Special Sub-Topic: Medieval Castle Life Two Authored by: LindaC007 Sub-topic of: Medieval History

Which of these statements tells what a 'wake' meant in medieval times?

The day before a holiday. Wake only meant the day before, the eve, a holiday. There was a holiday called Wake Day upon which a feast in honor of the parish's patron saint was held. The courtyard of a castle is called the bailey. Holidays were feast day consecrated by the church. The major holidays were: Easter, Michealmas, Christmas and Lammas, which I will tell you about further in the quiz.

True or False: The majority of knights were penniless, and owned only their horse and armor.

True & t. Primogeniture (eldest son inherited everything), meant that the younger sons of even great houses set out into the world to make a living with their horse, armor, wits, and skill in arms. One of the ways that many knights could build their fortunes was to hire out as mercenaries. The plunder gained in warfare included horses, armor, baggage, and ransom of wealthy captives. In times of peace, tournaments were depended on to raise a knight's income. In jousting, the loser paid the price of his horse and armor to the winning knight as a ransom.

What exactly was a 'solar'?

The Lord and Ladies sleeping chamber. In early castles the Lord's family slept in a curtained off part of the Great Hall. As castles became more elaborate than just being a Great Hall with service rooms (like the pantry and buttery), the solar was walled off from the hall. Solars evolved to have their own private wardrobes (room where the Lord and Lady's clothing was keep). Eventually, any private chamber came to be called a solar.

True or false: High-born Ladies had the same legal rights as their Lord husbands in Medieval times.

false & f. No, a woman was not allowed to plead a case in court or make a will without her husband's consent. On the other hand, if a Lord was absent for any reason, his Lady took care of overseeing his lands and even was responsible for defending the castle in a seige. Like marriages today, a good medieval marriage was a partnership.

What exactly was a 'cottar'?

Persons in the village having the lowest status. The status of a villager was decided by two things: the amount of land they tended, and if they were free or non-free (villiens). The more prosperous villagers (with 15-30 acres of land), could still be villiens and owe hard labor to the Lord, usually two or three days a week. Villiens also were not allowed to leave the land or sell livestock without the Lord's permission. Villiens also were under the Manorial law of the Lord, and not under Royal law. Cottars were villagers who tended five or less acres of land and had to hire out as laborers to more prosperous villagers. While a cottar could be free, they were still the village's poorest people. Cottars who were free owed lighter labor to the Lord, since holding less land exempted them from the heavier labor of plowing, etc.

Which of these crops was not grown in medieval times?

All of these (Corn, Tobacco, Pumpkins). All of these were 'New World' crops introduced to English settlers by Native Americans. Sir Walter Raleigh first brought tobacco over to England.

True or false: A marriage between two consenting adults, where the vows were heard by a priest, could not be annulled.

false & f. Even if both parties had fully consented to the marriage, either the Lord or Lady could petition the Church for an annulment by saying the parties were related. Even proving distant kinship could be grounds. This does not mean an annulment would be granted. The party could very easily be told to return to their partner.

The seasons of a medieval year were marked by feast days consecrated by the Church. Which season was from Lammas to Michaelmas?

Autumn. Lammas (from the Anglo-Saxon 'half-mass'), means half mass. It started on Aug. 1, and marked the beginning of autumn. It was the feast of first fruits when loaves of bread, baked from new wheat, were blessed. It ended on Michaelmas (Sept. 29), and was the season of harvest. Michealmas was the beginning of winter and the start of the castle's fiscal year. Winter ran from Michaelmas to Christmas, when the winter crops of wheat and rye were planted. Easter began the planting of springs crops-oats, peas, barley, and beans.

Which best describes what a 'trencher' was?

Slice of day old bread used as a meat plate. A thick slice of day old bread used to serve meats on at the Lord's table was called a trencher.

True or False: An undergarment worn by a Lady beneath her tunic was called a 'chemise'.

true & t. Yes, it was a Lady's undergarment. The inner walled enclosure of the castle was also known as the chemise. Would you like to know more about life in medieval times? If so, may I suggest to you the books of Joseph and Frances Gies? Their books (which are very readable) include: "Life in a Medieval Castle", "Life in a Medieval City", and "Marriage and Family in the Middle Ages". Thank you for taking my quiz.