at the time.
"The smell of death lay over all Europe"
An English priest, Henry Knighton, wrote:
A very great many men whose wives had died of the plague had flocked to become priests. Many could not write and, although they could read, they could not understand.
A man could hardly get a priest to take over a church for less than £10 a year. There had been plenty of priests before the plague. Then you could get a priest for £ 2 and his food. But at this time, there was hardly anyone who would accept the job at £ 20.
And he described another result:
The king sent an order to all the counties that labourers should not take any more than they used to take. But the labourers were so proud and stubbom that they would not listen to the king's command. If anyone wanted to employ them he had to pay them what they wanted or else he would lose his fruit and crops.
Then the King ordered many labourers to be arrested and put in prison. Many of these escaped into the woods but, if they were caught again, they were heavily fined.