The Middle Ages

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The Middle AgesMyth and Reality
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The Middle Ages The Myth

• We think of knights in shining armor, lavish
  banquets, wandering minstrels, kings, queens,
  bishops, monks, pilgrims, and glorious pageantry.
  
• In film and in literature, medieval life seems
  heroic, entertaining, and romantic.

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The Middle Ages The Reality

• In reality, life in the Middle Ages, a period
  that extended from approximately the 5th century
  to the 15th century in Western Europe, could also
  be harsh, uncertain, and dangerous.

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The Lord of the Manor

• For safety and defense, people in the Middle
  Ages formed small communities around a central
  lord or master.

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The Manor

• Most people lived on a manor, which consisted of
  the castle (or manor house), the church, the
  village, and the surrounding farm land.

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Isolation

• These manors were isolated, with occasional
  visits from peddlers, pilgrims on their way to
  the Crusades, or soldiers from other fiefdoms.

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The Feudal System

• Under the feudal system, the king awarded land
  grants or fiefs to his most important nobles,
  barons, and bishops, in return for their
  contribution of soldiers for the king's armies.

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Nobles and Vassals

• Nobles divided their land among the lesser
  nobility, who became their vassals. Many of these
  vassals became so powerful that the kings had
  difficulty controlling them.

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Becoming a Knight

• Needed to be a son from a wealthy family (horses
  and armor were expensive
• At age seven, boys became Pages and began their
  training

• From ages 14-16, these Pages became Squires, or
  servants to a Knight.
• When the Squires were ready, about age 20-21,
  they could become Knightsif theyd proved
  themselves

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The Magna Carta

• In 1215, the English barons formed an alliance
  that forced King John to sign the Magna Carta. It
  limited the king's powers of taxation and
  required trials by jury. It was the first time
  that an English monarch was subject to the law.

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The Peasants

• At the lowest level of society were the peasants,
  also called serfs or villeins.
• The lord offered his peasants protection in
  exchange for living and working on his land.

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Hard Work High Taxes

• Peasants worked hard to cultivate the land and
  produce the goods that the lord and his manor
  needed.
• They were heavily taxed and were required to
  relinquish much of what they harvested.

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Women Household Chores

• Whether they were nobles or peasants, women held
  a difficult position in society.
• They were largely confined to household tasks
  such as cooking, baking bread, sewing, weaving,
  and spinning.

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Other Occupations

• Some medieval women held other occupations. There
  were women blacksmiths, merchants, and
  apothecaries.

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Midwives, Farmers, Artists

• Others were midwives, worked in the fields, or
  were engaged in creative endeavors such as
  writing, playing musical instruments, dancing,
  and painting.

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Witches Nuns

• Some women were known as witches, capable of
  sorcery and healing. Others became nuns and
  devoted their lives to God and spiritual matters.

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The Catholic Church

• The Catholic Church was the only church in Europe
  during the Middle Ages, and it had its own laws
  and large income.
• Church leaders such as bishops and archbishops
  sat on the king's council and played leading
  roles in government.

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Bishops

• Bishops, who were often wealthy and came from
  noble families, ruled over groups of parishes
  called dioceses.
• Many times, they were part of the feudal system
  and in exchange for a fief and peasants had to
  provide homage and military aid to a leige lord.

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Parish Priests

• Parish priests, on the other hand, came from
  humbler backgrounds and often had little
  education.
• The village priest tended to the sick and
  indigent and, if he was able, taught Latin and
  the Bible to the youth of the village

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Monasteries

• Monasteries in the Middle Ages were based on the
  rules set down by St. Benedict in the sixth
  century. The monks became known as Benedictines
  and took vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience
  to their leaders.

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Monks

• Monks were required to perform manual labor and
  were forbidden to own property, leave the
  monastery, or become entangled in the concerns of
  society.
• Daily tasks were often carried out in silence.

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Nuns

• Monks and their female counterparts, nuns, who
  lived in convents, provided for the
  less-fortunate members of the community.
  Monasteries and nunneries were safe havens for
  pilgrims and other travelers.

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Pilgrimages

• Pilgrimages were an important part of religious
  life in the Middle Ages. Many people took
  journeys to visit holy shrines such the
  Canterbury Cathedral in England and sites in
  Jerusalem and Rome.

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The Canterbury Tales

• Chaucer's Canterbury Tales is a series of stories
  told by 30 pilgrims as they traveled to
  Canterbury.

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Homes

• Most medieval homes were cold, damp, and dark.
  Sometimes it was warmer and lighter outside the
  home than within its walls.

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Peasants Homes

• Many peasant families ate, slept, and spent time
  together in very small quarters, rarely more than
  one or two rooms. The houses had thatched roofs
  and were easily destroyed.

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Homes of the Wealthy

• The homes of the rich were more elaborate than
  the peasants' homes. Their floors were paved, as
  opposed to being strewn with rushes and herbs,
  and sometimes decorated with tiles. Tapestries
  were hung on the walls, providing not only
  decoration but also an extra layer of warmth.

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Health Hygiene

• As the populations of medieval towns and cities
  increased, hygienic conditions worsened, leading
  to a vast array of health problems.

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Medicine

• Medical knowledge was limited and, despite the
  efforts of medical practitioners and public and
  religious institutions to institute regulations,
  medieval Europe did not have an adequate health
  care system. Antibiotics weren't invented until
  the 1800s and it was almost impossible to cure
  diseases without them.

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Myths and Superstitions

• There were many myths and superstitions about
  health and hygiene as there still are today.
  People believed, for example, that disease was
  spread by bad odors. It was also assumed that
  diseases of the body resulted from sins of the
  soul. Many people sought relief from their ills
  through meditation, prayer, pilgrimages, and
  other nonmedical methods.

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Bloodletting

• Medicine was often a risky business. Bloodletting
  was a popular method of restoring a patient's
  health and "humors." Early surgery, often done by
  barbers without anesthesia, must have been
  excruciating.

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Medical Treatment

• Medical treatment was available mainly to the
  wealthy, and those living in villages rarely had
  the help of doctors, who practiced mostly in the
  cities and courts. Remedies were often herbal in
  nature, but also included ground earthworms,
  urine, and animal excrement.

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Arts Entertainment

• Art and music were critical aspects of medieval
  religious life and, towards the end of the Middle
  Ages, secular life as well. Singing without
  instrumental accompaniment was an essential part
  of church services. Monks and priests chanted the
  divine offices and the mass daily.

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Town Life

• After 1000, peace and order grew. As a result,
  peasants began to expand their farms and villages
  further into the countryside. The earliest
  merchants were peddlers who went from village to
  village selling their goods.

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The Printing Press

• Printing began in 1450 with the publication of
  the Bible by Johannes Gutenberg. This
  revolutionized the spread of learning. Other
  inventions of the time included mechanical
  clocks, tower mills, and guns.

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The Birth of the Renaissance

• The inventions of Leonardo da Vinci and the
  voyages of discovery in the fifteenth century
  contributed to the birth of the Renaissance.

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Urban Life

• Few serfs were left in Europe by the end of the
  Middle Ages, and the growing burgher class became
  very powerful. Hard work and enterprise led to
  economic prosperity and a new social order. Urban
  life brought with it a new freedom for
  individuals. 

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References

• Adapted from the Annenberg Media/Learner.org
  website The Middle Ageshttp//www.learner.org/e
  xhibits/middleages/