Middle Ages Research Project

History of the Middle Ages

Introduction

Have you ever wondered about feudalism or the feudal system during the Medieval ages or how it works? This system consists of exchange of service, labor ,and who organized it. Though not many benefited from this. As during the medieval times the pandemic known as the “Black Death” suffered deaths. Aside from the system ,clothing and celebrations took a different path during the medieval ages. All this information will be stated in this reading.

Feudalism

Feudalism was the basic government system during the middle ages. It was made for the peasants to stay safe in return for service from the lord. In return ,the lord would provide the king with soldiers or taxes. As the article”Middle Ages feudal System”,“Under the feudal system land was granted to people for service” which all started when the top king granted his land to the baron soldiers then to the peasant getting land to grow crops. It was the medieval model of government. According to the article “Middle Ages feudal System”, “The Lord held absolute power over the fief or manor including holding court and deciding punishments for crimes.” During the feudalism system although some might benefit others not really. The peasants during this time would work hard and die young, before turning 30 most of them died due to the harsh environments and epidemics. This is why the population in the middle ages decreased. Peasants were considered free, which they could start their own business with something simple like a baker or a blacksmith. Feudalism was canceled because of the increase of wars, diseases, and the decrease of population. This was influenced by the growth of polite culture, and  the introduction of firearms. After feudalism it was eventually replaced by capitalism which is an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit. Although the continuous development of capitalism as a system dates only from the 16th century.

Holidays and Celebrations

The medieval ages had many festivals, birthdays ,ectra . According to the article “Medieval Holidays'' , “Medieval Holidays marked an event of religious importance for every month of the year.” Most holidays were made ,and were run by the Catholic church ,and followed church holy days. Two of the most popular holidays during the middle ages were Easter that was celebrated between March 22-March 25, and Christmas which lasted twelve days with a feast. Easter, and Christmas was a day for exchanging gifts. The castle lord would receive eggs from villagers and in return, provide dinner for the servants. People celebrated holidays during this time because they wanted to celebrate during each changing season, the different seasons and months of the year were celebrated with holidays and feasts. The church also thought that peasants being happy is important, so they gave them frequent holidays. Most of the holiday and celebrations in the middle ages revolved around big feasts.”Holidays and Celebrations” states, “By November, feed was often too scarce to keep animals through the winter, and became known as the "blood month" when meat was smoked, salted and cured for consumption during the long winter ahead.” Back to Christmas , the medieval society celebrated the grandest feast during the dreariest time of year. The two-week period from Christmas Eve to Twelfth Day turned into the longest vacation for workers. The article “Holidays and Celebrations” states, that “The Lord of the manor or castle often gave bonuses of food, clothing, drink and firewood to servants.” In medieval times, nobility began to celebrate their actual birthdays, while the peasants celebrated their 'Saint's Day,' which was the saint they were named after.

Clothing

During the medieval ages clothing was worn differently compared to modern clothing today. “Mystery in the Middle Ages” stated, “In the early medieval ages there was little difference between the clothes worn by men and women, as both used to wear several layers of garments.” As they said the “upper classes” dressed in fine clothing. The wool provided fabrics that came in a variety of colors. However, as time went by, the design of clothes followed fashion. In the early part of the period, men and women wore tunics of several styles.”In late medieval times, rich women were very fashion minded. Those who could afford it liked to adorn their dresses with fine jewelry.” stated from the article “Mystery in the Middle Ages.”Women's hats and hairstyles

became very grand. People wore cloaks and tunics over their clothing to protect from cold weather.” Later on, men changed from the tunic to the doublet which was  a close-fitting jacket secured by a belt. In Elizabeth's time,  men's clothing was colorful as the ladies', but men wanted to look different; they wanted to look manly, so men wore clothing in the shape of armor, with broad shoulders, broad hips, and narrow waists.

Elizabethans women wanted their clothing to look like the men's, broad shoulders, wide hips, and slim waists. As of right now Women's dresses were not made all in one piece as they usually are today.According to the article “Clothing of the Time”, “Instead, women wore two or more garments as on "dress."The doublet was stuffed with material like horsehair, wool, or rags so it  kept its shape. The sleeves

were tied to the doublet with laces and the upper part of the hose was stuffed to make them stick out. Sometimes breeches, or "Venetians," were worn over the hose and Cloaks were worn over

doublets, this was very fashionable and made short but could be different lengths. Hats were also worn indoors to keep warm.

Conclusion 

These are just a few facts about the feudal system, clothing, and celebrations. There is way more  information to learn about. Throughout the years all of this changed all up to today. The feudal system is replaced by capitalism, and the clothing and celebrations have changed. This period is important to know because the establishment of rules and growth occurred. This also gives us information about past times in history.