A Famous Cookbook from the Middle Ages!

Our Medieval Banquet and Faire is almost upon us, and it will be a day when we celebrate our year-long study of the Middle Ages. On this special day you will use what you've learned all year to step back in time and take on the role of a person who lived during this time period. However, what do we know about the food or the table manners of people who would have attended a banquet? Food historians might use another interesting document that has survived  from this period, The Frome of Cury. This is one of the oldest cookbooks written in the English language, and it is believed to have been written by King Richard II's master cooks. It is written in the form of a roll.

If you want to know more about King Richard and food fit for a king, here is a video that you might find interesting, although it is a little bit long.

Calling all Kings, Queens, Heralds, Bishops, and Knights!

We talked a couple weeks ago about other roles you can have at our Medieval Banquet and Faire. Read about the roles below and use Exit Ticket #14 if you want to apply for one of the roles. Each role has different requirements, so read the information below carefully!

Medieval Banquet Ballot

Write your speech, name, and banquet role that you’d like in Exit Ticket #14.

You may try out for multiple roles. This is due next week!!!

Kings and Queens:   You write a speech that honors the visiting principals, welcomes guests, thanks the kings and queens for their support, congratulates the guildsmen and/or praises the performers. The speech should be 3-4 sentences and you are welcome to find examples on the internet. You will recite the memorized speech at the banquet. Only a few of the most well written and medieval sounding speeches will be chosen, resulting in a seat at the head table.
Herald:   You will be the master of ceremonies at the banquet, introducing guests and performers. You will read from a script frequently during the banquet.
Bishop:   You will write a 3-4 sentence blessing of the food. You should include medieval language. You will memorize the blessing, recite it before the feast begins, and you will sit at the head table.
Knight:   Write one paragraph that explains how you demonstrate chivalry. You need to describe how you go above and beyond normal expectations to show great character. You may find information about chivalry on the internet. You will be dubbed a knight at the banquet and sit at the head table.

Musicians in the Middle Ages

The life of a musician (also called a minstral) in the middle ages was generally seen as a desirable one. Minstrals might wander from town to town, playing at village squares or in ale houses, or they might be employed by a wealthy or royal family to play at a lord's feast or at a gathering at the royal court. Minstrals told stories through song, the most popular stories and tales being related to romance or the life of a knight. When traveling, minstrals might use light weight instruments like a fiddle or lute. If employed by a wealthy household or at the royal court, a musician might play heavier instruments like a tabor, clarion, or even bagpipes.
One interesting instrument from the middle ages is the hurdy gurdy.

How to play a Hurdy Gurdy from English Heritage on Vimeo.

You can see more pictures of this instrument and listen to some audio clips at this web site: http://www.music.iastate.edu/antiqua/hurdy.htm

Medieval Market then and now!

http://www.norwich-

There is an interesting town in England called Norwich. It was once a Saxon town and a thriving trade center. It became a Norman town under William the Conqueror and he founded a castle there between 1066 and 1075. Interestingly, the market still exists in Norwich today, and there are over 190 stalls with people selling all sorts of things from food to clothing and more! Here is a link to an interactive map of what the market place looked like in the year 1300: http://www.norwich-market.org.uk/Medieval/wares.shtm . Roll your cursor over the pictures bordering the map for more information! Here is a link to what the market looks like today: market.org.uk/stalls/stalls_videos_WMV/stalls_WMV.shtm  Roll your cursor over the numbers on the booths for information about what is being sold there today!

Medieval Guilds and Trade Fairs

The Crusades focused people's attention on religion, but they ended up having a powerful impact on Medieval Life in another way. They helped introduce people in Europe to new products from other countries, like spices, scented soaps, colorful rugs, and more. As people wanted to have these and other products, new trade routes opened and people from many countries began transporting their goods by land and by sea. Along some of the main routes, trade fairs were set up so merchants could sell their goods. Go to this web site and read more: http://medievaleurope.mrdonn.org/tradefairs.html.

