5 interesting facts about the Middle Ages. What You Didn't Know About the Middle Ages

Men in stockings, pregnant nymphs, the principle of cabbage and other oddities of medieval fashion.
Fact 1: Men in stockings.

Even in the early Middle Ages, men began to wear trousers, which were called chausses and most of all resembled modern women's stockings.

Pants were sewn from wool, tightly fitting the leg and tied to outerwear with special garters. The fashion for them lasted until the end of the late Middle Ages.

Fact 2: Short hair is a symbol of treason.

Yes, yes, there is an opinion that women cut their hair short, convicting them of treason to their legal spouse. The pride of a married woman was long, well-groomed and always covered when leaving the house.

Fact 3: A high forehead is beautiful.

The beauty ideal of the early 15th century is a girl with a high forehead. In order to correct a natural defect, medieval beauties shaved their hair around their foreheads. This helped to visually enlarge the forehead and get closer to the coveted fashion standard.

Fact 4: Pregnant nymphs.

Another fashion trend in the early 15th century was pregnancy. In the absence of such, in order to keep up with fashion, girls often put special leather pillows under their clothes (or tied them), walked slowly and arched their backs.

1483 Italy

Fact 5: Trends in the East.

In modern fashion, conditions are dictated by Western fashion designers and designers. In the era of the Crusades, everything was completely different: the Knights Templar from the East delivered information to their ladies about new styles, patterns, headdresses, which the girls then actively used for their outfits.

Fact 6: White is not relevant.

White fabric for tailoring was practically not used. The thing is that white, undyed fabric was considered too cheap, so women of fashion preferred bright colors, for which expensive dyes were used. By the way, nobody married in white either.

Fact 7: The principle of cabbage.

Every decent girl in the Middle Ages wore at least three layers of clothing: undershirt, underdress, top dress. All three robes reached to the heels and had long sleeves. Often the under and top dresses were made of wool, which gave the garments considerable weight.

Fact 8: Myths and legends about underwear.

Medieval women of fashion did not have underwear in the modern sense. A long white shirt was worn over the naked body. They say that it was because of this that girls were not allowed to enter the church during the critical days.

Fact 9: A real beauty should be heard from afar.

In the 14th century, it became fashionable to hang a large number of bells on your clothes. They were sewn to the hems of dresses, belts, bandages of bells were put on over outfits, and also attached to shoes. Can you imagine what noise was on the streets of medieval cities?

Fact 10: Insidious green sleeves.

There is one famous medieval song about girls with green sleeves. This is a song about love, but we are talking about corrupt love, the beauties sung by the author are medieval prostitutes. It was they who at that time were supposed to wear green sleeves.

Middle Ages... Time for balls, wide dresses and corsets....

Sometimes the Middle Ages are called the Dark Ages, as if opposing enlightened antiquity and the Age of Enlightenment, which went before and after the Middle Ages. For some reason, it was after this relatively short era, which lasted one millennium and was full of wars and epidemics, that democracy, technical progress began to dominate in Europe, and such a thing as human rights arose.

Changes

Interesting Facts about the Middle Ages - important changes. The Middle Ages were characterized as the time of the establishment of Christianity. It was with the help of religion that many changes occurred in the minds of people, which was reflected in the changes in society as a whole.

Women were completely equal in rights with men. Moreover, a woman in the ideals of chivalry has become a higher being, not attainable for understanding and a real inspiration for a man.

Antiquity was filled with such a close connection with nature that it was actually deified and feared at the same time. According to their characteristics, the ancient gods corresponded to natural areas and elements ( sacred groves, forests, volcanoes, storms, lightning and the like. Antiquity, despite some technical progress, was characterized by a small number of scientific achievements. That is, the foundation of scientific knowledge was laid, but in general, there were few discoveries and they rarely arose. In the Middle Ages, man ceased to deify nature and natural phenomena. From Judaism to Christianity came the teaching that nature was created for man, and should serve it. This became the basis of technological progress.

Despite close cooperation, religion and the state in the Middle Ages began to separate from one another, which became the basis of a secular state and religious tolerance. This came out of the principle "To God - God's, and to Caesar - Caesar's."

In the Middle Ages, the foundations for the protection of human rights were laid. Strangely enough, the model of justice was the court of the Inquisition, where the accused was given the opportunity to defend himself, witnesses were interviewed, and they tried to obtain information as fully as possible without resorting to torture. Torture was used only because it was part of the Roman law on which medieval justice was based. As a rule, most of the information about the cruelty of the Inquisition is nothing more than ordinary fiction.

Features of society

Sometimes you can hear that the medieval church held back the development of culture and education. This information is not true, since it was the monasteries that had large collections of books, schools were opened at the monasteries, medieval culture was concentrated here, since the monks studied ancient authors. In addition, church leaders knew how to write at a time when many kings put a cross instead of a signature.

In medieval Western European churches, special holes were made in the walls for lepers and other sick people who could not come into contact with other parishioners. Through these windows people could see the altar. This was done in order not to completely reject the sick from society and so that they would have access to the Lituria and church sacraments.

The books in the libraries were chained to the shelves. This is explained great value and the monetary value of the books. Books were especially valued, the pages of which were made of calfskins - parchment and copied by hand. The covers of such publications were decorated with noble metals and precious stones.

When Christianity won a landslide victory in the city of Rome, all pre-Christian sculptures were destroyed. The only bronze sculpture that has not been touched is the equestrian monument of Marcus Aurelius. This monument has been preserved due to the fact that it was mistakenly considered a sculpture of Emperor Constantine.

