What is the meaning of medieval life?

MEDIEVAL LIFE

Medieval means “middle age”, and is the name given to the period of European history between the, fall of the Roman Empire, in the 5th century, and the beginning of modern history around11500. During the middle Ages, 90 per cent of the population lived in the countryside as peasants —poor labourers who worked for wealthy nobles.

BOOK OF HOURS

These paintings are taken from a prayer book called a “Book of Hours”. It was made for the French Duke of Berry around 1410 and details prayers to say at different times of the day and year. In the middle Ages books were rare and precious objects, handwritten and illustrated by monks, and most were religious texts.

FEUDAL SOCIETY

Medieval society was organized into a “feudal system”, based on giving land in exchange for service. At the top was the king who granted land to his nobles. In return, the nobles supplied the king with soldiers. At the bottom were the peasants who worked the land in exchange for a piece of land to farm for themselves.

HUNTING

The Duke of Berry was a very powerful man and had many castles and lands. This painting shows his castle at Etampes, where a group of richly dressed nobles take birds of prey to hunt partridges, swans, ducks, pigeons, and other birds. Throughout the Middle Ages, hunting was the favourite sport of the rich.

CASTLE BUILDING

In September, the grapes were harvested, as seen here in the grounds of the castle of Saumur. Many magnificent castles and cathedrals were constructed during the Middle Ages, using only simple tools and the great skill of the masons who cut and carved the stone.

FARMHOUSE

This painting shows life on a farm in winter. Farmhouses were usually simple buildings with just one or two rooms where everyone would eat, sleep, and live together. The windows were small and did not have glass, which was very expensive.

Picture Credit : Google

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