life in the middle ages

LIFE IN THE MIDDLE AGES

FEUDALISM

• Social & Economical structure typical from the Middle Ages

• Reciprocal legal and military obligations among the warrior nobility with three key concepts: Lords, vassals and fiefs.

What is it?

X – XIIIth CenturiesWhen?

MIDDLE AGES

LACK OF SAFETY

RURAL WORLD

SELF SUFFIENCY

RISE OF NOBILITY

FEUDALISMFEUDALISM

ROMAN EMPIRECRISIS

ECONOMICCRISIS

POLITICALINSTABILITY

NEED FOR MONEY

INFLATION

PRICEINCREASE

BARBARIAN TRIBES

MORE TAXESDECLINEof CITIES

TRADECRISIS

RURAL WORLD

SELF-SUFFICIENCY

CORRUPTION

due to

causes

due to due to

causes

and

causes

causes

due to

• A land based economy LAND = $$$$$$A land based economy LAND = $$$$$$

• Land granted by a lord in exchange for services

Fief (latin feudum)

• The recipient of the fief would be one of hisThe recipient of the fief would be one of his VASSALSVASSALS

The Commendation CeremonyThe Commendation Ceremony

LORD

VASSAL FIEF

PEASANT

PEASANTS

• Are not a private property

• But they’re not actualy free: they were serfs (servants)

• They must give a portion of the harvest and work certain days in the Lord’s own land

A PORTION OF THE HARVEST

Every vassal has to pay the Lord

Works for the Lord

The Lord must defend his vassals

• Lord: - military protection - legal defense - land

• Vassal: - military help - advice - part of the profits

FEUDAL PYRAMID

FEUDAL PYRAMID

Medieval Chivalry

The word evolved from terms such as chevalier (French), caballero (Spanish), and cavaliere (Italian) a warrior who fought on horseback

Medieval Chivalry

- Medieval conventions of chivalry directed that men should honor, serve, and do nothing to displease ladies and maidens.

- Few people in medieval society could read or write, and a family's coat of arms often stood for an official stamp or signature.

LuqueLuqueLuqueLuque

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

Heraldry

ISSAISSA

Heraldry today

TIME & SPACE

• Life depended on the daylight hours.

• Work begun and ended with the sun.

• Church bells divided time every 3 hours (clocks were invented in the XIV th Century)

• Nowadays Calendar didn’t exist

• Distance was measured by walking

• 90% of the population were peasants and never left their villages or towns

• As a consequence they knew their enviroment really well

• Man was part of the Creation

TIME & SPACE

HOUSES• A cottage with mud walls (or wattle and daub ), clay floor,

and thatched roof, often shared with animals = warmer

one or two rooms, with a loft for storage.

• Few (if any) small windows. • Waxed clothes or parchment were used to close the windows.• (Glass was a luxury material)

• Horn panes were a good substitute of glass

• Wealthy people had tapestries to mitigate cold

The bed• Sometimes the whole family slept

together in the same bed

• Mattress was just a piece of cloth with straws and dried leaves inside. They were easily rotten and full of insects.

• Lavender, Tansy and other herbs made the bed smell sweeter and kept the bugs away…

Furnishings• Peasants had a bed, a table, a couple of wooden

benches and a trunk.• Wooden bowls were used for eating and drinking.

Furnishings • In most homes people sat on plain stools or benches.

• Only a lord was likely to have a chair with a back and armrests, and he was thus called the……..

Medieval food

• Peasant cottages had no chimneys, cooking was done on a simple stone hearth in the center of the room.

• A hole in the roof instead of a chimney made the room not only dark but smokey but

smoke is a good deodorant!

 in the center of which was a few flat stones on which the fire was placed.

 A hole at the top of the thatched roof let the smoke escape smoke is a good deodorant!

Medieval food• In stone houses a fireplace was common and the iron

pots or cauldrons hanging from hooks were the main cooking utensil.

Medieval food

• In manor houses and castles big kitchens were often housed in separate buildings since they posed a serious fire hazard.