In ancient times, buttons were usually used as decorations, and clothes were fastened with brooches (clasps that look like safety pins, only in large sizes). In medieval times (around the 12th century), buttons began to be fastened into loops, their functional significance approaching the present. For wealthy citizens, however, buttons were made exquisite, often with noble metals, and could be sewn onto clothing in large quantities. Moreover, the number of buttons was directly proportional to the status of the owner of the clothes - on one of the camisoles of King Francis I of France there were more than 13 thousand buttons.

Women's fashion was interesting - girls and women wore sharp conical hats up to one meter high. This greatly amused the guys who tried to throw something to knock off their hats. Also, ladies wore long trains on dresses, the length depended on wealth. There were laws that limited the length of this decorative piece of clothing. The violators cut off the excess part of the train with a sword.

In men, the level of wealth could be determined by the boots - the longer the boots, the richer the person was. The length of the toes of shoes could reach one meter. Since then, the proverb “live in a big way” has gone.

Beer in medieval Europe used not only by men, but also by women. In England, each resident consumed almost one liter per day (on average), which is three times more than today and twice as much as in the modern beer champion - the Czech Republic. The reason was not general drunkenness, but the fact that the quality of the water was poor, and not a large number of the alcohol in the beer killed the bacteria and made it safe to drink. Beer was popular mainly in northern and eastern European countries. In the south, wine has traditionally been drunk since Roman times - children and women diluted, and men could sometimes afford to drink undiluted.

Before winter, animals were slaughtered in the villages and meat was prepared for the winter. The traditional way of harvesting was salting, but such meat was not tasty and they tried to season it with oriental spices. The Levantine (Eastern Mediterranean) trade was monopolized by the Ottoman Turks, so spices were very expensive. This prompted the development of navigation and the search for new, oceanic sea routes to India and other Asian countries, in which spices were grown and they were very cheap there. And mass demand in Europe supported high prices - pepper was literally worth its weight in gold.

In castles, spiral staircases were twisted clockwise so that those on top would have an advantage in battle. Defenders could strike from right to left, this strike was not available to the attackers. It happened that in the family the men were mostly left-handed, then they built castles in which the stairs twisted counterclockwise - for example, the German castle of the Wallensteins or the Scottish castle of Fernihurst.

A wedding has always been a joyful and bright event. However, in ancient, and often quite rough times, this holiday was quite severe. Many ancient and medieval traditions are now perceived as barbaric, wild or simply ridiculous.

However, be that as it may, marriage remained for many centuries an enviable goal for both men and women. But why was it so important? For a girl, union with a man was often the only way to get social protection and maintain a good reputation. At the same time, the man almost always received a rich dowry, and sometimes land that belonged to his wife's family.

There were fewer old bachelors in the Middle Ages than there are today. Marriages were more frequent and took place at an earlier age than they are now. An unmarried person in some cities could not count on a promotion. So, for example, in the last quarter of the 15th century, a law was issued in Augsburg, according to which a bachelor could not become a ratman.

In the workshops, a custom was gradually established, by virtue of which an unmarried person could not receive the title of master. Widowers and widows also mostly got married and got married. Widowers entered into a new marriage after some 6-8 months after the death of their wife, although widows were supposed to remain so for a whole year, which was called the “year of weeping and sorrow,” but they got married earlier than this period.

Girls of 14 or 14 and a half years old were already married. 8 year olds got engaged. Betrothal was considered at that time the main act, while church marriage only strengthened it. Matchmaking and betrothal consisted of three highlights. First of all, they agreed on a gift that would be given to the bride by the groom, and on the dowry that would be given for the bride. After that, the father gave his consent to the marriage of his daughter, and the groom - to marry. Finally, the father of the bride and the groom shook hands, and the betrothal was considered completed.

Over time, commitments that used to be oral began to be written down. Such a contract was drawn up in the presence of witnesses. After the betrothal, there was usually a feast in the bride's house, in the town hall, or even, which is especially strange in our opinion, in the monastery. In Nuremberg in 1485, any festivities in the monasteries were prohibited. The feasts that followed the betrothal were accompanied by dancing and drinking.

But then the time came for the wedding to take place, the “high time” was approaching, as they called the wedding day then. The matter usually took place in late autumn, “when the granaries and cellars are full, when the time of rest comes for both the peasant and the sailor.” In other cases, the bride herself invited the guests to the wedding; in others, this was done by persons specially elected by the bride and groom for this purpose.

They rode on horseback, accompanied by several horsemen, They deliberately took with them such a person who was known as a joker, knew how to speak in jokes and rhymes, which should have given the whole embassy a particularly cheerful character. (Such a joker was called Hangelein or Hegelein.) It happened that those participating in the embassy dressed up, and in this way a kind of masquerade was arranged.

They liked to invite more guests. In order to limit the size of the festival and the expenses absorbed by it, city councils prevented large gatherings and set a normal number of guests, more than which it was forbidden to invite.

A few days before the wedding, or even on the eve of it, there was a solemn procession of the bride to the bathhouse, where they danced and feasted. This custom is similar to our "bachelorette party".

At last the sun of a joyful, longed-for day rose. In some places it was Thursday, in others it was Friday. The marriage ceremony usually took place in the afternoon and even in the morning, shortly after mass. The wedding celebration was opened by processions that accompanied the bride and groom to the church.

