Living museum vocabulary
Jester- O The comedian in medieval times; would do anything to make his lord laugh. O Also juggled, sang, did acrobatics, etc.
Keep O A defensive stone tower at the center of a castle; the living quarters for the lord Retrieved from: wix.com
Lady in waiting O Daughter of a noble, often sent to another nobles estate for training, would serve the lady of the castle as well as learn about manners and proper etiquette.
Feudalism O The relationship during medieval times between knights, high ranked nobles, and the king; it focused on the exchange of service and loyalty for land and other fiefs
Page O The first step of training to become a knight. At age 7-8 boys would be sent away to live with another noble family to learn proper manners and etiquette from the lord and lady.
Melee O Knights fighting one another on foot or while mounted either divided into two sides or fighting as a free for all.
Siege O A warfare tactic to surround your enemy and cut off their supplies in an attempt to get them to surrender; could last a long time
Tournament O A competition that acts as practice for knights’ battle skills as well as a popular form of entertainment for nobles and townspeople. O Events consist of jousting, the melee, and other one on one combat.
Arrow loops O Narrow slits in the a wall that allow archers to shoot from inside the wall while making it difficult for outsiders to shoot back in. Retrieved from: animatedhebrew.com
Trebuchet O A siege machine which is a large catapult that uses a counterweight to launch projectiles. O Image retrieved from turbosquid.com
Serf O Worker who was tied to the land; expected to work for the lord in his fields and as servants.
Free Peasant O The commoners that farmed the land and were tradespeople; were free to do as they pleased. O Rented land from the lord and often paid for services such as having their grain ground to flour, a tithe to the church and fees for basic needs.
Three field system O A practice of growing a series of different crops in the same space in sequential seasons to avoid excessive depletion of soil nutrients; one field left fallow each time Retrieved from: forum.paradoxplaza.com
Manorialism O A medieval economic system in which peasants/serfs provide farm work to a lord in exchange for a place to live and a portion of the crops.
Fief O A gift for nobles or knights who pledge their loyalty to the king or a higher ranking noble. Often land but can also be other gifts such as permission to charge tolls and collect taxes.
Parchment O Sheep skin that has been treated and stretched to make it smooth, soft, and pliable; used to write on and make books or texts during medieval times.
Calligraphy O A style of writing used in medieval times, often described as fancy lettering. image retrieved from olutosinogunkolade.blogspot.com
Scriptorium O A room in a monastery where manuscripts are stored, read, or copied.
Illumination O The decoration of a parchment manuscript with gold leaf or bright paint; the technique brought “light” and brightness to the page retrieved from Catforum.com
Vow O In medieval times it was a solemn promise made by a monk or nun to profess their willingness to follow the rules of a monastery or convent.
Romanesque O A type of architecture that has rounded stone vaults and few windows and glass. Retrieved from enotes.com
Gothic O A style of architecture that has pointed arches and vaults, large amounts of glass in the walls and gives a feeling of great height. Retrieved fromorigin.northrup.org
Indulgence O Declaration or document made by church authorities that those who say certain prayers or do good deeds will have some or all of their punishment in purgatory remitted; indulgences were purchased
Tithe O A tenth of one’s annual income contributed as a tax, especially for the support of the church.
Flying buttress O A structure used to help support the forces of tall stone structures by helping distributing the weight. Retrieved fromarchitecture.about.com
Guild O An association of persons of the same trade or pursuits, formed to protect mutual interests and maintain standards.
Apprentice O A young man in his early teens who learned a trade by working for a master; he did not earn any wages but gained experience. The first stage in learning a trade.
Journeyman O A tradesman at the second stage of training to become a master craftsman.
Master craftsman O A skilled worker accepted by a guild as a master. O Examples: masons, carpenters, coopers, tailors, etc.
Masterpiece O A piece of work created by a journeyman for the guild of his trade in order to become a master craftsman. O The guild would accept him into their guild, or they would reject the work.