A History of Domestic Manners and Sentiments in England During the Middle Ages

by Thomas Wright

No. 317. Riding on a Pillion.

No. 318. A Lady carried in her Chair.

The close of the period of which we are here speaking introduces us to one in which the manners and customs of our forefathers were less widely different from those of our own days; and the history of domestic manners since that time, characterised less by broad outline of the general features in its revolutions than by a gradual succession of minute changes, and fashions which must be traced from day to day, is less capable of being treated in the comprehensive style of these pages. Having now, therefore, brought down our sketch of the History of the Domestic Manners of our forefathers to the middle of the seventeenth century, we shall here, for the reason just stated, conclude it, and leave to some worthier labourer, or to some future occasion, the task of tracing more minutely the history of domestic manners and sentiments during the period which followed the middle ages.

No. 319. A Mediæval Cabriolet.

INDEX.

• A.
• Adulteration of food, [394].
• Ale, [32].
• Alehouse, road-side, [320], [321].
• Ale-stake, [321].
• Almsgiving, [61], [158].
• Amphitheatres, Roman, continued in use among the Anglo-Saxons, [64];
• and Anglo-Normans, [111].
• Amusements after dinner, [33], [38], [106], [194-225], [226-236].
• Amusements out of doors, [111-113], [432].
• Animals, domestic, [239-244], [384-386], [490].
• Apple, the chief fruit of the Anglo-Saxons, [295].
• Archery, a favourite amusement of the ladies, [310];
• practised generally, [433].
• Arms suspended in the hall among the Anglo-Saxons, [20];
• at a later period, [452].
• Axes, Anglo-Saxon, [9], [10].
• B.
• Backgammon, the game of, [219], [220], [484].
• Bagpipe, [184], [185], [188].
• Ball, game of, [235].
• Banquet, the [387-395];
• in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, [466], [467].
• Barons, feudal, their power and cruelty, [102].
• Baths, and bathing, [59], [259], [491], [492].
• Bear, dancing, [64], [65], [304]; baiting, [305].
• Beds, among the Anglo-Saxons, [44-47];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [110], [111];
• the bed and its furniture among the English, [256-259], [403-408], [477-481].
• Bedsteads, [262], [404].
• Bees, [91].
• Beggars, in the middle ages, [327], [328].
• Bells, attached to the caparisons of horses, [314].
• Bellows, [144].
• Benches, [139].
• Bever, the name of a meal, [395], [456].
• Beverley, the minstrels of, [192].
• Birds, kept in cages, [239-242], [384], [385], [491].
• Blindman’s-buff, game of, [229], [230].
• Boar’s head, the, [146].
• Bourgeoisie, the, their mode of living, [170-173].
• Bower, chamber, or sleeping-room, Anglo-Saxon, [11].
• Bowls, vessels found in Anglo-Saxon graves, [8].
• Box-iron, ornamental, [447].
• Bread, and baking, [92], [161].
• Breakfasts of the Percy family, [421].
• Brewhouses, places for selling beer, [335].
• Buckets, Anglo-Saxon, supposed to be for carrying liquor, [9], [25].
• Buffet, or cupboard, [362], [379]. See Cupboard.
• Bull-baiting, [304].
• C.
• Cabinets, [246].
• Cabriolet, [497], [498].
• Caldron, forms of the, [144-147].
• Candles, [43], [107], [249-252], [375], [376].
• Candle-beam, [376].
• Candlesticks, [376], [378], [475];
• attached to the walls of halls, [378], [455].
• Caquets de l’accouchée, [481].
• Cards, history of the game of, [221-225], [386], [484-488].
• Caroches, [495].
• Carole, the name of a dance, [228].
• Carpets, [245], [371], [402].
• Carriages, among the Anglo-Saxons, [73];
• among the English, [116], [434], [435], [495].
• Cart, riding in, disgraceful, [344].
• Cats, [243], [244].
• Cellar, the, [133].
• Chairs, [41], [42], [94], [155], [244], [374], [375], [378], [401], [473], [483].
• Chairs, for conveyance, [497].
• Chambers, Anglo-Saxon, [11], [40-47];
• early English, [132], [244-246], [260-262];
• in the fifteenth century, [381], [399-402].
