THE MIDDLE AGES Shade Somoye English 11 Period 9-10

TECHNOLOGY AND ARCHITECTURE: CASTLE KITCHENS  Placed outside the Great Hall  Water for kitchen was supplied from a nearby well  Contained a large stone sink  Castle kitchens were so large they could roast up to 3 oxen at a time

CHAPELS  Essential part of the Medieval Castle  Used every morning for Mass  Common for the castle chapel to have a crypt  Was often a very cramped space

MEDIEVAL MATERIALS AND TOOLS  Wood was a very important material  Used Pine, Poplar, Oak, and Walnut  Popular tools made and used during the Middle Ages were the Axe, Saw, Chisel, etc.  Most of the tools made were used as weapons around the castle

RELIGION & CULTURE: MEDIEVAL WOMEN  Few woman lived comfortable lives, but Medieval society was dominated by men  A woman’s role would have been to support her husband  Women were paid less for doing the same job as a man  About 90% of all women lived in rural areas and were involved in some form of farm work

MEDIEVAL FOOD  Foods and diets depended on the class of the individual  For those living in the manor house: fowl, beef, bacon, lamb and fish  Medieval peasants had a much simpler diet  Medieval diets lacked vitamins A, C, and D and were not high in calories

HALLOWEEN  The name is a purely Christian tradition that begun in the early Middle Ages  A descendent of the Celtic festival of Samahain  Samahain marked the Celtic New Year when dead souls were believed to walk the earth  Church names Nov. 1 All Hallows Day  Following medieval custom of beginning observances the night before, collective holiday began on Hallows Eve; Halloween

SOCIO-ECONOMICS: MIDDLE AGE JOBS  Jobs changed within the Middle Ages because it spanned over a thousand years  Generally four different orders: Clergy, Nobles and Kings, Merchant Guildsmen, and Craftsmen and Laborers.  Other well-known Medieval Jobs were: Blacksmith, Tailor, Carpenter, Butcher, Weaver etc.

THE GREAT FAMINE  Lasted two years:  A wet spring made it impossible to plow fields, making harvest much smaller than usual  Many people were badly weakened by malnutrition  Few people died

THE BLACK DEATH  Lasted four years:  Disease was transmitted by fleas  Killed approximately 20 million people in Europe  Spread across 5 countries

DARK VS. LIGHT In my opinion, the Middle Ages were a time of darkness. Although this time period had a small area the shade of gray, overall it was a period of dark times.

CITATIONS: “Medieval Women.” Web. 18 Oct “Medieval Food.” Web. 18 Oct “Halloween.” Web. 18 Oct “Middle Age Jobs.” Web. 18 Oct “The Great Famine.” Web. 18 Oct “Black Death.” Web. 18 Oct “Castle Architecture.” Web. 18 Oct “Castle Chapels.” Web. 18 Oct “Medieval Materials, Tools, and Methods.” Web. 18 Oct. 2013