They did not go to church together. The bride rode with her friends, and sometimes also with best men, in a carriage drawn by four. The bride is wearing a red satin dress, a muslin collar, and a belt richly trimmed with silver. On her head is a light crown, strewn with pearls.

Pearls and magnificent gold embroidery cover her shoes. The groom and his escorts rode on horseback. Both in front of the bride and the groom, musicians with flutes, violins, trumpets and drums moved. It goes without saying that these processions were also made on foot when the church was close by.

Just imagine such a procession. Music, colorful and new clothes, cheerful faces, conversation, laughter, the panorama of the medieval city already familiar to you, and above the blue sky, silvery clouds and the bright sun, illuminating the whole picture with its golden rays! When the procession approached the cathedral, the latter seemed to greet her bell ringing. To prevent the sexton from being lazy and stingy, he was treated to wine

1051 happened significant event- wedding in the Reims church of King Henry I ...

The procession approached the cathedral. Its main entrance opened hospitably. The stone images of saints, surrounded by stone lace and flowers, seem to come to life with the brilliance of the sun, in the presence of such a lively assembly, and graciously looks at the people passing under them.

A wonderful sight presents the interior of the Gothic cathedral. Space, height, groups of high columns connected to each other, supporting lancet arches, intertwining pointed arches of a high ceiling - all this amazes you, elevates your feelings, your thoughts, as if lifting you yourself higher and higher. Only after some time do you begin to look around, to get used to the individual parts of the grandiose whole.

Only here you stop your eyes on the high altar in the deepening of the apse, and on the luxurious preaching pulpit, decorated with sculptural images and a high canopy, only here you notice the statues under the huge upper windows, bordering the entire middle nave with marvelous lace, only here you begin to look at the multi-colored images on glasses. A colossal rose *** above the entrance, all made up of multi-colored glass, attracts your attention for a long time. Involuntarily you think, involuntarily you go deep into yourself.

“When you step under these bold vaults,” says one foreign researcher, “it seems to you that you are being embraced, that a new homeland is taking possession of you. It spreads around you an atmosphere of melancholy reverie. You feel freed from the miserable bondage created by worldly attachments, but at the same time you feel stronger, more expansive connections. It seems that God, Whom our limited nature tries to imagine, actually dwells under these vaults and descends here to direct communion with humble Christians who bow before Him.

Here nothing resembles a human dwelling, here everything that surrounds our miserable existence is forgotten. The one to whom this house is erected is Strong, Great, Diven; like a merciful Father, He accepts us, the weak, the small, the poor, into His dwelling... Medieval Christianity found in gothic style flexible and expressive, naive and thoughtful language, which spoke to the soul, filled with holy rapture, poured into it its inexpressible poetry.

The wedding procession entered the interior of the temple. The bride and groom go to the main altar. The sounds of the organ rumble above them, filling the entire cathedral. The ceremony began, and soon the words of the priest swept over those present; “I unite you in marriage in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit” (“Ego conjimgo vos in mat-rimoiiium in nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spirit! Sancti”). And the organ sang again.

The young people left the cathedral. The groom walked ahead and, having reached the house of his father-in-law, did not enter the house, but waited for the young woman. When the latter approached the house, he met her. A servant brought a tray with a flask of wine and a glass. A glass filled with wine went around all the guests present, after them the young man drank, followed by the newlywed. After drinking the wine, she tossed the goblet over her head. After that, one of the best men took off the newlywed's hat and covered the head of his young wife with it.

This rite, as it were, clothed her with power. Now she was the first to enter the house, followed by all the others. Of course, first of all, the young people accepted congratulations. Ladies and girls approached the bride, men approached the groom. At the same time, wedding gifts were brought. At one wedding, celebrated in the middle of the 15th century, thirty silver cups and goblets, a necklace, a golden belt and more than thirty golden rings were presented to the newlyweds.

During congratulations and offerings, music played, songs were sung, and so the time passed until dinner. The beginning of the latter was heralded by drumming. After dinner, dancing began, which continued until midnight. During the rest, sweets, wine, beer and other treats were distributed. At midnight, a new procession was formed.

The bride was taken to the rest appointed for this. For the most part, she was accompanied by relatives and best man, but it happened that all those present became escorts. Candles were carried ahead, music was playing, in a word, the impression of a great celebration was obtained. The young one was led by one of the best men. When the procession came to the bedchamber, the best man seated the young woman and took off her slipper from her left foot. This slipper was then passed on to one or more bachelors who were at the wedding. It must be assumed that this gift expressed the wish that the recipient leave his bachelor life as soon as possible.

The day following the wedding began with the young people exchanging gifts (Morgengabe). Gifts in general were an integral part of the wedding: the newlyweds gave each other, the last to bring gifts were the guests who had come to the wedding, the parents of the bride, in turn, gave various things to the guests and servants, sent money and food to the poor, wandering students, the watchman of the main city tower, servants at the town hall, the servant of the cellar, visited by the groom, his teacher, bath attendant; At the same time, they did not forget the executioner and the gravediggers. City councils constantly sought to reduce the costs associated with weddings, and, by the way, limited the wedding celebration to one day only.

So it was, for example, in Nuremberg. The city council of this city, having determined the exact number of people invited to the wedding, allowed to invite people who were not at the wedding, mainly bridesmaids and her acquaintances, ladies, on the next day after the wedding. To do this, a breakfast was arranged, the main dish of which was scrambled eggs; various biscuits, vegetables, cheese, wine were served here, but scrambled eggs prevailed and were decorated with artificial flowers. The evening of the second day ended with a very original "kitchen dance" (Kiichentanz).

