Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
Feudal Society
Serfs were bound to the land. They were not slaves, yet
they were not free.
• Knights
– warriors on horseback
searching for glory on
battlefield so a higher noble
would grant them a fief and
make them a vassal
• Code of Chivalry
– brave
– loyal
– courteous
– respectful
– honorable
– truthfulness
Knighthood
• Page
– age 7-14
– serve women of the manor
– learn manners
– religion, reading, writing, poetry, singing, lute playing
• Squire
– age 14-21
– serve lord and knights
– maintain lord’s armor and equipment
– maintain stables and groomed horses
– learn hunting, hawking, chess
• Knight
Knighthood
• Sponsor
– not usually father (may be another relative)
– present knight with armaments
– squire could not become knight without sponsor
– not all squires were sponsored to become knights
• Vigil of Arms
– night before becoming knight, dedicated to prayer and fasting
– wear white and red
• white = purity
• red = willingness to shed blood for lord
• Accolade
– kneel before lord and give him sword
Life in the Middle Ages: 500-1500
• Tournaments
– entertainment for all
– 3 to 4 days
– various forms of
competition
• all aspects of warfare
• knights show off fighting
skills
– form of military training
– winners claimed horses
& armor of losers
• or demanded ransom
– celebrations of marriages
or diplomatic events
Middle Ages: 500-1500
• Serfs
– common people bound
to the land
– worked for a noble in
return for protection
• Peasant homes
– cold, damp, dark
(warmer and lighter
outside)
– rarely more than 1-2
rooms
– windows
• very small openings,
for security
• wooden shutters
– thatched roofs
– easily destroyed
– sleep with animals
Life in the Middle Ages: 500-1500
• Clothing
– woolen
– linen undergarments
– signs of wealth
• brighter colors
• better materials
– decorated with silver
and gold
• lined with fur
• longer jacket length
• lavish jewelry
– leather
– buttons for decoration
– clothes tied on
• Medieval hats
Hygiene
• Had soap
• Decline of cities led to a
decline in access to running
water and public baths
• Public baths appeared again
in the later Middle Ages
during the growth of cities.
• The wealthy could afford
bath tubs
– Some castles had bathing
rooms and a person whose job
was just to get baths ready for
the family.
Hygiene
• Poor could not afford bathtubs
– Had wooden barrels
– Full immersion rare
• Labor to get and heat the water
– Usually used a bucket, soap, and a cloth
– Yearly bathing is an extreme exaggeration (probably
started because the poor rarely fully immersed
themselves and because of poor bathing customs of
the Renaissance).
• Had soap but no deodorant, shampoo, or
toothpaste.
Life in the Middle Ages: 500-1500
• Health
– no adequate health care system
– limited medical knowledge
– poor hygienic conditions
– almost impossible to cure diseases
– bloodletting popular cure
– early surgery done by barbers with no anesthesia
– medical treatment mainly for wealthy
– doctors mostly in cities and courts
– herbal remedies
(some earthworms, urine, animal excrement)
• Medieval medicine
Leprosy
Life in the Middle Ages: 500-1500
• Entertainment
– music critical aspect of religious and secular life
– public worship in form of drama
• stories from Bible
• costumes and musical instruments
• outside churches or in marketplaces
• Medieval music
Life in the Middle Ages: 500-1500
• Hunting
– entertainment for nobility
– important activity
Homes of the Wealthy
Castles
Medieval Castles
• First appear in
Europe in 9th Century
– introduced to England
by Normans in 11th
Century
• Important role in
medieval warfare
• Bayeux Tapestry
– chronicles Norman conquest
– http://www.bayeuxtapestry.org.uk
– valuable piece of historical evidence
Development of England
• Henry II
– foundations of English Common Law
• legal system based on custom and
court rulings
• protects property
– early jury system
• Philip IV
– established Estates General
Development of France
• Estates General
– French legislature
• includes reps from all 3 estates, or classes
– clergy, nobles, townspeople
• France
– Absolute Monarchy
• England
– Limited Monarchy