The few roads that still existed were in a bad state, bridges were scarce, and brigands were common. For this reason during the Dark Ages, which lasted until about 1000 A.D., populations were tightly bound to the land surrounding the feudal lord's castle. People moved about only when there were festivals in other cities. These were the only occasions on which people could buy or look at different goods and have a chance to sell their own food or objects and fabrics made for sale. Fear controlled people�s lives and induced them to ask for protection from powerful warriors who had constructed well-defended castles, or from monasteries, which did not have soldiers but did have thick walls to hide behind. Life was hard, and , people thought little of clothing. Clothes were often made at home and were often rough and shapeless. Trousers, tunics and shawls were used to keep away the cold. The shawls were made of wool or fur and put over the shoulder. Most Europeans were dressed like today�s Benedictine monks, except for men�s trousers. Shoes were leather wrapped around the foot. Colors were plain; they were shades of gray, brown, dark blue and red. Conical hats were commonly worn.
This was a pyramidal society because the classes of people were in a shape of a pyramid.. with the kings and queens at the top of the pyramid (and were few in number) down to the peasants (who were many in number). In the middle were feudal lords, clerics, and others, such as vassals.
TAILORING
In the Middle Ages, for the wealthy, most clothes were created by tailors. Some fabrics tailors used were : Burnet, perse, lincoln scarlet, kersey, russet, chalons, damask, and sandal. (Most of the population, however, made their clothing themselves).
CLOTHING
Often, kings and queens would wear crowns and brightly colored silks. Obviously, their clothing was very expensive and only they had enough money to afford such beautiful things.
Shoemakers and their spouses often wore borealis hats. The clothes they wore with that were woolen coats with fur-trimmed sleeves. Inside the coat was a woolen doublet.
Holy orders, such as friars, wore cloaks with hoods and habits. On their clothes was a rope belt with wooden beads for counting prayers.
Felt hats with stirrups and brown jackets were the daily wear of manor lords. Peasants' daily wear was simple: straw hats that they made themselves, linen shirts that they made themselves, leather flasks, hoses (pants), and pewter badges or good luck charms.
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Food in the Middle Ages
Hot, Hot! The cook burned himself on the pot. The smell of rotten seasoned meat filled the castle kitchen. Someone had just stabbed into a goose. The cook tasted the meat for poison so the king wouldn't get sick. The job of a medieval cook wasn't the easiest in the world.
The food of the Middle Ages was very different from the food of today. During the Middle Ages in North Europe, they mainly used cattle and sheep for food. In South Europe, they also had fruits, vegetables, and herbs for food. They used olive oil rather than butter.
A banquet was sometimes made up of 6 courses. It provided food for everyone, not just the rich and famous. Rules were laid down for how people ate, their table manners and where they sat. They used spoons and knifes for eating. They also used trenchers, which were things like plates except they were pieces of hard bread that would soak up the blood and liquids from the chicken, turkey and other meats. A banquet was made up of many things, I will show you some of those things in the headings that follow.
Food was preserved in a number of ways. One way was that, meats and fishes were smoked or dried. Another way of preserving was that fruits and vegetables were pickled. Meat for the winter was salted in huge wooden vats. Sometimes meat and fruit were stored together in barrels.
The warmest place in the kitchen was the blazing hearth. A hearth was a huge fireplace. Food was often disguised with spices to hide the taste of rotten meat! The kitchen was a very lively place.
Sometimes castles kept honey bees. Honey was used to sweeten foods and drinks. Sometimes water was channeled straight to the kitchen. Larger castles had their own fishponds, orchards, and vineyards.
In conclusion, I think the people of the middle ages ate a little worse than we do today. Though, they did have virtually the same silverware as we do and the same idea for today's modern plate.
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A clang in the distance. A clang of metal. There it is again. A clang, almost robot like. Now some thing is in your sight. Its a man, thin as a stick and poorly dressed. His whole face is sweat. Now you realize that he's hoeing. His hands are total blood. This is life as a peasant in the Middle Ages.