Invited, contrary to the decisions of the city authorities, the guests became spectators. The servants danced, and each of the servants had with him some object of his specialty, such as a cook - a spoon, a wine manager - a mug, etc. On the third day after the wedding, if, however, the latter took place in the summer, a merry walk to the garden outside the city walls (Gar-tenfahrt).

All wedding celebrations ended with the newlyweds being taken to their own home. But there were times when a young for a long time lived with her husband in her parents' house. Often such accommodation was provided for by the contract. We have documentary news. One burgher from Frankfurt (Sifried Volker) betrothed his daughter (to Adolf Knoblauch) and promised to keep the young in his house, on his own, for four whole years after the wedding (“in sinem huse und in siner koste zu halten”) or, otherwise case, pay them 50 guilders a year for the same period of time.

wedding customs

In some countries there were such customs as departure of the groom to the territory where he met with the future missus and her friends on the day, then the groom was obliged to take the bride home.

It happened like this. When the two crowds approached, the noble groom's friends threw darts at the bride's friends, but this came from a very long distance, so injury was very unlikely. Although such a case is known in the history of the era, when Lord Howth lost his eye in such a custom.

There is another custom in which the groom, arriving at the girl's house, demands to give her away immediately. The bride's entourage refuses and a fight is started for the girl. The girl then jumps on her horse and rides away from this scuffle. The groom and his retinue rush in pursuit of the bride. Then, when everyone is tired of this pursuit, the groom captures his bride and sets off with a sense of satisfaction to his native places, where this ceremony ends with a large and grandiose feast. Sometimes a large number of people take part in such pursuit of the bride.

By wedding traditions arranged for the groom various contests. It could be physical interference that prevented the groom from reaching the goal. But there could also be Mind games(verbal duels) or poetic things on a specific topic.

Once upon a time, in order to get married, the bride had to first ... buy. At the same time, cattle was used as a measure of price, later - the harvest, and even later - a symbolic coin, which the bride, in front of witnesses, threw on the scales brought by the groom. Since ancient times, there has been another way to find a betrothed - to steal her from her parents' house. The tradition of bride kidnapping, reflected in the epic of many peoples, has survived to this day, transforming into a symbolic act of parting with one's home.

In medieval Ireland, there was some diversity in the forms of marriage: there were marriages - abductions, temporary and other marriages, but the main one was marriage by agreement between families. The feelings that the bride and groom experienced for each other did not matter much, what was important was a successful bargain for a dowry and a ransom for the bride. However, there were many rituals that somehow compensated for the dryness of the marriage contract. For example, the bridegroom's relatives greeted the groom with mocking hostility. Tied gates, rope barriers and other obstacles blocked the groom's way to the church and the return to the bride's house. To successfully reach the goal, he had to pay a ransom.

Adrien Moreau. After the wedding

Such an important element as wedding in church started around the 13th century. Previously, a medieval priest could conduct this wonderful ceremony in any place he liked. The priest read prayers at the wedding, after which he asked the young people if they wanted to be together and bear together all the sorrows and joyful events before God. If the newlyweds confirmed their mutual consent, then a marriage union was concluded.

Then, according to custom, the priest held a prayer service, asking for perfect love, the same thoughts among the young, a life devoid of vices, and the birth of children. When the priest finished the wedding ceremony, he joined the hands of the happy newlyweds.

With the advent of Christianity, an indispensable component of any wedding was a wedding in a church. Before going to get married, young people should ask for the blessings of their parents. Secret marriages caused public condemnation, and it was generally accepted that nothing good awaited such families.

The history is also interesting. wedding dresses. So, the white dress of the bride is a symbol, but not of chastity, as is commonly believed, but of joy and prosperity. A very long time White color was just one of the traditional festive colors, and brides wore pink or red dresses for the wedding. The tradition changed only in the 17th century, and according to different versions, the English Queen Victoria or Anna of Austria are considered to be the legislators of the new wedding fashion.

The symbol of the innocence of the bride is the veil, which came from the ancient Roman wedding veil. That is why those women who have already been married before, cost on wedding ceremony without a veil. Another attribute of the bride, the wedding wreath in the past was made up of plants that, according to legend, had magical power. Such wreaths were not thrown away after the ceremony, but were carefully stored for a long time.

As for the suit of the groom, one of his required elements- a boutonniere, that is, a flower in the buttonhole of a jacket, also came to us from the Middle Ages. Just as a medieval knight in battle wore the colors of the Lady of his heart, so one of those flowers that make up the bride's bouquet should be chosen for the boutonniere.

revelry

At a wedding feast in England, the main role was given to the pie prepared by the bride. It was the most important result of the celebration, after it was cut by a young wife - it was announced that "the mistress of the house appeared." Also in medieval England, guests themselves had to bring sweet buns, which formed a huge pile, and the bride and groom tried to kiss on top of her.

Pieter Brueghel. peasant wedding

The belief said that if they overcome the last obstacle, then their life together will be happy and rich. In the reign of Charles II, all these buns were combined into one big cake. According to legend, a certain French culinary specialist visited him, who took pity on the spouses, who could not even see each other, because of the huge number of pies. He decided that it would be much better to cover the "guest gifts" with glaze and place them on a special multi-tiered stand. And so the idea of ​​a "multi-story miracle" arose.

