1381: What were the Causes of the Peasants' Revolt?

This is another episode for the Power and the People Theme Study. In the summer of 1381, peasants from the south east of England rampaged through towns and cities. They murdered merchants and tax collectors and even the Archbishop of Canterbury. What caused this sudden outburst of violence? This episode looks at the social, politcial and economic causes of the revolt while the next one looks at the events and consequences. The book mentioned in the podcast is available here: Summer of Blood