| The profit-seeking behavior of the English gentry Paston family is a typical feature of this emerging political group in the 15 th century.The prosperity of this behavior was not only the objective result of the stimulation and guidance of the external environment but also the internal need of the gentry to pursue profits in late medieval England.On the one hand,the emergence of a new vassal system linked to monetary employment contracts has improved the political status of the gentry community,enabling them to express their own interests and aspirations.Moreover,the objective material survival pressure of the gentry forced them to abandon their military obligations to the lord and instead focus on obtaining economic benefits.On the other hand,the maturity of the political struggle ideology of the gentry and the imitation of the noble’s behavior of defending their own interests have enabled them to acquire flexible political speculation tricks to seek political interests without bearing the stigma of disloyalty.It was under the joint influence of these internal and external factors that the gentry dominated by the principle of pursuing profits played a full role in the turbulent situation England,and its strength grew rapidly in late medieval.During the change of kingdom power,the gentry represented by the Paston family took the protection of family interests as the main basis for their political behavior.In the constantly changing political situations of England in the mid to late15 th century,in order to avoid the loss of family property,they often changed their lords and chose the political faction that was most beneficial to them.This strong political independence fully demonstrates that the English gentry of this period were no longer marionettes under the control of previous lords.They have their own independent interests and political judgments,thereby continuously exerting their influence at the central and local social levels of the kingdom.During the distribution of the estate of the lord and the handover of gentry family property,the gentry almost violated the promises they had made to the lord and their relatives in pursuit of economic benefits.Faced with the assigned problem of huge property,whether it was a close friend who had served the same lord or a mother,son,uncle,or nephew under the same kinship relationship,they turned against each other and even united with their former enemies to seize property.The 10 year long dispute over Sir Falstaff’s inheritance and the property disputes among the three generations within the Paston family have provided detailed footnotes on the specific manifestations of the profitseeking behavior of the gentry in daily life during this period.When choosing a personal marriage,regardless of whether there is an emotional foundation,the consideration about the interests of the gentry families of both men and women is always the primary issue that cannot be avoided in personal marriage.John Paston II chose to associate with distant relatives of the Woodwell family in order to save the family’s financial crisis.The Heydon family,which had once forcibly occupied the estate property of the Parston family,was also willing to marry the Parston family in order to achieve a strong alliance between the families.Even Richard Calle,the butler who had a lifelong private engagement with the family’s Miss Margaret,was eventually hired by Parston family in troubled period to manage the estate for free.The profit-seeking behavior was fully manifested in the marriage choices of thel gentry.In the late Middle Ages,against the backdrop of weak monarchy and social unrest,the profit-seeking behavior of the English gentry class was a group characteristic jointly shaped by the time and individuals.However,this behavioral characteristic led a very negative impact on English society during the period.Surrounding the seizure of Gresham Estate,Lord Moleyns and the Paston family both used their political influence to interfere with the trial process,seriously endangering the fairness of the kingdom’s judicial order.And the attendants who were attached to the gentry families such as Lord Moleyns and Thomas Daniel pretended to be powerful.They used the power of their employers to roam the countryside,indiscriminately beating villagers and looting property,greatly disrupting the stability and order of local society.But this profit-seeking feature indeed contributes to the rise of local gentry families.On the one hand,the success of political speculation provides protection for the gentry families’ property.On the other hand,mastering legal knowledge also provides a guarantee for the growth of gentry’s position in the political and economic fields.Everything has its pros and cons.Although modern gentry made significant contributions to the development of the English nation,the negative impact of this group on late medieval English society should not be ignored. |