The fact that a wedding cake must be present at a wedding is far from accidental. Since ancient times, the wedding cake has symbolized abundance, many rituals have been associated with it.

In medieval England, guests brought pies with them, piled them in the center of the table, and the bride and groom tried to kiss on top of the pile of pies. By the way, it was from this mountain that the tradition began to make a wedding cake with many tiers. Of course, the wedding menu of different countries is very different, but the concepts with which this or that dish is associated are similar everywhere, probably because people everywhere strive to find happiness and gain fidelity in love and marriage.

Jan Stan. Wedding of Tobias and Sarah

The wedding loaf is mentioned in many old Russian books, a lot of customs and signs are associated with it. But another pie, brides, belongs to a lost tradition, and little is known about it. Meanwhile, back in 1800, a wedding table was unthinkable without a bride’s pie: without it, the chances of marriage for good luck were considered minimal. dough and placed on wedding bread. An echo of this tradition of figurines of the bride and groom on modern wedding cakes.

The shape of the bride's cake was invariably round, like the sun, a symbol of light and happiness.

By the way, in Russia (and not only) in addition to the bride's pie, as it is customary to call the main decoration of the wedding table, there was also a groom's pie. This was usually called a kurnik with a fiance of the groom made of dough. This custom is now not as widespread as it used to be, but you can still sometimes see the groom’s cake at the wedding. There are also superstitions regarding the wedding cake-pie. In Yorkshire it was once believed that that the bride who cuts the wedding cake with her own hands runs the risk of becoming childless. And to this day, in all counties, when the bride cuts the cake, the groom helps her with his left hand.

In 1475, in the Church of St. Martin, the son of the ruling Duke Ludwig IX led the daughter of the Polish King Casimir II down the aisle. The groom Georg and the tear-stained bride Hedwig saw each other for the first time - their parents brought them together for their state reasons. But what a magnificent and majestic this wedding was. Many chronicles have been preserved in which all holiday expenses are documented. 323 bulls, 285 pigs, 1133 Hungarian sheep, 625 newborn lambs and 1537 lambs, 490 calves, 11500 geese and 40000 chickens went to prepare the wedding feast. The holiday cost 60 thousand guilders, in terms of about 12 million today's euros.

WEDDING CAKE

If you pass the crumb from the wedding cake three times through the wedding ring and put it under the pillow, then in a dream your betrothed (or betrothed) will appear to you.

A variation on the "wedding cake under the pillow" theme is another northern ritual. The oldest inhabitant of the village stands on the threshold of the house, into which the bride enters, and throws a wedding cake over her head. Those of the guests who manage to get a piece of this cake should see the betrothed at night.

broken dishes

There is an English wedding belief: "the amount of happiness destined for the newlyweds depended on the number of fragments"

In East Riding (Yorkshire), the groom was served a large dish with pieces of wedding cake. The groom had to throw this dish over the bride's head onto the road, where the children snatched up its contents. If the dish did not break from falling, the groom's friend had to trample it with his foot, since the amount of happiness destined for the newlyweds depended on the number of fragments.

Giulio Rosati. Wedding

"BRIDE'S DOORS"

"Run to the bride's door." Even in the North of England, where traditions live longer than anywhere else, the custom of "run to the bride's door" has already outlived itself, but is still remembered. It was recorded by Halliwell. "They ran to the bride's doors" young people from neighboring houses who wanted to receive a prize from the hands of the bride. Standing at the church gates, they waited for the end of the ceremony, and then raced to the door of the bride's house. The winner was usually given one of the bride's garters; later, the prize was a ribbon that the winner wore on his hat all day.

"BRIDE'S ARMCHAIR"

A bride who has not sat in the "bride's chair" will never have children. (Northumberland).

Obviously, it should be added that this superstition prevails mainly in the district of Jarrow. And the chair, most likely, was originally called "Bede's chair" and belonged to Bede the Venerable (673 -735). It is kept in the sacristy of the church, and all the brides rush there immediately after the wedding to sit in this chair.

This ritual was supposed to protect spouses from infertility. For many centuries, no marriage that took place in this church was considered completed until the bride sat in an armchair. The armchair, in appearance very rough and strong, is made of oak; its height is 4 feet 10 inches, it has a straight back and what looks like armrests on the sides.

Another "bride chair" exists in Wharton (Lancashire).

Brides were also taken to him after the wedding.

Right of the first night.

This pagan custom was alive for a long time in medieval Europe. A married peasant provided his young wife to the master for defloration. There is a known case when the monks of the monastery of St. Feobart bought a village from a local feudal lord, and with it the right of the first night. The monks diligently carried out their duties until the Bishop of Toulouse intervened.

The first night or the right of the first night (Jus primae noctis, Recht der ersten Nacht, Herrenrecht, Droit de cuissage, Droit de prélibation) is the usual right of feudal lords to use the first wedding night of their serfs when they marry.

This most shameful manifestation of serfdom is the subject of controversy among scientists: some researchers (Schmidt) completely reject the existence of such a custom as a lawful phenomenon, but most cite a number of facts that testify to the undoubted existence of the "right of the first night." It was distributed in almost all countries of Europe; its survivals reach our century. Even those who belonged to the clergy, as feudal lords, widely used this right, to which there are many indications from the zealous researcher of this issue.

So, for example, the canons of the Cathedral of Saint-Victor in Marseille were officially allowed to use the first wedding night of their serf girls. The same Collin de Plancy cites the fact that the right of the first night was sold by one owner in Orleans for 5 sous, by another feudal lord for 9½ sous.