As you can see commoners had a hard life. They were the lowest class of people and had to pay the highest amount of taxes. Also they had to work the most. The reason they didn't leave was because there was nowhere else to go. The other land was owned by another king.
They had a small shack that was their "house". Also they had a small field that they had to work on day and night. If the crop season was bad, they starved.
The commoners belonged to neither the nobility nor the church. They were divided into many groups. These groups are: the bailiff, the craftsman, the servants, and the peasants.
The duties of the bailiff were: collecting taxes and managing the fiefdom. The duties of the craftsman are: making candles and shoes and other things for higher class people. The duties of the servants were: preparing beds and other things. The peasants had to farm on the little space they had, and also sold the crops.
The dress of the peasants consisted of a hat made of straw, a leather smock, a long sleaved white shirt, pants, and leather shoes. The hat weighed 2-3 lbs. and the shirt was made of cotton.
The house was really just a shack made of cement, wood, and straw. It had cement on the outside. It had a straw and wood roof. Sticks would hold it up. The inside consisted of two small bedrooms and a small closet. There was a shack that took up one sixth of the house space!
Good thing we have a good government. Because if not, you might be a peasant
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Jousts and Tournments
Hoofbeats thunder on the hard dirt. The big heavy armor clacks as one knight fights another. The king watches with interest as two lances smash together at full force. One man falls to the hard dirt ground. That's what happens at the scene of a joust.
Tournaments started in France in the 11th century. They were public contests of courage and skill. Usually they were held to entertain royalty. They fought on an enclosed field. Many knights died. Many peasants were also killed when the horses went out of control.
The joust was a type of medieval sport which consisted of two horses charging at each other from opposite directions with a rider holding a sharp lance. They were only separated by a low wooden fence. Once somebody fell off they are usually hurt or killed. Knights would either forfeit their horse and armor or if able, they would fight on ground with a sword and shield. The object of the joust was to knock your opponent off their horse, which was pretty hard to do because the back of the saddle was about 1 foot tall. If the knight ever fell, his squire, {which are knights in training}, would make sure they were all right. If the knight splintered 3 lances it was either a draw or his choice was to fight on the ground. The joust could last for days because all knights would compete in it.
The armor was hot and stuffy. It weighed about 50 pounds. Some gloves were molded together and could not move. The horses the knights used were stallions. They are strong and nimble. The horses had to wear armor too. The ladies would give her favorite knight something like a scarf or a glove to show that he was their "special" knight.
There was another kind of tournament called the melee. The melee consists of two teams with flags on their backs using clubs and blunt swords. The object was to knock the flags off. One of the less popular tournaments was on water. Where one knight had a lance and tried to knock his opponent off his boat while other people rowed forward. They also had martial arts and kickboxing. Lots of knights made money from tournaments.
Tournaments were the highlight of castle life. A herald or knight issue a challenge. People made wooden stands decorated with pennants for the royalty. Small tents were made for the peasants. People were hired to keep track of the winners. Anyone was allowed to enter if they had a suit of armor, a horse , and a sword and shield.
Tournaments ended with the final decay of feudalism and chivalry in the 17th century. They stopped combats and made them state pageants. The church tried to stop tournaments because people often died. The church failed. The development of firearms and their widespread use helped stop the jousting tournaments. Today in our time at some festivals hold mock battles of the joust. Like the Renaissance festival in Tempe.
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Imagine a knight dressed in shining armor proudly bearing good King Arthur's flag rides past your humble home. Now you're being escorted down the stone steps of your father's castle by your rich husband-to-be, wearing robes the queen would be proud to call her own. Now you kneel you're overcome with joy as you feel the queen's royal crown slowly descend upon your head.
The Middle Ages, what a romantic period. But behind the grandeur, shining armor and famous kings, were the women. In the shadows a step behind but still always there were the women of the Middle Ages. Who were they? Did they have power over their lives? What happened to them? Now I share with you from three different sets of eyes, the true story of the peasant girl, noble lady, and the princess of the Middle Ages.
