Research Paper

The Mythical, Murky, and Magical Ages

The Middle Ages was a time of darkness and death. But there is more to the story than just that. There was a ruler named Queen Elizabeth I. She was the Queen of England for forty-four years! Also she was referred to as England’s Golden Age. There were also special holidays and celebrations in The Middle Ages. These unique holidays meant a lot to the people of this time. They would usually celebrate with big feasts, festivals, and with special loved ones. That wasn’t the last of it, there are also some brave, strong, and fearless knights from The Middle Ages. They would be in wars and battles to protect us and their kingdom. The Middle Ages is more than what anyone could imagine.

Queen Elizabeth I

Queen Elizabeth I was born on September 7, 1533 in Greenwich, England. She was called the “Virgin Queen“ because she was never married nor had children. When she was a child she enjoyed dancing, watching plays, and loved music. Her parents were King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. When she was at the age of 2, her father beheaded her mother. In 1536 May 30 right after the death of her mother her father married Jane Seymour. In 1547 King Henry, her father, had died of natural causes.

After the death of her father her younger half brother Edward VI became king, but he died at the age of 15. After the death of her half brother Mary became Queen Mary of England. Mary claimed the throne in July 1553. In 1554 Elizabeth was imprisoned in The Tower of London by Queen Mary. But she was released from the Tower of London in 1554. Queen Mary died in 1558. She had died from

had high fevers, headaches, and lost her vision.

After the death of her (half sister) Queen Mary. Elizabeth was the one to claim the throne and become Queen of England. Because Mary was unable to have children. On January 13, 1559 she was crowned queen of England. Elizabeth was only 25 years old when she was crowned queen. Now Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth of England.

Even though she never had a husband by her side when she was queen she has been through many obstacles . Like in 1562 she was once almost killed by smallpox which is a disease with many fevers and it will leave permanent scars on you. Also 1588 she declared war between Spanish Armada and they defeated them in battle. Another thing is that one time she was arrested for killing girls because she believed that their blood will make her younger and more beautiful.

Queen Elizabeth died on March 24, 1603 in Richmond Palace in Surrey. She died at the age of 69 years old which is a pretty long life in the middle ages. She had ruled England for 44 years after the loss of her half sister Queen Mary. Some people believed that she had died from a treatment that she took to make herself look younger may have impacted in her health. But instead she died from a disease called sepsis. Queen Elizabeth lived a long and good life. She will always be a part of the middle ages.(Morrill, “Queen Elizabeth I”, “Queen Elizabeth I Timeline”, and Waldherr).

Holidays and Celebrations

Different seasons and months of the year would determine that would be celebrated at the time. Both peasants and town-dwellers looked forward to the festivals and fairs that marked the important day of the year.

Winter was the season from Michaelmas (September 29) to Christmas (December 25) when wheat and rye were sown. On October 25 it is St Crispin’s day and they would celebrate by revels, bonfires, and people acting like King Crispin. A November holiday is the Day of the Dead which is held on the 1st and 2nd of November. They honor this holiday when revels were held and bonfires were lit. Also November is known as the blood month because the weather was too scarce for animals. The blood month was from the beginning of the month to November 11. And in December they would do Christmas celebrations. They would honor this by having feast and spending time with friends and family.

From the end of Christmas to Easter was the season when spring crops were sown (oats, peas, beans, barley, and vetches). Spring crops were planted from the beginning to the end of spring. From Christmas to the Twelfth day (January 5) was the longest vacation for workers. In January they would celebrate the Twelfth night religious. The feasts celebrate the wise men followed by the birth of Jesus Christ. They also do a festival for the Twelfth night religious. This festival is celebrated as the end of the Christmas season. On February they celebrate Valentine’s Day. On this day they celebrate love by singing, dancing, and pairing games. This day is known as the day of romance and love. In March Easter Monday was celebrated. It was celebrated by mystery plays. And Good Friday was celebrated too. Also on Easter Sunday it is celebrated as the birth of a new life. From Easter week to Lammas (August 1) was summer. In April the holiday that was celebrated was April Fool’s Day. On this holiday the jesters would take charge of the day and caused jokes, pranks, and jests. May day was in the mouth of May. It was celebrated when the queen of May was chosen and villagers danced around the Maypole. Midsummer eve was celebrated in June. This holiday was also known as the festival of fire. They celebrate this day by burning St George and dragon bones in the bonfire. St Swithin Day was on July 15. It is when they watch the weather for that day and the weather will stay the same for the next forty days.

