Middle Ages
Key Points
The centuries between the collapse of the Roman Empire and the late 1400’s is called the Middle Ages or the Medieval period. In both Ireland and Britain, the most important development during this period was the way in which the Norman’s gradually extended control over large areas. If you were able to travel back in time to the Middle Ages and were able to fly over the countryside in a plane you would probably notice large areas of forest, lots of small country villages, large open fields divided into strips, no fences, great sone castles, large and very impressive looking churches and monasteries, a small number of towns and cities surrounded by stone walls.
____________________________________________________________________
Learning Objectives:
In this Unit you are expected to know the following:
What is meant by feudalism?
What life was like in one of the great stone castles?
How a person trained to be a knight?
What it was like to be a monk in a monastery?
The life of a serf/peasant living on a manor.
The life of someone living in a town or city.
____________________________________________________________________
A lord living in a castle
You are Lord John de Lacy
You are a very powerful person
You own a large amount of land
You had knights and foot-soldiers to protect you
You live in a great stone castle
Main building called the keep
Walls are very thick
Keep 4-5 storeys high
Area around keep called courtyard
Outer wall surrounded by a moat
Drawbridge used for security
Special spiked gate called a portcullis
Your living area
Lord and family lived on top floor
Also had a private chapel
Very narrow spiral stairs to reach top
Very narrow windows – very cold there
Solar was warmest room – faced south.
The Great Hall
Important banquets held there
Two huge open fires there
Large tapestries hung on walls
Soldiers also sometimes slept there
Your pastimes
You held great banquets
Entertainment provided by jesters and musicians
You also went hunting for deer
In the summer you organised tournaments
The Lord as a judge
Courts held in the Great Hall
Lord acted as judge
Dungeons in basement of keep
Prisoners held in dungeons
Serious crimes punished by death
Your greatest fear
Castle could come under attack from enemies
A siege could last for weeks
Weapons such as battering-ram and siege tower used
Might be forced to surrender if you run out of food
____________________________________________________________________
A monk in a medieval monastery
You are Brother Francis
Joined monastery at age of 17
You are a Benedictine monk
The head of your monastery is called the abbot
Your vows/promises
You followed the “Rule of Saint Benedict”
Promised to have no wealth
Promised never to marry
Promised always to obey God and your abbot
Your typical day
Rose very early for prayer
Put on your brown habit
Prayed in church six times daily
Mass held every day in church
Ate three meals in refectory
Ate usually in silence
A monk read aloud from scriptures
All food produced on monastery farm
Had your own job to do
Went to bed at 8pm
Last prayer in church called Compline
You particular job
Worked as a scribe
Created beautiful manuscripts
Wrote on vellum with special inks
Had special room called the Scriptorium
Other monks worked as bakers, cooks, librarians, on farm etc
Main parts of your monastery
Church was largest building
Chapter house for daily meetings with abbot
Almonry where food given to poor
Cloisters where you walk around praying in silence
Dormitory where all monks slept
____________________________________________________________________
A Serf living in the Middle Ages
You live on a manor
Largest house belongs to the lord of the manor
Lord’s land called the demesne
Rest of land rented to serfs
All belonged to the lord of the manor
Your home
Very small house
Wattle and daub walls
Earthen floor and thatched roof
No chimney, hole in the roof
Animals also kept inside
Your work
Most of time spent farming
Crops sown in strips of land
All work done by hand
Had to work 2 days per week for Lord
Your main crops
Barley, wheat, oats and flax widely grown
Mill of lord used to ground the wheat and barley
Had to give 10% of crops to Church (tithe)
