Dear Student,

The expansion of trade drew more and more rural communities into the market economy, and links between countryside and towns grew stronger. Manors lost a large measure of their self-sufficiency as they participated more in the money economy. These developments stimulated the expansion of towns, of merchant communities and of coinage. The Black Death, after great initial disruption, accelerated the spread of the markets in the longer term by creating a shortage of labour and thus boosting the purchasing power of both urban and rural workers.

Thank You.