If You Lived in the Middle Ages…

If you lived in the Middle Ages…

…and were a woman, you could inherit property.

It’s ironic to me that in the so-called Dark Ages women could inherit estates and widows could become quite wealthy and powerful while many centuries later (the 1800s for example) women were barred from inheriting land from their own husbands or fathers!

…your mouth would water at the smell of swan.

If you had money, you might eat anything from sturgeon to wild boar to swan. Contrary to what you might think, you’d eat a variety of foods, most of them fresh, including lots of vegetables and fruits. What you consumed would largely depend on what grew or lived in your area…and how important you were.

…you’d bathe regularly.

Despite what Hollywood would have us believe, it appears that medieval people valued cleanliness as much as we do. It was even common practice to wash hands before a meal. Who knew?

…you’d bring your own utensils to a feast.

Or you might just scoop up your meat and sauce with stale bread or your fingers.

…you wouldn’t be reading this blog.

Or possibly anything. Literacy was rare even among the nobility and books and writing implements expensive. Stories were passed on via word-of-mouth, especially in songs, hence the prevalence of minstrels and troubadours at that time.