Your food and drink
Ate a lot of bread and porridge
Dairy products also eaten – milk, butter, cheese
Animals killed and meat salted for special occasions
Ale made from barley
Your clothing
Everything was hand-made
Wool and linen used mostly
Wild berries used as a dye
Shoes and coats made of animal leather
Your fears
Afraid of famine caused by a drought or a war
Great illness also spread – Black Death
Many died, especially in towns and cities
The Law and you
Local lord made all the laws
Serfs not allowed to fish in local rivers
Not allowed to hunt in forests
Could be put in stocks for minor crimes
Serious crimes punished by death
____________________________________________________________________
Review Questions
1. Explain how feudalism worked.
2. What was chain mail?
3. What did a page learn?
4. What did a squire learn?
5. What happened during the knighthood ceremony?
6. What was a tournament?
7. What was an archer?
8. What was the main weakness of a motte and bailey castle?
9. What was a keep?
10. What was a portcullis?
11. What was a tapestry?
12. What was the Great Hall in the castle used for?
13. What were some of the main weapons used in a siege?
14. What was the difference between a serf and a freeman?
15. Describe the home of a serf on a manor.
16. Explain how the system of farming worked on the manor.
17. What was the land called the commons used for?
18. What was a tithe?
19. Name a famous Order of monks?
20. Who was the Abbot of the monastery?
21. What were the main vows taken by monks?
22. What was the almonry in a monastery?
23. What was the scriptorium?
24. What was the Chapter house?
25. What was the cloisters?
26. What were some of the main religious services that took place in the church?
27. What was a town charter and what did it say?
28. Why were towns surrounded by high walls?
29. What happened at the town gates at night?
30. Who had to pay tolls in order to get into towns?
31. How did some streets in towns get their names?
32. List five different types of craftsmen that you might find in a town in the Middle Ages
33. What was a guild and what power did it have?
34. What happened to a boy when he became an apprentice?
35. What was a journeyman?
36. How did a person become a master craftsman?
37. Why was fire such a danger in Middle Ages towns?
38. What was a curfew?
39. Explain what the Black Death was
40. How was the problem of the Black Death solved?
____________________________________________________________________
Other Important websites to view:
http://www.learner.org/interactives/middleages/feudal.html
http://www.themiddleages.net/
http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/
http://www.kyrene.k12.az.us/schools/brisas/sunda/ma/mahome.htm
http://www.teacheroz.com/Middle_Ages.htm
http://www.mrdowling.com/703middleages.html
The centuries between the collapse of the Roman Empire and the late 1400’s is called the Middle Ages or the Medieval period. In both Ireland and Britain, the most important development during this period was the way in which the Norman’s gradually extended control over large areas. If you were able to travel back in time to the Middle Ages and were able to fly over the countryside in a plane you would probably notice large areas of forest, lots of small country villages, large open fields divided into strips, no fences, great sone castles, large and very impressive looking churches and monasteries, a small number of towns and cities surrounded by stone walls.
____________________________________________________________________
Learning Objectives:
In this Unit you are expected to know the following:
What is meant by feudalism?
What life was like in one of the great stone castles?
How a person trained to be a knight?
What it was like to be a monk in a monastery?
The life of a serf/peasant living on a manor.
The life of someone living in a town or city.
____________________________________________________________________
A lord living in a castle
You are Lord John de Lacy
You are a very powerful person
You own a large amount of land
You had knights and foot-soldiers to protect you
You live in a great stone castle
Main building called the keep
Walls are very thick
Keep 4-5 storeys high
Area around keep called courtyard
Outer wall surrounded by a moat
Drawbridge used for security
Special spiked gate called a portcullis
Your living area
Lord and family lived on top floor
Also had a private chapel
Very narrow spiral stairs to reach top
Very narrow windows – very cold there
Solar was warmest room – faced south.
