What were the tasks of the monasteries in medieval times??????
The main purpose of medieval monasteries was for people to take themselves away from the world and devote their lives to prayer to God. Monasteries were general terms for abbeys and priories and included monks and nuns (not often in the same building though there were joint Orders) and canons who were technically priests. They all lived by the Rule and were described as regular as opposed to secular such as priests who served churches but were not in monasteries. Different Orders of monasteries had different emphases, some copied books, some led education, and all were supposed to give to the poor and provide hospitality for travellers, rich and poor. Certain Orders like the Cistercian Monks had lay brothers who did the manual work in the monastery and outside on the farms, but others had tenants and servants to do their work.