• Chamber-maidens, [270].
• Chandeliers, [376], [475].
• Chaplets of flowers, popular in the middle ages, [288].
• Cherries, cultivated by the Anglo-Saxons, [295];
• and generally in England during the middle ages, [299], [300], [302].
• Cherry-fairs, [299].
• Chess, game of, [41], [106];
• history of the game, [195-214], [286], [287].
• Chessmen, ancient, [202-206].
• Chests, [110], [138], [262-268], [477].
• Chestnut, meaning of the word, [296].
• Children, treatment of, [47-51], [494].
• Chimneys, [99], [245].
• Churning, [92].
• Cittern, the musical instrument, [186], [187].
• Clergy, Anglo-Saxon, addicted to hunting, [68];
• corruptors of domestic morals in the middle ages, [282].
• Cnithad (boyhood), period of among the Anglo-Saxons, [52].
• Coaches, [495].
• Coal, mineral, used among the Anglo-Saxons, [21].
• Coffers, [110], [263-268].
• Cold-harbour, origin of the term, [76].
• Cooks, [87], [88].
• Cookery, among the Anglo Saxons, [26], [27];
• English, [91], [148-150], [347-356], [395];
• in the fifteenth century, [381].
• Couch, the, [474].
• Counter, or table for writing, [450].
• Couples, guests placed at table in, [157].
• Court-cupboards, [474].
• Cradle, Anglo-Saxon, [49], [50];
• English, [402].
• Cressets, implements for giving light, [454].
• Cupboard, [173], [362], [371], [379], [450], [461], [462].
• Curtains, bed, [403-411].
• Curtains of chamber, [244].
• Cymbals, [189].
• D.
• Dais, the, [30], [139], [153], [154].
• Dames, the game of, [220].
• Damsons, considered as delicacies, [388].
• Dancing, among the Anglo-Saxons, [35];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [111];
• among the English, [227-229], [285];
• in the fifteenth century, [387], [419], [426], [427].
• Day, divisions and different occupations of the, [92-94], [246], [247], [396], [424-426].
• Dice, the game of, [214-217], [485], [486].
• Dinner, among the Anglo-Saxons, [22-24];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [88-90];
• forms and ceremonies attending the mediæval dinner, [150-153], [156-163];
• dinner in the fifteenth century, [389], [396];
• after the Reformation, [458-466].
• Dinner, number of courses at, [349], [463].
• Dogs, Anglo-Saxon, [68], [69];
• pets and house-dogs, [242], [243];
• dogs used in hawking, [307].
• Draught chamber, or drawing-room, [408].
• Draughts, the game of, [221].
• Dresser, or cupboard, [173], [379], [393], [450], [461], [462].
• Drinking, among the Anglo-Saxons, [3], [4], [30], [31];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [113];
• among the English, [168].
• Drinking ceremonies and formalities, [33], [467-470].
• Drinking-cups, Anglo-Saxon, [5], [6], [31];
• Anglo-Norman, [89], [90];
• in the fifteenth century, [390];
• drinking-vessels, [465].
• Drum, the, [188], [393].
• Dulcimer, the, [184], [190].
• E.
• Eating, greediness in, characteristic of the English, [422], [423];
• their diet in the seventeenth century, [465].
• Education, [118], [338-340], [439].
• Embroidery, among the Anglo-Saxons, [52];
• among the English, [237], [238].
• F.
• Faldestol, the, [95].
• Fashions, extravagant, among the Anglo-Normans, [81].
• Feasts, great, [357].
• Female character, estimate of, [105].
• Feudal society, its classes and prejudices, [280], [416-418].
• Feudalism, [100], [101], [103];
• its barbarity, [316];
• its decline, [415], [441].
• Fiddle, the, [34], [184], [185], [193].
• Fighting, love of the English for, [489].
• Fire, lighted in the hall among the Anglo-Saxons, [20], [21];
• in the chamber, [245].
• Fire-irons, [445-448].
• Fireplace, the, [99], [244], [367], [444], [448-450].
• Floor, strewed with rushes, [154], [246], [366].
• Flowers, love of, among the Anglo-Saxons, [60];
• among the English, [289].