There are different opinions about the origin of this right. Some, like Voltaire, see it as an inevitable consequence of slavery: "a man who can dispose of another person as an animal, who has power over his life, can just as easily sleep with his wife."

V. Polenov. The right of the lord.

Others explain the origin of the right of the First Night by the fact that serfs could marry and marry only with the permission of their master. Villan, in order to obtain such permission, had to make some "concessions"; other gentlemen gave their permission only under certain conditions, and from isolated cases a custom developed little by little, which turned into law.

No matter how fair this kind of explanation for individual cases, but the fact of the existence of the right of the First Night in various countries and among various peoples points to a more ancient origin of this custom. Bachofen, Morgan, Engels see in the right of the First Night the remnant of group marriage.

In an era when the pair family was already beginning to take shape, men still retained the right to all the women of their tribe. With the gradual development of culture, the circle of people who have the right to women is becoming smaller, the exercise of this right is limited in time, and, finally, it comes down to just one wedding night, first for everyone, then only for the head of the family, for the priest, the military leader and for the lord - in the Middle Ages.

"Jungferzins" (serve virginity), preserved to the very last days the rule of feudalism, its very name indicates that it was a direct continuation of jus primae noctis. The rite is also significant, according to which the master on the wedding day of his serfs after the wedding had to step over the marriage bed or put his foot on it.

To this symbolic confirmation of the right to the wedding night belongs the characteristic decree of 1486, issued by Ferdinand the Catholic, which confirms the very fact of the existence of jus primae noctis; “We believe and declare,” reads the decree, “that gentlemen (seniors) cannot also, when a peasant marries, sleep the first night with his wife and, as a sign of their dominance on the wedding night, when the bride went to bed, step over the bed and through the mentioned woman; also the gentlemen cannot use against their will the daughter or son of a peasant, for payment or without payment"

(quoted in the Catalan original by Sugenheim, "Geschichte der Aufhebung der Leibeigenschaft", St. Petersburg, 1861, p. 35).

It is difficult to say when the right of the First Night fell into disuse, since it did not last the same long in all countries. In France, that classical country of feudalism, as early as 1789 there were isolated instances of the use of this right—true, instances that ended sadly for the feudal lords.

In 1855, 6 years before the abolition of serfdom, Privy Councilor Kshadovsky was tried and sentenced to a fine for using the right of the first night.

black widows

It was also possible to get rid of the burden of an unsuccessful marriage in the event of the sudden death of a husband. In this case, widows received freedom and even the opportunity to remarry. Some wives skillfully used this right, deciding to kill their husbands. Black widows - that's what they called such women.

For example, the Italian Teofania Di Adamo was a representative of a whole ancient dynasty poisoners. Like all her relatives, she was engaged in the production of poisons under the guise of cosmetics - colognes and powder boxes. Some historians believe that the most known victims Theophany became the French prince Duke of Anjou and Pope Clement XIV.

In France, the most famous black widow was the Marquise de Brainvilliers. She poisoned not only her husband, but also her father, two brothers, a sister, and even several of her children.

One of the most famous poisonings of the 19th century also happened in France. In 1840, Marie Lafarge poisoned her husband with arsenic, but was caught and convicted. The Lafarge case was the first in world judicial practice when the defendant was sentenced on the basis of a toxicological examination.

Of course, not everyone decided on a crime. Many women tried to get a divorce officially. As a rule, these attempts ended in nothing. Only the Church could divorce the spouses at that time, but she was not interested in this.

The church sought to give marriage a special character. There are different opinions among researchers about the reasons for this, but the main thing is that the Church seeks to give marriage an indissoluble character: it was argued that marriage is indissoluble, and the Church very carefully monitored the fulfillment of those conditions, the fulfillment of which was necessary for marriage. And often the Church participated, directly monitored the situation within the marriage itself.

Vasily Maksimov. family section

It would seem that aristocrats with their money, connections and titles had more chances in such matters, but the queens could not dissolve the marriage either. The spiritual authorities preferred to turn a blind eye even to egregious cases.

This happened with the famous marriage of Princess Evpraksia Vsevolodovna of the Rurik family and King Henry IV of Germany. Unable to endure the bullying of her husband any longer, the princess turned to the clergy with a plea to release her from this union.

“The Church should have had a divorce sanction, some reason, she can’t take it, just divorce people, at least in that era. Here the Church arranged something like hearings about it. And these hearings are often almost pornographic character, because she spoke of really monstrous things.We still don’t know what is true and what is not from what she said, I do not have the role of an arbiter to judge what is true and what is not , and, of course, my heart still inclines towards the Russian princess, and not towards Emperor Henry. But, nevertheless, in some ways she may have slandered him, because it is so monstrous (there is also a black mass, and sodomy, and anything),” says Fyodor Uspensky.

This marriage was never annulled. Aristocrats received approval for divorce only if the spouses proved that they were closely related. For example, if they were each other's second cousins ​​or fourth cousins. But the betrayal of a spouse has never been considered a good reason for the annulment of a marriage. Such behavior was not even condemned in society.

Infidelity could become a reason for condemnation only if the wife was convicted of it, especially if this happened in medieval Europe. Adultery is known to have been serious crime and mortal sin. But even when adultery became public, the spiritual authorities were inclined to blame the woman first of all.