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A PEASANT GIRL'S DAY
Yawn! I stretched my arms as I slowly climbed out of my straw filled pallet. I quickly dressed in my long tunic and splashed last nights water on my face and hands. I peeked out the door way at the chilly morning sky. �Not much of a greeting for tomorrow�s holiday� I told my geese. Last year I paid my only penny to a band of traveling men to teach me my letters and numbers. I can�t write but I can count up to twenty. I can read fairly well. I looked back at my bed where my two sisters were fast asleep. Our father had been killed in the peasant revolt after my mother had died from the Black Death, that was five years ago. As I put out the breakfast of bread and water I planned my day.
Breakfast-bread and water
Dressing my sisters-May and Melinda
Feeding my geese-corn and water
Dropping my sisters off at the garden to work
Spinning, weaving, sewing, embroidery, and carding wool
Dinner-bread, water, and fried goose eggs
Walking my sisters over to help with the sheep
Working in the fields of wheat
Praying at the church with my sisters
Delivering my cloth goods to the castle
Supper-fried fish, fried goose eggs, bread and water
Preparing for bed
Prayers before bed then retiring
Only a regular day in the life of a peasant girl!
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A NOBLEMAN'S DAUGHTER'S THOUGHTS
Yawn . . . I stretched and snuggled back deeper into my bed. I knew that soon my father�s servants would come in and rouse me. I wondered again if my father really would marry me off to that toad of a man, Lord Rockface. I shuttered at the name. That hideous thing was seventy five years of age and as mean as Satan. I much more preferred my other suitor, the soon to be Duke of Scotland, Jon Leifson of Castle la Kaydome. He was just two years older than me, my age being twenty four. I had already been married once before. My husband had been dead for two weeks from battle with the English when I had delivered my daughter, Alice. It was a good thing he was dead, because otherwise he would have had me beaten for not giving him a son as he had demanded. Two days after she was born my Alice went to God. She was dead from scarlet fever. I remember my own Lady Mother, how patience she is with everything! Whether it was helping to train the squires in training or touring the grounds to make sure everything was running smoothly. Even at my earthly enemy spinning, weaving sewing and embroidery. On all these tasks my mother was always smiling, patience and kind. Quiet a different view from my father, a drunk, rude and bellowing man. Too bad the church doesn�t allow divorce. My poor mother! Here comes my father�s servants time for my day to begin.
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A VIEW FROM THE PRINCESS
Crash! Clang! Thud! I shifted nervously in my seat. I glanced at my Lady Mother, the Queen of Scotland. How could she sit there so calmly watching this horrid joust. Especially when it was dedicated in her honor. I turned my head as they carried yet another victim of this terrible sport off the field. But my eyes met a equally grotesque sight Sir Walter Walum. Yuck! That man wanted to marry me only for my father�s money and my crown. Ugh, I much more preferred the sight to my left, Sir Alexander Scott. Sir Scott did not treat me as if I were just a bump in the road to becoming King. I of course had had many suitors, but with a little help from one of my friends I sent all of them packing save for Scott and Walum. I liked Alexander. He was soft spoken and good of heart. Walter is sixty and harsh and I am only sixteen and I don�t think it will work. Alexander on the other hand is only twenty years of age.
I shifted myself and I wondered if this horrid thing called a corset really gave me the waist the merchant had promised my mother. Well the games are finally drawing to a close. Now we can finally go home. I�m excited and fearful at the same time. Tonight my father is going to tell the whole court, including me and my two suitors, who has been given the honor of wedding me. I pray it is Alexander. Time to find out. Gulp!
You have now seen and shared the duties and responsibilities that the peasant girl labored away at, day in and day out. How noble women were considered �just like nails� to join families together, to make greedy suitors and parents more powerful and richer. You also shared with the princess her feeling of hate, love and disgust. Very few choices were given to women and they were treated unjust and unfair. These stories that you have just heard, are about the women of the Middle Ages.
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