Medieval Serfdom
In the mid-1800s, there were two elite classes in the western world that were most recognized. The two elite classes were southern slave plantation owners in the United States and monorial estates proprietors in Prussia in East Elbia. The two elite classes had different labor systems, political and even geographical differences. Despite their differences, the two elite classes controlled landed estates. Their estates could act as autocratic and political communities as well as agricultural enterprises that served the purpose of exporting goods to England that was growing in terms industrialization at the time. The Junkers were quite militarist and monarchic while the southern planters were liberals but also racist republicans, which was the most compelling difference between the two elite landowners where the labor systems were quite different. Relationships between the peasants and their masters or property owners were similar in terms of treatment. However, the Prussians unlike planters in the south controlled free laborers who were not compelled to work in their fields while the southern planters owned slaves who did almost all of their operation without objection.
A similarity between the two groups of elites existed in their quest for economic power. Elites, the Prussian Junkers and southern planters were involved in farming cash crops for the international markets. Both of these elites had a lot of power on their labor force where the laborers were ruled by the elite; hence, the elite groups were not only farmers but also political powers over their laborers and managed to make their plantations political communities. The subjects had to ask for permission from their masters even when it came to personal matters such as marriage. This turned their estates into political and economic enterprises where profit was the main agenda of the elites. The elites consequently had overall control of not only their estates and plantation, but also a great deal of influence and decision making in the community where they would pass any decision as long as it favored them and rejected those likely to put their property in jeopardy. For instance, the southern planters were quite resistant to slave abolition since it meant a shortage for laborers as well as a high cost of labor since the slaves would no longer be compelled to work in the fields under low wages or the same conditions.
Another major similarity is conservatism in both societies where they contributed a lot to industrialization through proving materials such as cotton among other commercial crops. These goods were exported to other nations and regions for processing while these societies refrained from making any developmental changes. The two societies had very powerful masters who went ahead under all measures to ensure they continue to maintain their power by ensuring total control. Industrialization would have required more people to work in the factories and other opportunities for other people could have arisen. Therefore, preventing any change or holding to their traditional notions of master servant or slave rule ensured plantation and estate owners remained in control. In the southern society, the planters preferred holding to traditional and historic norm other than allowing exploration of other means or enlightened ideas. The Prussian Junkers on the other hand held to their belief of hierarchical class being naturally ordained and should not be changed to allow other people to own such estates. With this norms or belief, the powerful would remain in control without challenge since they were also politically influential.
The relationship between the Prussian agricultural laborers and their masters had changed although not significantly after they were emancipated around 1807 to 1810. After this period, the Prussian laborers were not legally bound to work in the land of their masters anymore. However, considering they had no other sources of livelihood, it was obvious they would still need to work for their masters, the Junkers. They remained to be treated the same as before as though nothing had changed and feudal political authority was still exercised on them by the Junkers under the serfdom. This included corporal punishment and a lot of power. This changed their relationship where the Junkers did not rule the serfs as Prussian laborers as serfs after their emancipation, but practiced free labor where they were free to work for the elite. The ruling and ruled existed in a monarchical rule and not a democratic one; hence, the laborers and elites had one ethnicity unlike the southern where racism was rampant.
The Prussians believed in the monarchical kind of rule where they believed that society was organized in a hierarchical manner where some people were naturally ordained to be rulers while others were supposed to be ruled or inferior to the rulers. The Junkers could inherit power from their families, as it is the norm in monarchy. Hence, people who were poor or considered inferior remained so while the master would remain to be so. There was no chance for new masters to come up unlike the southern planters where anybody among the whites had an opportunity to create their own wealth without having to inherit. This left great competition for resources among them being the slaves. Therefore, in the southern antebellum, the high race whites, competed amongst themselves to make as much profit as possible while the blacks remained to be treated like crucial assets for crop production among other operations. This intensified the slave trade that had become a profitable business like any other.
Before the abolition of serfdom in East Elbia, the Prussian laborers were considered property of the elites. The serfs were allowed to stay in a plot of land owned by the elite on the promise of protection upon working for the elites and were allowed to exploit some resources of their master. This way, the masters controlled over the serfs who were considered as property or the elites had property rights over their labor. This was another form of modified slavery at the time until it was abolished between 1807 and 1810. However, serfs could not be sold like slaves, although if the land they occupied were sold, they would stay and serve the new owner; hence, they were considered the lowest among the social rank.
On the other hand, the southern elites controlled slaves that were purely regarded as property and the masters or plantation owners had full right to sell them whenever they deemed necessary. In fact, slavery was a booming business where the plantation owners made money from selling of slaves to other plantation owners. The slaves had no rights of their own and total autonomy upon them was practiced. The southern elite ruled through shear force or total autonomy on the slaves where punishment such as whipping was common practice. The south was ruled on a democratic means that allowed liberty for the planters. Through this democracy, they were able to discriminate the blacks by ensuring they remain in slavery.
