南北朝時莊園經濟已經十分發達，北魏孝文帝創建均田制，莊園經濟暫緩，至唐朝中葉，官僚地主侵奪田地，均田制廢止，地主莊園經濟便日益發展起來，如田莊、莊田、庄宅、莊院、山莊，宰相韋宙的「江陸別業」、宋之問的「蘭田山莊」、王維的「輞口庄」等都是有名的大莊園，江南軍使蘇建雄，「有別墅，在昆陵，恆使傔人李誠來往檢視」。早在唐高宗時，王方翼就已經「闢田數十頃，修飾館宇，列植竹木」。唐玄宗詔稱：「王公百官及富豪之家比置莊田，恣行吞併」。安史之亂後，均田制既壞，莊園經濟更加發達，陸贄指出：「今制度弛紊，疆理隳壞，恣人相吞，無復畔限，富者兼地數萬畝，貧者無容足之居」。

Just over a mile from Bourton-on-the-Water are the twin villages of Upper and Lower Slaughter. The name comes from old English 'Slohtre', which has nothing to do with killing things and means, simply, 'Muddy place'.

Today's villages are far from muddy places. They are the epitome of idyllic, civilised Cotswold charm. Straddling the banks of the River Eye, also known as Slaughter Brook, the two villages have remained utterly unchanged for more than a century with no building work taking place at all since 1906.

Unlike Bourton-on-the-Water there is little that is obviously for the tourist. The only attraction is a restored nineteenth century flour mill in Lower Slaughter, where the River Eye meets the north-west corner of the village. The mill was last used commercially in 1958 and its tall chimney cuts an imposing figure. The chimney is made of red brick, in sharp contrast to the other buildings in both villages, which are made from the traditional Cotswold stone. The mill features a giant working waterwheel and has a tea room and ice cream parlour for visitors.

The mill was originally part of Lower Slaughter Manor, which was built in 1658 for the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire. The Manor is now a grand country house hotel.

Lower Slaughter is home to the pretty church of St Mary. The church and its impressive spire were re-built in 1867 but some arches between the nave and the south aisle date back to the thirteenth century while the church of St Peter's, in Upper Slaughter, is a historic Norman church with parts dating from the 12th century . Francis Edward Witts, who wrote 'Diary of a Cotswold Parson', was rector of the Slaughters from 1808 to 1854.

The less-visited Upper Slaughter lies, as its name suggests, minutes upstream from Lower Slaughter. The cottages around the square were reconstructed by the famous architect Sir Edward Lutyens in 1906. The River Eye flows between neatly-mown grassy banks and is crossed several times by quaint old bridges. There are charming stone steps leading into the river which must have been built to enable villagers to more easily get water and a tiny Methodist chapel dating from 1865 also nestles by the brook. It is now used as a pottery.

莊園（manor），是中世紀歐洲基本經濟單位。當時因城市毀壞、商業衰退，歐洲經濟，淪為自給自足的農業型態，經濟關係也是以勞務交換、以物易物為主。

莊園生產包括糧食、衣物、工具等各項生活所需，是一個農村共同體，也是一個自治的政治單位，內有耕地、公地、教堂、領主邸第與農奴住宅等。莊園土地屬領主擁有，農奴負責耕作。領主與農奴之間有互相約定的權利與義務──農奴提供勞役、耕作、繳稅；而領主則必須分給土地、提供保護、執行司法。領主在莊園中設置的生產設施，如磨坊、烤爐與榨酒設備，農奴必須付費使用。

農奴〔serf〕身分介於自由人與奴隸之間。人身自由並沒完全失去，但身分又附著於土地。倘無領主同意，不可任意離開莊園，故其非完全的自由人。雖然農奴自由受限制，且生活艱苦，但有一定的保障。農奴只要履行義務，就可以世代耕作土地；一旦遇到困難，領主亦有義務提供適當的協助。

莊園制度的起源根封建制度一樣古老，也包含許多羅馬與日耳曼傳統。而莊園經濟之所以成為中世紀歐洲的主要制度，如同封建制度一樣，是因為第十世紀卡洛林王朝的解體與歐洲政治的混亂。 羅馬時代就有大莊園(Villa)的存在。地主擁有廣大土地，由奴隸與佃農來耕種。但兩者有根本性質上的不同，第一，羅馬大莊園的所有者是地主本身。奴隸是替他工作的。地主直接控制每一塊土地。而中古莊園則不是，土地的所有者是貴族與武士，他們無瑕參與耕種。為了獲得農奴的勞力，將莊園土地分割給農奴耕種。自己保留較小的「私地」(Demesne)或者稱為「直屬地」。而中古莊園的領主對於土地沒有所有權，所有權在國王，只有使用權跟管理權。而不同於中古莊園，羅馬地主對於土地內的奴隸沒有政治權利。

中古歐洲的混亂導致莊園必須自己自足，退回到原始的經濟。貨幣經濟可以說完全不存在，完全以物易物。直到十二世紀開始，商業復興，城市興起才慢慢改變這種體制。莊園經濟的一個特色就是「公社合作」(Communal cooperation)，就是農奴必須共同生產。由於經濟的困難，各種農具與牲口都由領主提供。所以農奴可以說是一無所有，因此必須共同耕作。另外因為土地的貧瘠與耕種技術的落後，莊園經濟普遍採行三年輪耕制