Harlots and Temptresses

The Middle Ages were generally characterized special treatment to the weaker sex: every woman, first of all, was the embodiment of evil, a harlot and a temptress. The man was often the victim, involuntarily seduced by her charms. At the same time, the accused of seduction could not be seductive at all, but this did not matter for the verdict of the Church.

A harlot could be punished very severely. This instrument of torture is called the "iron maiden". It was installed in the center of city squares for all to see, so that the townspeople knew what an unenviable fate awaited adulterers.

"The metal sarcophagus in which the traitor was placed was measured in height so that the eyes were at the level of these metal slits. Then the sarcophagus was closed, and the spikes pierced her torso. The spikes are made in such a way that they do not touch her vital organs, so that she suffers longer ",

The history of the origin of this monstrous instrument of torture is rather mysterious. No one knows exactly where, when and by whom this metal sarcophagus was invented. And most importantly - what goals it initially served. In the annals of European capitals, there is almost no mention of the "iron maiden", and the information that is nevertheless found is very fragmentary and confusing.

"Directly" maiden "appears only in the XIV-XV century in Nuremberg in Germany. Again, the rumors are very contradictory. That is, at first it is used as something closed, they say, to see the" maiden ", you need to go through seven cellars, that is open seven doors, and then you can already meet her.

But in the same early Middle Ages there is evidence that a similar sarcophagus was used for unfaithful wives, including in Sicily, say, in the same Palermo," explains Pereverzev.

Unrestricted medieval husbands could legally control the intimate life of their wives. Thanks to devices such as a chastity belt. By the way, the key was made in a single copy.

Thus, going on a long trip, for example, a husband could literally lock up his wife and get a 100% guarantee of her devotion. After all, it was impossible to remove the belt without his consent and participation.

“A chastity belt, everyone usually thinks so, maybe it’s such a stereotype, and when they do reconstructions in museums, this particular place in the belt is considered the main one, it is made in the form of such a pike mouth. That is, you know, pike teeth are very flexible , curved inward and very sharp.

That is, something enters the pike's mouth very well, but does not come out back. Everyone wants the chastity belt to be arranged according to this principle, so that it not only protects her from love pleasures, but so that he can also expose, could, so to speak, catch the adulterer, "-

The iron belt wounded the skin, provoking infectious processes. Many wives died painfully from illnesses without waiting for their husbands. But in the history of marriage, there are other ways to use a chastity belt.

"A certain Konrad Eichstedt publishes a book in 1405, that is, the beginning of the 15th century, a book, just about European fortifications. That is, imagine these are all kinds of defenses of city walls, these are all kinds of devices for repelling attacks on these walls, and so on .

And in this book, for the first time, he sketches the belt that he sees in Florence, this belt is worn by Florentines from attacks on them, from sexual harassment", - says Pereverzev.

In ancient times, society was extremely patriarchal, and the attitude towards adultery was largely imposed by male psychology. Research scientists have shown that in the mind of a man his own infidelity is not perceived terrible act, often he is generally not inclined to associate his adventures with serious feelings.

Intimacy with another woman can only be a physiological act, and nothing more. But if they cheat on him, then this is already regarded not as a harmless prank.

"Men usually perceive such events as the betrayal of a spouse more painfully, because, again, we remember the biological component - women give birth. And in this case there is a kind of threat to their reproduction: aggression, that is, encroachment on territory, on the future"

However, the special attitude of men towards infidelity does not mean that a woman treats her easier. On the contrary, at all times betrayal was a deep tragedy, which was experienced hard and painfully. Such a strong emotional response is due to physiology.

“During sexual relations, a woman produces more oxytocin, the hormone responsible for attachment. And a woman literally grows her soul into her chosen one. And in these cases, of course, divorces affect mental health, because there are both reactive depressions and anxious -phobic disorders, and, of course, self-esteem, very often, falls significantly"

No longer dominated by modern couples public opinion. The current laws, unlike the medieval ones, make it possible to get a divorce quite quickly and easily. Today, lovers can generally live in free unions. But does such an evolution of views threaten the collapse of the institution of marriage?

The most shocking fact about the Middle Ages that will make you wince

The most popular method of treatment in the Middle Ages was bloodletting. But, if you think about it, it was still a very safe practice compared to what medieval healers could still do. For example, a good remedy for excruciating headaches, as well as epilepsy and mental disorders thought to be a small hole in the skull. It was drilled out so as to expose the meninges. Hemorrhoids should be treated by cauterization with a red-hot iron. Anesthesia, on the other hand, was reduced to toxic substances in a weak concentration, which led to an unconscious state, blows to the head with a hammer or a stick completely clamped in the teeth.

Not only a person could be put on trial, but also an animal that injured or killed a person. Tried dogs, pigs, cats. In medieval France, a cow was once condemned. She was found guilty and the executioners had to try hard to erect a gallows for the horned criminal. In the end, the cow was hanged, her body was burned and the ashes scattered.

To protect daughters from losing their virginity, and wives from adultery, parents or spouses put a chastity belt on the unfortunate. This structure was held at the waist and passed between the legs, covering the vagina and anus. Small holes were provided in the belt for the administration of natural needs. Although the most expensive belts, made in Bergamo or Venice (“Bergamo castle” and “Venetian lattice”), decorated with precious stones, gold or silver overlays, looked like works of art, they were still painful to wear. They left severe blisters, sometimes bedsores formed under the belts. Only the church court could save the unfortunate woman from suffering and order to remove the belt, which intervened only in the most extreme cases.