Dinner was the main meal

Basic food were vegetables, cereals, legumes, beer, wine, soup, oil and bread

What about water?

Sometimes there was pig meat, rabbit, eggs, milk or fish available

Medieval food

Medieval food

• What do you think the staple foods were?

• How did they preserve food?

• Why spices and honey were so important?

Medieval food

• Food was preserved in salt

• Spicies were commonly used to disguise meat in bad condition.

Spicies were very, very expensive

The search for spices caused some important changes in European History…

Portugal & Spain

Vasco da Gama Columbus Magellan

Medieval new products

Fork

Pasta

Bakeries

Muslims brought them…

They were unknown…

Bathing during the Middle Ages

As a rule, only the very wealthy could afford taking baths.

Most of the people cleaned themselves maybe a couple of times a month.

As a rule, only the very wealthy could afford taking baths.

Most of the people cleaned themselves maybe a couple of times a month.

ChristiansChristians

Muslims were obligated by their religion to wash themselves (face, hands & feet) 5 times a day.

Public baths were very popular in Muslim towns.

Muslims were obligated by their religion to wash themselves (face, hands & feet) 5 times a day.

Public baths were very popular in Muslim towns.

MuslimsMuslims

Medieval Clothing

Medieval clothing varied according to the social standing of the people.

The clothing worn by nobility and upper classes was clearly different than that of the lower class.

The clothing of peasants during the Middle Ages was very simple.

Medieval clothing varied according to the social standing of the people.

The clothing worn by nobility and upper classes was clearly different than that of the lower class.

The clothing of peasants during the Middle Ages was very simple.

Medieval Clothing

Clothes, like tools, were mostly homemade from local materials.

Clothes, like tools, were mostly homemade from local materials.

Medieval peasant women spent much of their time spinning wool or turning it into felt, which they used for hats.

Medieval Clothing

Many would have worn hats made of local straw to protect their heads on hot days while working the land.

Medieval Clothing

The clothing of nobility was fitted The clothing of nobility was fitted with a distinct emphasis on the with a distinct emphasis on the sleeves of the garments. sleeves of the garments.

The clothing of nobility was fitted The clothing of nobility was fitted with a distinct emphasis on the with a distinct emphasis on the sleeves of the garments. sleeves of the garments.

Knights adorned themselves with sleeveless Knights adorned themselves with sleeveless "surcoats" covered with a coat of arms. "surcoats" covered with a coat of arms.

Knights adorned themselves with sleeveless Knights adorned themselves with sleeveless "surcoats" covered with a coat of arms. "surcoats" covered with a coat of arms.

Medieval Education

Medieval education was conducted by the Church.

Students often sat together on the floor, scrawling notes from lessons using a bone or ivory stylus on wooden tablets coated with green or black wax.

Physical punishment was not only allowed but normal in the class

Medieval education was conducted by the Church.

Students often sat together on the floor, scrawling notes from lessons using a bone or ivory stylus on wooden tablets coated with green or black wax.

Physical punishment was not only allowed but normal in the class

Medieval Education

Girls were virtually ignored when it came to education. Only daughters of the very rich and powerful were allowed to attend select courses.

At 14 or 15, some scholars would continue education at a university (a creation of the Middle Ages).

Girls were virtually ignored when it came to education. Only daughters of the very rich and powerful were allowed to attend select courses.

At 14 or 15, some scholars would continue education at a university (a creation of the Middle Ages).

Cannon,

Gun powder,

compass,

astrolabio,

calendar,

Wind mill,

glasses,

print,

horseshoe

clocks,

golf,

paper,

chess,

rueca,

Paper money,

Music sheets,

pen,

0,

rudder,

Oil painting,

Magnifying glass,

screw

WOMEN DURING THE MIDDLE AGES

• Problem: not too many writings about women

• Monks and religious men were the only people who knew how to write

• According to the Church a woman was either:

• 1) Eve created from Adam’s rib and guilty of the original sin

• 2) Mary virgin , self-sacrifice, self-denial, mother and wife

WOMEN DURING THE MIDDLE AGES