The Great Hall
Important banquets held there
Two huge open fires there
Large tapestries hung on walls
Soldiers also sometimes slept there
Your pastimes
You held great banquets
Entertainment provided by jesters and musicians
You also went hunting for deer
In the summer you organised tournaments
The Lord as a judge
Courts held in the Great Hall
Lord acted as judge
Dungeons in basement of keep
Prisoners held in dungeons
Serious crimes punished by death
Your greatest fear
Castle could come under attack from enemies
A siege could last for weeks
Weapons such as battering-ram and siege tower used
Might be forced to surrender if you run out of food
____________________________________________________________________
A monk in a medieval monastery
You are Brother Francis
Joined monastery at age of 17
You are a Benedictine monk
The head of your monastery is called the abbot
Your vows/promises
You followed the “Rule of Saint Benedict”
Promised to have no wealth
Promised never to marry
Promised always to obey God and your abbot
Your typical day
Rose very early for prayer
Put on your brown habit
Prayed in church six times daily
Mass held every day in church
Ate three meals in refectory
Ate usually in silence
A monk read aloud from scriptures
All food produced on monastery farm
Had your own job to do
Went to bed at 8pm
Last prayer in church called Compline
You particular job
Worked as a scribe
Created beautiful manuscripts
Wrote on vellum with special inks
Had special room called the Scriptorium
Other monks worked as bakers, cooks, librarians, on farm etc
Main parts of your monastery
Church was largest building
Chapter house for daily meetings with abbot
Almonry where food given to poor
Cloisters where you walk around praying in silence
Dormitory where all monks slept
____________________________________________________________________
A Serf living in the Middle Ages
You live on a manor
Largest house belongs to the lord of the manor
Lord’s land called the demesne
Rest of land rented to serfs
All belonged to the lord of the manor
Your home
Very small house
Wattle and daub walls
Earthen floor and thatched roof
No chimney, hole in the roof
Animals also kept inside
Your work
Most of time spent farming
Crops sown in strips of land
All work done by hand
Had to work 2 days per week for Lord
Your main crops
Barley, wheat, oats and flax widely grown
Mill of lord used to ground the wheat and barley
Had to give 10% of crops to Church (tithe)
Your food and drink
Ate a lot of bread and porridge
Dairy products also eaten – milk, butter, cheese
Animals killed and meat salted for special occasions
Ale made from barley
Your clothing
Everything was hand-made
Wool and linen used mostly
Wild berries used as a dye
Shoes and coats made of animal leather
Your fears
Afraid of famine caused by a drought or a war
Great illness also spread – Black Death
Many died, especially in towns and cities
The Law and you
Local lord made all the laws
Serfs not allowed to fish in local rivers
Not allowed to hunt in forests
Could be put in stocks for minor crimes
Serious crimes punished by death
____________________________________________________________________
Review Questions
1. Explain how feudalism worked.
2. What was chain mail?
3. What did a page learn?
4. What did a squire learn?
5. What happened during the knighthood ceremony?
6. What was a tournament?
7. What was an archer?
8. What was the main weakness of a motte and bailey castle?
9. What was a keep?
10. What was a portcullis?
11. What was a tapestry?
12. What was the Great Hall in the castle used for?
13. What were some of the main weapons used in a siege?
14. What was the difference between a serf and a freeman?
15. Describe the home of a serf on a manor.
16. Explain how the system of farming worked on the manor.
17. What was the land called the commons used for?
18. What was a tithe?
19. Name a famous Order of monks?
20. Who was the Abbot of the monastery?
21. What were the main vows taken by monks?
22. What was the almonry in a monastery?
23. What was the scriptorium?
24. What was the Chapter house?
25. What was the cloisters?
26. What were some of the main religious services that took place in the church?
27. What was a town charter and what did it say?
28. Why were towns surrounded by high walls?
29. What happened at the town gates at night?
30. Who had to pay tolls in order to get into towns?
31. How did some streets in towns get their names?
32. List five different types of craftsmen that you might find in a town in the Middle Ages
33. What was a guild and what power did it have?
34. What happened to a boy when he became an apprentice?
35. What was a journeyman?
36. How did a person become a master craftsman?
37. Why was fire such a danger in Middle Ages towns?
38. What was a curfew?
39. Explain what the Black Death was
40. How was the problem of the Black Death solved?
____________________________________________________________________
Other Important websites to view:
http://www.learner.org/interactives/middleages/feudal.html
http://www.themiddleages.net/
http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/
http://www.kyrene.k12.az.us/schools/brisas/sunda/ma/mahome.htm
http://www.teacheroz.com/Middle_Ages.htm
http://www.mrdowling.com/703middleages.html
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