• what, cultivated by the Anglo-Saxons, [295];
• by the English, [297], [298], [300], [301].
• Food, Anglo-Saxon, [26], [28];
• Anglo-Norman, [91].
• See Cookery.
• Fool, court or domestic, [390].
• Forfeits, games of, [233].
• Forks for eating, not used in the middle ages, [29];
• when first used, [457], [458].
• Fostering, practice of, and foster-children, [269], [271].
• Friends, sworn, [271].
• Friendship, value of, in the middle ages, [271], [272].
• Frog-in-the-middle, game of, [232], [233].
• Fruit cultivated by the Anglo-Saxons, [295];
• in Neckam’s description of a garden, [297];
• in that of John de Garlande, [298].
• G.
• Gambling, propensity of the Teutonic race for, [214].
• Games, among the Anglo-Saxons, [40];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [106], [107];
• in the middle ages, [195], [236], [432], [433];
• at a later period, [483-490].
• Garden, the, in the middle ages, [284-290], [397], [429-432], [488].
• Garden-houses, [488].
• Gardening, [60];
• history of English gardening, [293-303].
• Gardening, early English treatises on, [302].
• Garlands, very popular, [288-290], [431].
• Glass vessels, Anglo-Saxon, [89].
• Gleemen, [33], [35], [36], [175], [176].
• Godmundingaham, story of, [55].
• Gossips, their character, [421].
• Grammar schools, origin of, [338].
• H.
• Hall, the Anglo-Saxon, [2], [3], [11], [12], [18], [19], [39];
• the Anglo-Norman, [84], [98];
• the early English, [141], [153];
• in the fifteenth century, [362];
• furniture of the, [364], [365];
• after the Reformation, [443-445], [450-455].
• Hanging, as a punishment, [58], [346].
• Harlots, the name of a class in mediæval society, [407].
• Harp, [35], [36], [164], [166], [175], [193].
• Hawking, among the Anglo-Saxons, [70];
• among the English, [305-310], [434].
• Hedgehogs, how cooked, [356].
• Herbergeors, [333].
• Herodias, dancing, [167], [168], [463].
• Hoodman-blind, game of, [229], [230].
• Horn, drinking, [32], [89].
• Horn, the musical instrument, [186], [187], [188].
• Horses, and horsemanship, among the Anglo-Saxons, [71];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [114];
• history of the horse in the middle ages, [316-319].
• Hospitality, and its forms, [22], [23], [76], [328-333].
• Hot cockles, game of, [230-232].
• Hothouses (baths), [491-493].
• Hours, early, kept by our ancestors, [247].
• Hour of rising, [93], [155], [247], [248], [395], [425], [437].
• of breakfast, [93], [248], [424], [455].
• of dinner, [93], [155], [248], [425], [455], [456].
• of supper, [94], [155], [425], [455], [456].
• of going to bed, [94], [155], [246], [425].
• House, the, among the Anglo-Saxons, [2], [11-17];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [82], [83];
• the early English, [120-136];
• in the fifteenth century, [359-362];
• after the Reformation, [442].
• Hummums, [491].
• Hunting, among the Anglo-Saxons, [67-70];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [112];
• a favourite amusement with the ladies, [310-312].
• Hutch, or chest, [262-267], [402], [409-411], [450].
• I.
• Ivory, in the middle ages, made of the horn of the walrus, [202].
• J.
• Joined furniture, [374], [375], [472], [473], [483].
• Jougleurs, [165], [177-181].
• K.
• Kayles, game of, [237].
• Keys, [135].
• Kitchen, Anglo-Norman, [84], [86-88];
• early English, [142-147].
• Knife-cases, ornamental, [464].
• Knight, characteristics of the, [104].
• Knives, Anglo-Saxon, [9], [10], [29], [30];
• Anglo-Norman, [89].
• Knives, not furnished to the guests, [363], [364].
• Knockers to doors, [361].
• L.
• Lamps, [44], [252-254].
• Lanterns, [108], [252].
• Latten, a mixed metal, [376].
• Learning, state of, [118].
• Lechers. See Ribalds.
• Leek, the favourite vegetable in the middle ages, [294].
• Lighting, [43], [249], [375-378], [398], [454].
