Population density
The image shows population density per square mile according to the Poll-tax of 1377. Since Lords love their taxes we can assume it's pretty accurate.
Dark = 60
Grey = 40-60
White = below 40
Few villages are more than about a mile or two from their nearest neighbour. In regions of better farmland, the villages are closer (similar sized fields but less heath and waste filling out the manor).
A market village is a large village with a market (possibly illegal). A market village will be roughly 4 miles or less (1 hour walk) from any other market village and 12 miles (4 hour walk) or less from a proper market town. Larger towns might be a 3 day walk away. You don't go to the larger town very often.
Markets typically happen once a week, with different villages having markets on different days to avoid conflicts. Typically a shepard or farmer living in a village or thorpe would sell their excess goods (wool, eggs, etc) to a merchant who would take them to market at the market village or market town for re-sell. This way the peasants earn a little money and don't have to sit all day selling stuff. Also this way the town has food.
I imagine they probably had folks (I call them peddlers on the rural encounters charts) who would buy up goods in the nearest market town, pile them into the wagon, and hit up a village market each day making a marginal living in this way. They might also buy up produce for sale in the town markets since few villagers have the time or money to haul their goods to market and sit in a stall all day trying to sell it.
I figure a ratio of 9 villages for each town and 9 towns for each city.
Table 1: Population Density
1d100 | Culture | Families in 6-mile hex | People sqr mile |
|---|---|---|---|
01-05 | Primitive | 62-300 | 10-50 |
06-10 | Desert (Nomad) | -- | -- |
11-15 | Oriental Horse (Nomad) | -- | -- |
16-30 | Classical (Civilized) | 300-500 | 50-80 |
31-40 | Dark Ages (Barbarian) | 62-370 | 10-40 |
41-50 | Medieval (Civilized) | 370-550 | 40-90 |
51-80 | Late Medieval (Civilized) | 550-744 | 90-120 |
81-00 | Oriental or Renaissance (Civilized) | 745-1426 | 120-230 |
So for example the settled areas in England of 1377 above would be Medieval (Civilized) and have roughly 370-550 families in a 6-mile Hex. Since villages range in size from 20-1,000 families that means the hex might contain 1 village of 550 families or two of 250 each, etc. The closer to a Town or City the larger the individual villages are likely to be.
The lightly populated areas might be considered Dark Ages (Barbarian) which primarily indicates the size of the settlements and the availability of craftsmen and such there more than anything else.
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