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ENTERTAINMENT IN THE
MIDDLE AGES Like today,
people in the middle-ages enjoyed many types of entertainment. However, some
pastimes required a large amount of time for training, while others required
expensive equipment; these types of activities were enjoyed only by the
nobility. Can you think of why? Write your thoughts below. Training
Equipment From the time
of becoming a squire, knights practiced for years in order to hone their
skills for war. In times of peace, they used these skills to participate in a
sport called “melee”. This was a sporting tournament held by the lord of the
manor, in which hundreds of knights fought against one another, just as in a
real battle. Many knights were killed in these mock-battles that new rules
had to be invented. To make
tournaments safer, “melees” were no longer held, and instead, the one-on-one
sport of jousting was invented. In jousting, two knights would start at
opposite ends of a field, and horse-bound, would charge at each other with
lances, trying to knock the opponent off of the horse. You could also score
points if you broke your lance on your opponent’s shield. The winner of the match
received the loser’s horse and armor. If the loser wanted them back, he had
to pay for them in gold. |
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Two other
sports enjoyed by the nobility only were hunting and falconry. Armed with
nets, spears, and bows and arrows, lords and knights galloped on their horses
across meadows and woods, chasing down large land animals, such as wild boars
and deer. The horses and dogs were used to catch and track down these animals
were very valuable, and the castle had servants to take care of them. Hunters of
the Middle Ages also captured smaller prey using trained hawks and falcons.
These rare birds came from as far north as Iceland and were even more
difficult to train than hunting dogs. The chief falconer – the castle staff
who took care of them – spent hours training these valuable birds. A hunter
sent the falcon or hawk into the air after prey. The falcon was not allowed
to eat the birds it caught. When the hunting day was over, it was rewarded
with food and then allowed to fly free for a time. Hunters wore a long, thick
glove that the bird perched on. The birds were hooded when not hunting
because it kept them calm. Many lords and ladies became so fond of their
hawks that they carried the birds on their wrists everywhere – even to feasts
at the castle. Aside from
other factors, there were laws that restricted who could and could not
participate in the sports of hunting and falconry. The royal forests
surrounding castles belonged to the kings and the nobility. Nobles alone
would hunt for sport as well as for food in these forests; any peasants
caught hunting animals could be killed for poaching, even if that animal were
eating their crops! |
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Entertainers Some people
in the Middle Ages made their living as entertainers. There were poets,
singers, magicians, jugglers, and acrobats. A wealthy noble usually had one
or more of these entertainers in their castle as part of his household.
Poetry, drama, music, and fantastic tricks would be performed for the
enjoyment of the noble family, and provided entertainment during feasts and
festivals. Nobles would also often keep a jester in the castle to provide
entertainment; jesters wore colorful clothing, told jokes, and played tricks. There were
also entertainers who made a living by wandering from village to village, and
castle to castle. Since so many people were illiterate in the medieval times,
the most famous of these entertainers were the poet-singers, who would tell
stories or poems, sing songs, or play an instrument. In France, they were
known as troubadours, in Germany as minnesingers, and in English, minstrels.
These poets sang graceful songs of love, and tales of knightly deeds. Stories
about heroes were told and retold, and with each telling they grew more and
more glorious until the hero became the most noble in spirit, the bravest in
heart, of any knight who ever lived. Many of these characters, for example,
King Arthur (England), Roland, the nephew of Charlemagne (France), and
Siegfried, the dragon-slaying youth (Germany) remain with us today. |
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Other Forms of Entertainment There were
also many forms of entertainment that were enjoyed by all people. The
equipment was not expensive, you did not need a lot of training to do them,
and there were no laws surrounding them. Two of them are highlighted below.
Can you think of anymore? Board and Card games Board and
card games have been around for a long time. Many of the games played in the
Middle Ages were from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Chess, invented in the
Islamic Empire, began to be played in Europe toward the end of the Middle
Ages, and after the invention of paper, playing cards also began to appear. If you
look at a deck of cards, with its kings, queens, and jacks (knights) it is
not difficult to see the influence of the middle ages on today. Many of the
board games are very familiar as well. Try some of the ones in
your class, and see if you can see the importance of these games in medieval
society. Others? |
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Let’s Think About
Entertainment! 1. Look at
the pictures below. Write “Nobility” under the sport you feel only the
nobility would play, and write “Commoner” under the sport you feel only
commoners would play. 2. Explain
your reasoning for the answers you gave above. Why did you select a
particular sport as being for nobility, or commoners? Think of the things
that would prevent a group of people from playing particular sports. __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ 3. Can you
think of any forms of entertainment from today that are more difficult for
certain groups of people to play? Why do you think this is so? __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ |