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Medieval families looked like ours
Very large families occasionally occurred, but most medieval people had only three or four children. Rich families had somewhat more, and the very poor somewhat fewer. At least in England, part of the reason was late marriage: people generally married in their mid or late twenties.
Child mortality took its toll. About 25 percent of children died in their first year, and another 15 percent by their tenth. Between small families and those deaths, the child in the middle of the distribution had a single brother or sister.
Surviving grandparents often lived nearby, but rarely under the same roof.
Why did late marriage mean smaller families?
A woman who marries in her mid or late twenties has fewer fertile years left than one who marries as a teenager. The historian John Hajnal described in 1965 a pattern of late marriage, with many people never marrying at all, that set northwestern Europe apart from much of the rest of the world. Marrying generally required a couple to afford a household of their own, which meant years of saving first.
Why did rich families have more children?
Nobles and wealthy townspeople often hired wet nurses to feed their babies. A mother who is not nursing generally becomes fertile again sooner, so births in such households could come closer together. Wealth also meant more food and shelter for each child who was born. Breastfeeding suppresses ovulation in many women for months.
Why did grandparents rarely share the same house?
Couples in England typically set up a household of their own after marrying, which required enough savings to afford one. Peter Laslett's Cambridge Group, studying parish records, found that English households from the 1500s onward averaged close to five people. Households with several generations under one roof were a minority.
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