DO NOW: Fill out the third row of your Middle Ages Daily Life Scales Diseases and Crime Questions HOMEWORK

Diseases and Treatments

Disease and Treatment  Towns were quite dirty and there was no running water in houses  People used outdoor bathrooms or chamber pots and disposed of the waste and garbage into streams, canals, or even public streets

Disease and Treatment  People lived in crowded spaces and bathed about once a week  Rats and fleas were quite common and often carried diseases, which would be a precursor to the Black Death

Disease and Treatment  Common diseases were measles, cholera, and scarlet fever.  Leprosy was also an incurable disease at the time and forced the afflicted to live in isolation in order to prevent the spread of the disease  No one could figure out the cause of these diseases, but people were quite eager to find something or a group of people to blame

Disease and Treatment  While hospitals were invented in the Middle Ages, most doctors used a blend of prayer and medicine.  Hospitals were scarce and common techniques included using herbal medicine and leeches

Crime and Punishment

 Medieval towns were very unsafe as pickpockets and thieves were very common and there were no streetlights at night  Night watchmen would catch thieves and poor people could starve in prison if they were not fed

Crime and Punishment  Trial by ordeal and combat were used to “judge” the innocent and guilty  Trial by ordeal had the accused attempt a dangerous task that was impossible to succeed at  Trial by combat had you fight against someone else to claim your freedom.

Crime and Punishment  For small crimes, people would be put into the stockades  These wooden frames were used to hold a person’s head and arms in place  Being in a stockade for hours and days would be painful and humiliating

Crime and Punishment  For major crimes such as treason, highway robbery, murder, or stealing livestock, people would be put to death  Criminals would be executed or burned at the stake in front of the town  Eventually, a system of royal courts replaced these punishments and introduced common law