The Pig-King's Tithe: How a Swineherd's Revolt Bankrupted an Anglo-Saxon Heaven

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The Pig-King's Tithe: How a Swineherd's Revolt Bankrupted an Anglo-Saxon Heaven

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What if one of the most sacred sites in Anglo-Saxon England was brought to its knees not by Viking raiders or a rival king, but by a tax on pigs? This episode uncovers the forgotten economic rebellion that threatened to starve out the monastery of Medeshamstede, later known as Peterborough, the very heart of the Mercian kingdom's spiritual power. We trace the story of a tyrannical reeve who, in the late 7th century, imposed a crippling tithe on the swineherds who drove their herds through the abbey's vast woodlands. This wasn't just a tax—it was a siege on the food supply of a holy community. We delve into the legal curses inscribed in charters, the shadow economy of the forest, and how the defiance of common herdsmen exploited a fatal flaw in the alliance between crown and cross. Listeners will journey into the muddy, contentious world of early medieval estate management, where piety collided with profit, and a king's grant of "freedom" was only as strong as the men tasked with enforcing it. Discover how the survival of a monastery could hinge on the price of bacon and the will of those who produced it. Sometimes, the road to heaven is paved with pork. #AngloSaxonEconomy #MedievalRevolt #Mercia #MonasticHistory #Swineherd #DarkAgesTax #PeterboroughAbbey #PeasantsRevolt Hosted by Ibnul Jaif Farabi. Produced by Light Knot Studios (lightknotstudios.com).

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