And from Lammas to Michaelmas was harvest or autumn. In August they would celebrate Lammas(August 1) . This is celebrated as the first wheat harvest of the year. St Michael is on September 29. This is when Michaelmas celebrated the life of St Michael. They would usually feast on goose or chicken.

On “holy days” holidays such as Easter and Christmas everyone took time off. And when they took off they would usually go to festivals, banquets, and special church services. Also Easter and Christmas were famous holidays and it was the day of exchanging gifts.(Gies, “Holidays and Celebrations”, Langley, and “Middle Ages Holidays”).

Knights

There were three types of soldier foot soldiers, archers, and knights. Well let me tell you about knights. Knights were medieval gentlemen-soldiers. They were considered elite soldiers in battles, wars, and crusades. Originally knights were attendants or specialized foot-soldiers. In the middle ages the best knights were called “The benefits”.

The first ever knights were in the 700s. The first knights of the middle ages fought for Charlemagne king of the Franks. At first knights started fighting on large, powerful, horses called “Warhorses”.

Since horses were very expensive in the middle ages, only wealthy men could afford to become a noble, brave, and fierce knight. If you want to become a knight you are required to learn good manners, social skills, read, and write. Also knights are necessary to furnish their own equipment for instance their war horse, a shield, his amor, a lance, and his sword.

Knights wore armor to protect themselves from getting injured by any other knight that tries to attack them. They would wear full suits of armor that is made out of plate steel came into use around the 1400s. Knights would use swords, doggers, and sometimes lances as a choice of their weapons to fight or protect themselves.

There are many ways to become a knight. One easy way to become a knight is if you are the son of a knight. But another way is to become a knight’s squire. The knight will get a squire when a boy reaches the age of thirteen or fourteen. The squires help assisted the knight in battle training and in exercises. They are required to learn, care for the horses, and to study. Most squires often become the knights they have worked for.

Each knight has their own coat of arms. The coat of arms helps to identify people on the battlefield. Traditional colors knights use for their coat of arms are black, royal purple, emerald green, and royal blue. Also no knight as ever have the same type of coat of arms.(“Becoming a Knight”, “Middle Ages”, and “Middle Ages Knights”).

Illuminated Manuscripts

The art of illuminated manuscripts began around the time of the third century. Illumination is the word used to describe handwritten books embellished with gold and silver. The pages of these books would give the impression of illuminated light, hence the description of illuminated manuscripts. Illuminated manuscripts were difficult to attain because of the amount of time and money needed to make the books. Therefore, most illuminated manuscripts were owned by wealthy people. The invention of the printing press in 1445, led to the elimination of illuminated manuscripts as an art form.

The creation of an illuminated manuscript was a complex task. Monks were the main artists and they worked in a special room in the monastery called a scriptorium. The monks, sometimes called the illuminators, supplied the decorative work that embellished the borders and initial letter. Illuminators used vellum as a form of paper. Vellum is dried, stretched sheep, goat, or calf skin. The first step to making an illuminated manuscript is the application of the gesso. The gesso is a special type of glue. Gesso is made of plaster, white lead, water, sugar, and egg white. The gesso was used to make the surface of the paper sticky so that the gold leaf could be applied. The second step caused for the gesso to sit overnight. The illuminator would smooth the rough edges and breathe on the gesso to make it moist. Next, gold lead would be laid over the gesso. Gilded gold leaves were used to make the script brighter. Gilding is the process of using gold leaf to turn the scripting gold. Once the gold leaf was set into the gesso, the illuminator would make the the leaf shiny. To accomplish this task the the illuminator might use a dog’s or wolf’s tooth as a burnishing tool. Finally, the background was painted around the gilding. Illumination artists would decorate the initial letter and sometimes the border of manuscripts. Artist used nature to help add more colors to create illuminated manuscripts. Minerals, precious stones, insects, and plants were used to add color and brighten the page. The process of making illuminated manuscripts created four different trades or careers: vellum maker, calligrapher, artist, and book binder.

The manuscripts were beautifully illuminated and decorated to glorify God. Religious books, such as Bibles, Prayer Books, and hymnals were the most common examples of illuminated manuscripts during the Middle Ages. The Book of Kells is considered to be one of the most prominent examples of an illuminated manuscript.(“A Brief History of Illuminated Manuscripts”, “Illuminated Manuscript”, and Langley).

The Middle Ages was more than just the black death. It is about a different and mysterious life time. Queen Elizabeth was not just a leader, she was a fearless and courageous woman that happened to be the ruler of England. Holidays and celebrations were about being with the ones you loved and celebrating important times. Knights were more than just protectors, they were the heros that helped protect the kingdom. The Middle Ages which was an interesting time period.