• Liquors, drunk by the Anglo-Saxons, [32].
• Londesborough, lord, his collection of ancient plate, [462].
• Lute, the, [186].
• M.
• Magpie, the favourite talking bird, [239-242].
• Marriage, among the Anglo-Saxons, [54].
• Masques after dinner, [462].
• Mead, [32].
• Meals, Anglo-Saxon, [22].
• Meals, hours of the, [155]. See Hours.
• Meat, how cooked, [148].
• Medicine, administered by the ladies, [278], [279].
• Mess, meaning of the word, [464].
• Milking, [92].
• Millichope, Norman house at, [129-131].
• Minstrels, [33-37], [106], [164-167], [175-193], [227], [228], [285], [286], [365], [391], [393].
• Mirrors, [260], [412-414].
• Money dealings, [78], [79], [263], [265].
• Monks, luxury of the, [348].
• Monkeys, domesticated, [242], [491].
• Moon, a contrivance for giving light, [455].
• Moral character of the Anglo-Saxons, [53-58].
• Morality of the middle ages, [273], [281].
• Mummings and masquerades at dinner, [460].
• Music, cultivated as a domestic accomplishment, [427].
• Musical instruments, [34], [35], [109], [184-192].
• Music-galleries in the halls, when introduced, [182], [444].
• N.
• Naked, sleeping in bed, [257-259], [335], [411].
• Nature, beauties of, love of the Anglo-Saxons for, [60];
• of the English in the middle ages, [283].
• Nef, the, an ornamental vessel at the dinner-table, [163].
• Nightingales, domesticated, and the food for them, [385].
• Noah’s wife, mediæval character of, [420], [437].
• O.
• Occleve, the poet, his manner of living in his youth, [437].
• Oranges, [297].
• Ordinaries, [493].
• Organ, the musical instrument, [184].
• P.
• Painting, as a domestic accomplishment, [428], [429].
• Paintings, wall, [371-373], [403].
• Parlour, the, [134], [370], [371], [379-381], [386], [475], [476].
• Parrot, domesticated in the middle ages, [239], [242], [491].
• Pavements, under the Anglo-Saxons, [16].
• Peaches, known to the Anglo-Saxons, [296];
• and cultivated in England during the middle ages, [297], [303].
• Peacock, how served at table, [354].
• Perche, the, [111], [136-138], [305].
• Percy family, their diet, [421].
• Pic-nics, origin of, [438], [493].
• Pie. See Magpie.
• Pillion, riding on, [495], [496].
• Pine, the kernels of the cone used in the same way as almonds (misprinted olives in the first reference), [296], [350].
• Pipe, the musical instrument, [188].
• Pipe, double, musical instrument, [64], [190].
• Plants, cultivated in gardens, [297], [298], [300], [301].
• Plate, an article of ostentation in the middle ages, [174];
• great fashion for in the sixteenth century, [461].
• Play, fondness of the Anglo-Saxons for, [63].
• Poisoning in the middle ages, [279], [431].
• Pottery, Anglo-Saxon, [6-8];
• Anglo-Norman, [85], [90].
• Priesthood, family, among the unconverted Angles, [55].
• Printing, origin of the art of, [224].
• Psaltery, the musical instrument, [186], [187].
• Pudding, the love of the English for, [466].
• Punch and Judy, [433].
• Punishments, Anglo-Saxon, [58], [59];
• English, [342-346].
• Q.
• Quarrels in the hall after drinking, [38].
• Questions and commands, games of, [232-234].
• R.
• Ragman’s Roll, game of, [233], [234].
• Rere-suppers, [387], [393-395], [467].
• Ribalds, or lechers, a class of mediæval society, [85], [104], [178].
• Ridels, [403].
• Riding, [115], [311-315], [495], [496].
• Riding, prejudice against, [313].
• Rings, their importance in the middle ages, [266-269].
• Roads, insecurity of the, [77], [326], [436].
• Robbers, [326], [327].
• Roy-qui-ne-ment, game of, [232], [233].
• Ruelle, of the bed, [404].
• S.
• Salt, its importance at table, and superstition concerning it, [362];
• customs relating to it, [459].
