The combination of population pressure and inflation exacerbated by the flow of gold and silver from the New World saw a price rise (price revolution) that cut effective wages in half by about mid-century.
Sources suggest that the 16th century has seen an enormous rise in prices that has impoverished the agricultural and working class.
Changing economic conditions saw many peasants lose their land as the terms of their tenancy become much less favorable, while land was becoming concentrated in the hands of the elites, especially the rising bourgeousie.
Homelessness and vagrancy were on the rise, and towns experienced a sense of crisis trying to deal with the poor. By the end of the century, a peasant almost never saw meat, and many of them had reached such a state of despair about the future that they engaged in widespread revolts. Tensions between the social orders were high on many levels.
The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn’t just how you like it, just think about how things used to be. Check out these interesting facts about the 16th century.