[clee1]

Hmmm, I find myself agreeing with parts of your premise. The only gripe is that most of those fleeing a feudal empire usually were caught in the same social class in the new feudal area. They were still trapped in a substandard (for the times) existance.

[Restorer]

The problem in the Middle Ages was that "substandard" standard of liveing was actually standard. The vast majority of the population lived at the subsistence level. Those at a truly "substandard" level were also known as "those who starved to death."