Medieval Guilds

Knights and nobles weren't the only ones who used coats-of-arms. Medieval Guilds would often display a coat-of-arms in their guild hall. A guild was a group of skilled craftsmen who did the same job. So, a group of shoemakers living in the same town would have formed a guild to make sure shoes were made to a certain standard of quality, to make sure that they sold for a fair price, and to make sure that their members had specific skills. To become a guildsman, a person had to go through three steps: apprentice, journeyman, and finally, a master. The two shields above represent the blacksmith guild and the shoemaker guild.

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Heralds record coats-of-arms in books called Rolls of Arms

Coats of Arms are more than just interesting colorful symbols placed on "awesome" shields. A Coat of Arms tells us about people and families that lived hundreds of years ago. In the middle ages it was a herald's job to know which coat of arms belonged to which knight or nobleman. Heralds often kept a record of coats of arms by drawing or painting them on a roll of parchment. It sometimes stayed in the form of a roll and other times it was made into a book. This record-keeping format became known as a

Roll of Arms and it generally included rows of painted shields along with the name of the person who owned the coat of arms. Roll of Arms are important primary documents that preserve information about many generations of knights and families dating back to the 1200s and are still being made by 21^st century heralds today.

The above picture is of a page from the Hyghalmen Roll, Germany, dating back to 1485.

Heraldry

Heraldry, a system of using a variety of shapes and symbols on a shield or coat of arms to identify an individual or family, is almost 900 years old. The use of symbols on shields can be seen in the Bayeux Tapestry, a tapestry which we studied earlier this year and which is thought to have been made in the 1070's. It became a herald's job to create and keep records of the symbols and coats of arms. Go to the web site for the International Heraldry & Heralds to learn more and see amazing images:
http://www.internationalheraldry.com/

To play a heraldry game requiring skill, paste this URL into your browser:
http://www.yourchildlearns.com/heraldrygame/

To create a shield online, pastthis URL into your browser:
http://www.imaginon.org/fun/whippingboy/createacoatofarms.asp?themeid=2&activityid=8

Become a knight of the 21st century!

Exit Ticket #9: Code of Chivalry in the 21st century.

Last week we listened to Knight Karl Kindt talk about the importance of finding ways to live a good and honorable life today, in the year 2012. He spoke about how a medieval knight lived by a set of rules called a Code of Chivalry. Here are two links to web sites about codes of chivalry- one for modern times, and the other for the middle ages. Copy and paste them into your browser to go to the web sites. Read the list on each site, and then do the exit ticket.





21st Century Chivalry: http://www.21stcenturychivalry.com/The_Code_of_Chivalry.html
Knights Code of Chivalry: http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/knights-code-of-chivalry.htm

Knights and Squires practiced for touraments and battles using a quintain. After watching the video, click here to know more about this device!

A squire learned how to become a knight by practicing with the knight he served. One device used to practice for tournaments as well as for battle was a quintain.

A Squire has much to learn before becoming a Knight! After watching the video, click here for more information about squires!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkQ1Ig3kYiQ

Knights showed their skills at tournaments.

When a night went to compete in a tournament, his squire would go with him. Can you tell what some of his duties might be after watching this video?

How to become a knight.

Exit Ticket #7: A Knight's Code of Chivalry

The life of a Medieval Knight.

Knights were an important group of people during the middle ages. As you now know, many knights participated in the crusades, some even becoming a part of a special group called the Knights Templar. These knights wore white tunics with a red cross emblazoned on the chest. However, not just anyone could become a knight. Check these links to find out more:


Becoming a knight: http://library.thinkquest.org/10949/fief/medknight.html#become
A knight's Code of Chivalry:
http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/knights-code-of-chivalry.htm

What is the Book of Kells?

Exit Ticket #6:There are some wonderful medieval illuminated manuscripts that have survived the test of time. Click here!

Young scribes plan their illuminated manuscripts.

Our young medieval scribes have written summaries of various crusades and are now planning how to turn them into an illuminated manuscript. A planning sheet is prepared that matches the size of the page in their illuminated manuscript. The scribe above is now ready to copy his text and artwork onto his "parchment."

Monks preserve history in illuminated manuscripts.

As you listen to the lyrics of the song sung on this video, you will hear a mistake. What correction would you make?