In the southern antebellum, the planters in the 1860 were divided though with a majority still advocating for Herrenvolk democracy while some were anti-democratic. However, those who advocated for democracy prospered more, hence gathering more influence in the community considering the rich and powerful were more respected. This contributed to the advancement of democracy in America thus transforming politics in America during this era. This allowed the planters to exploit their talents in business hence intensifying competition that resulted to more production. On the other hand, the slaves were becoming more enlightened and started fighting for their rights especially after other regions in the United States had abolished slavery.
The southerners still held to their beliefs that slavery of blacks would protect democracy among the whites since the blacks would not repel. Pressure continued from the slaves where antislavery movements for the blacks became more ardent forcing the southern planters to take desperate measures to ensure they still held much influence in the local authority. Considering the pressure came from both sides, below and above from the whole nation, the southern planters sought to have their on nation. This later resulted to what is today known as civil war in the 1860s where the southern fought to retain slavery since it was the crucial most assets of their plantations in a move to protect their power and property. After the civil war, the slaves were free and had rights. They were no longer compelled to work in the whites’ plantations and were protected from racial discrimination.
The Junkers too were faced with a threat in the middle of the 19th century where there was pressure from both sides too just like the southern planters. The Prussian Junkers feared for reforms from the civil bureaucracies that had a back up from the army from the top as well as majority from below seeking democracy. Just as the southern planters, the Junkers also sought to protect their property through maximizing their count in the national councils to increase their influence. They also tried as much as they could to lessen the influence of the authorities. This drove them to concede to some of the compromises from the democrats but choose to follow Otto von Bismarck who unified German states but still left the Junkers with a much of the power they had before. The Junkers only embraced a little of the democracy forms. However, despite remaining quite influential after the reforms, in 1945 the soviet army took over their estates from them.
The land tenure in the two societies had quite a big impact on the social structures where the rich were meant to remain rich while the poor peasants and slaves were to remain poor. This led to very rich and powerful people but few, while the majority was quite poor and had to depend on the rich. This led to racial discrimination in the southern antebellum where the blacks were the oppressed and poor. On the other hand, the domination of Junkers led to a strong monarchical structure that left little room for climbing up the social ladder. This ensured that the powerful remained as the rulers while the peasants had no choice except to follow what was dictated by the rulers. This widened the gap between the poor and the rich that is still evidenced today where the rich continue to access more resources than the poor can. Despite democracy being there, this led to the division of people into two classes, which were the poor and the rich as opposed to color and nobles. The poor are always struggling under all means to climb up the ladder while the rich leave little chance.
Junkers domination of power led to revolutions and dictatorship in Germany where through such powerful Junkers who had quite a big influence on the authorities. Such system always led to a lot of trouble when the peasants realized or became enlightened about their condition seeking their rights. In 1848-49, there was a revolution from the bourgeois. It sought to destroy the Prussians land ownership although it failed when a reaction followed short after leaving their land systems the basis of their economy that was capitalist. However, their dependence shifted to the rural population to a good extent. The biggest impact of Prussians way of distribution in wealth was the conflicts that led to a revolution from the top army consequently unifying the whole of Germany. People like Adolf Hitler were able to emerge causing war for the whole world due to the power they held. Because a few were powerful and ruling over the majority, they were able to stand unopposed by the majority in whatever they did. Hitler was able to rule as a dictator since very few people had any power to oppose his ideas. The same way, the southern planters had caused a revolution or the civil war in America where they sought to protect their property. It is worth noting that very few people had such power. Hence, those below were forced to go with the decision of the masters at most of the time since they had no power to oppose them.
The revolutions in big ways contributed to the democracy that we know today. Although it has not come automatically after the revolutions, they set a starting point for democracy and equality among all people from around the world. Beliefs such as ruling elite ordained naturally and racial discriminations as well as slavery have today been forgotten completely. Everybody especially in the United States has the right to own any property. Although it remains that majority of land is still owned by those who have inherited from their families. Today, America more than any other country is known to be open to new ideas and a part from embracing technology, it contributes a lot in developing it. Conservatism has long been forgotten in the southern states after the civil war where they had to allow industrialization that has continued to build the nation today, creating equal opportunities for every person living in the nation irrespective of color. In Germany today, where Prussian Junkers dominated, there is democracy as well as equal rights for every body and dominant Junkers no longer exist to rule among peasants.
Today, looking at such history, it is evident that the democracy and equal rights that people enjoy today had to be fought for. The two societies, the Prussians and the southern planters enjoyed a lot of power in the mid 19th century where they ruled among the majority poor people and slaves. It is worth noting that the quest for profits for these two societies led to economic development, which was their distinguishing similarity, although achieved in different yet similar means. The difference between these two societies was the labor systems and ideologies of rule where the Junkers believed in monarchy while the southern planters believed in democracy that allowed them to enslave blacks on an argument of making democracy safe for the whites. The same difference brought the similarity where they both used authoritative rule over the peasants and slaves to make as much profits as possible. Among the consequents of these kinds of authoritative rules were revolutions; here those below sought to free themselves while those at the top, especially the authority sought democracy. In both societies, the resulting revolutions and civil wars led to stronger unifications of the states. In the Unites States, there was a strong unification after the civil war while the military revolution in Prussia led to a unified Germany.
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