Middle Ages By: Anna

Knights Squires were people training to become a knight. A squire has to learn to become a knight by using a lance, a bow and arrow, and a squire has to learn how to ride a horse. Squires dress the knight too. When a squire cleans a knights armor he rolls it in a barrel filled with sand and that gets the dirt out of the armor. Knights had to wear armor like a helmet, a shoulder piece and much more protection. Being a knight is hard work.

The Feudal System The feudal system was how people were ranked during the Middle Ages. At the highest rank of society was the king. Serfs were at the lowest rank of society. The middle ranks included everyone who worked for the king such as jesters, knights and squires. Craftsmen and merchants also made up the middle ranks. Monks, popes and priests were among the middle ranks too. Unfortunately women of all ranks held a difficult position in society. They were not treated equally to men. The feudal system ended during the Black Death which reduced England’s population by one third.

Illuminated Alphabet O ne of the most common forms of Medieval art was the illuminated alphabet. Illuminated comes from the Latin word illuminare which means beautiful. Most illuminated manuscripts were generally written in ink on parchment or vellum. The person who made the expensive looking artwork were called illuminaters. Illuminaters could be men or women.

Cathedrals People in Europe began building huge churches called cathedrals around eight hundred years ago. They built cathedrals to show their love for God. The towns- people met friends and discussed business in the cathedral as well as worshiping there. Craftsmen built cathedrals. Each person had a special skill. An architect drew the plans for the cathedral. He was often a master Mason. The people who made sure that every block was in its correct places were the Masons. Some also carved the stones. Stone cutters cut their own mark into the blocks because they were paid for each block they cut. Cathedrals took so long to build that it took several generations to build each one.