One of the most popular judicial practice in the Middle Ages there was an ordeal - "God's judgment." Those accused of any offense or crime had to be burned with a red-hot iron or put their hand into a cauldron of boiling water. The inflicted wound was bandaged, and after a while they watched how it healed. If the wound looked good, then. God confirmed the innocence of the test subject. Otherwise, the person is guilty and subject to punishment. Women suspected of witchcraft were tested with water, bound and immersed in a pond. The innocent soul was supposed to... drown, and the witch was supposed to emerge.

Medieval life was poor in spectacles, so going to see an execution was quite a pleasant pastime, comparable to a modern trip to the cinema to see a horror movie. True, rare modern man I could have endured such a sight and not fainted. People were not only hanged, quartered or burned alive. Before that, they were also subtly publicly tortured. For example, Henry VII promised one of the organizers of the uprising against him that if he surrendered voluntarily, then not a single member would be separated from his body until he died. And he kept his word. The unfortunate man was hung on chains from the church steeple and slowly died for long days from thirst, hunger, cold, and at the end of this torture from wounds inflicted by crows. At the same time, the hands and feet, as promised by the king, remained with him to the end.

Since it was laborious and costly to bring and heat large volumes of water, one bath could be taken by several people at once and several more after. Often regarded as a virtue dismissive attitude to hygiene and some saints could not wash for months. If you could not boast of wealth and noble birth, then several very dirty people could get into the bath with you at once. However, noble ladies were also not always spared the need to splash in dirty water, because their turn came only after their husband and older sons. In public baths, it completely reigned total anarchy and simplicity of manners.

The medieval woman was most often completely dependent on men. Before marriage, everything was decided by her father and brothers; after marriage, the life and property of a woman was managed by her husband. Only widows had greater freedom, but only as long as they did not remarry. True, a woman could go to church court if her husband hit her too hard or too often, but church men rarely rushed to defend the "vessel of sin."

Because even at noble ladies there could be two or three sets of clothes for the season, the outer dress was washed very rarely. A dress made of “heavy”, expensive fabrics, especially richly decorated with beads, precious stones, embroidery, could not be washed at all, but brushed. Underwear—usually long shirts—were washed more frequently, but ash mixed with urine could be the normal soak.

Alcohol

The idea that water should be purified and boiled in order to avoid infection did not occur to anyone. However, people could trace the connection between stomach diseases and dirty water. That is why commoners drank mostly weak beer, and richer people drank wine. Most life medieval man spent slightly under the hop.

In the Middle Ages, many states and empires were born, which later became the forerunners of modern countries. But the Middle Ages was a dangerous time - only the strongest, tenacious and adapted survived in this seething cauldron. The development of sciences and, as a result, technologies brought new times, more civilized, but, perhaps, devoid of some of that romance, now forever lost.

Facts about the Middle Ages

• earwax in those distant times actively used in the economy. So, the dressmakers lubricated the ends of the threads with it so that they would not fray, and the scribes isolated the pigments from it that they needed to draw illustrations in books.
• In the Middle Ages, it was not customary to wash in Europe, and neither in poor shacks, nor in luxurious palaces. The custom of washing at home was brought by the crusaders, who picked it up from the Arabs.
• The real problem in the Middle Ages was the plague, the epidemics of which mowed down entire cities. Then the now widely known plague doctors appeared, easily recognizable by their mask with a beak. Medieval doctors believed that the infection spread along with smells, and fragrant herbs were placed in this beak on the mask so that the doctor could breathe through this kind of respirator.
• In medieval castles, dogs were usually not expelled from noble feasts. There was a benefit from them - they ate leftovers that they threw directly on the floor, and licked the dishes, making it easier for the dishwashers.
• Interestingly, even palaces in the Middle Ages were usually not equipped not only with bathrooms, but even with toilets. Guests and residents relieved themselves right on the stairs, or anywhere else. So, in the famous Louvre there are exactly zero toilets.
• In one of the French museums, a letter from King Henry IV is kept, in which he writes to his waiting wife that she may not wash before his arrival, as he will arrive soon, in just 4 weeks.
• It was the Middle Ages that gave mankind such a barbaric invention as a steel chastity belt. These things often caused serious health problems.
• Outerwear made of expensive and dense fabrics in the Middle Ages was usually not washed, being dry-cleaned.
• Since the need to purify water before drinking was not known to anyone in the Middle Ages, people often replaced it with alcohol. The connection between dirty water and a sick stomach was already known, but clean water there was nowhere to take it from, and the fact that boiling would purify it was not yet thought of. Therefore, instead of water, richer medieval people usually drank wine, and those that were poorer - mash or beer.
• Marriages in the Middle Ages were sometimes concluded at 12-14 years.
• Contrary to popular myth, average duration life in that era was low only statistically. Mortality was much higher, it is a fact, but people with normal health had every chance of living to old age.
• At the beginning of the Middle Ages, buttons were used only as a decorative element of clothing. They began to be used for fastening later, around the 13th century.
• Doctors medieval era there was no habit of washing hands before examining a patient.
• To increase the shelf life, food in those years was usually pickled. It helped, but the taste of the food, of course, suffered. Spices also helped, but they were cosmically expensive.
• In the Middle Ages, it was believed that a beautiful female forehead should be high - this feature was linked with aristocratic background. Therefore, some secular ladies even plucked the hair above the forehead to make it appear higher. Such is the fashion.