• Scholars, begging, [339].
• Schools, [117-119].
• Scissors, [109].
• Seats, among the Anglo-Saxons, [31], [41];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [94-97];
• in the fifteenth century, [369], [370];
• after the Reformation, [472-474].
• Servants, cruel treatment of, by the Anglo-Saxon ladies, [56], [57].
• Servants, how to be governed, [277];
• how treated, [278];
• riotous and ungovernable, [313], [424].
• Service, young gentlemen going to seek, [269],[272].
• Settle, the, [97], [401].
• Shalm, the musical instrument, [186], [187].
• Side-saddles, used by women, [72], [115], [311-313].
• Sitting, etiquette in, [293].
• Soler, of a house, [12], [83], [126-128].
• Spectacles, [439].
• Spense, the, [133].
• Spinning, an occupation of the ladies, [238], [426], [482].
• Squirrels, domesticated, [384-386];
• cooked for the table, [355], [356].
• Stocks, as a punishment, [59], [116].
• Subtilty, an ornamental device at table, [355], [393].
• Supernaculum, explanation of the term, [468].
• Suppers, [246], [247], [391], [395], [397].
• Supper, rere, [387], [393-395], [467].
• Swaddling of babies, [48], [50], [402], [494].
• Sweetmeats, use of, [467].
• T.
• Table, manners at, [161], [162], [363], [364], [366-369].
• Tables, of the Anglo-Saxons, [21], [42];
• of the Normans, [94];
• Early English, [139];
• in the fifteenth century, [364], [371], [374];
• of the subsequent period [471].
• Tables, arrangement of, in the hall, [153].
• Tables for books, [340], [341].
• Table dormant, [139], [365].
• Tables, folding, [450], [453], [454].
• Tables with leaves, [450].
• Tables, for writing, [440], [450].
• Tables, game of, [40], [217-220].
• Tabor, the musical instrument, [183], [193], used to rouse game, [308], [309].
• Tambourine, the, [188].
• Tapestry for the walls of houses, [19], [20], [160], [244], [371], [450], [474].
• Taverns, Anglo-Saxon, [75], [77]; Anglo-Norman, [113];
• early English, [258], [333-337];
• in the fifteenth century, [436-439].
• Tavern-keepers, their extortions, [215].
• Thane’s seat, [62].
• Timepieces, [477], [478].
• Toilette, the, among the Anglo-Saxons, [59];
• among the English, [260], [491].
• Top, game of, [235], [236].
• Torches, use of, [254], [377].
• Towns, [65], [66].
• Travelling, among the Anglo-Saxons, [75-78];
• among the Anglo-Normans, [114-116];
• among the English, [319-327].
• Trencher, the, [158].
• Truckle-beds, [408].
• Trumpet, [189].
• Tumblers, for drinking, origin of the name, [6].
• U.
• Umbrellas, used by the Anglo-Saxons, [75].
• V.
• Vessels used at table, [25], [34], [150].
• Villains, how regarded by the Normans, [101].
• Vine, the, cultivated in England, [33], [99], [296].
• Visitors, how received, [141], [142].
• W.
• Waghe, difference between this word and wall, [12].
• Wakes, village, [67].
• Walking, rules for behaviour in, [290-293].
• Washing, before and after meals, [156], [367], [368], [396], [397].
• Weaving, as practised by the ladies, [109], [237], [426], [427], [482], [483].
• Well, the, [86], [361].
• Whips, [235], [315].
• Windows, [83], [121], [134].
• Windows, with seats, [373], [374].
• Wine, [33], [90].
• Woman, her character among the Anglo-Saxons, [52], [53].
• Women, their occupations, [52], [53], [108], [109], [237-239];
• their want of delicacy in the middle ages, [274];
• treated with rudeness, [275];
• instructions to them, [275];
• acted as doctors, [278], [279];
• poisoners, [279], [431];
• frequenters of taverns, [282], [420], [437-439];
• education and employment of gentlewomen, [383], [384], [419], [426];
• their undomestic character, [420];
• addicted to gambling and drinking, [483-485];
• their manner of riding. See Side-saddle, Pillion.
• Writing, implements of, [96], [117], [266], [340], [341], [439].

FINIS.