Middle Ages Research

Kevin Ortiz 

Encounters 6

Ms. Damante

April 17, 2025

The Dark Times of The Middle Ages 

Introduction

Did you know that some dragons were described as giant snakes in the Middle Ages? Sports were mainly played to win money and move up in rank. And most serfs in the Feudal System were almost slaves! The people in the Middle Ages lived a pretty bad life,  but sometimes they did have some stories that were passed on. And they may or may not have had to do everything they were told to do.

Feudalism

Feudalism was the government system used during the Middle Ages. The Feudal System was organized by the king, who was at the top of the Feudal System. After them were the lords or barons. Then came the knights. And at the lowest ranks were the peasants and serfs. Although it was a government system by all, most people did not benefit from it because they were serfs or peasants. Some peasants were counted as free and could buy their own land or form their own businesses. But others were almost slaves and could barely get food. According to Ducksters, “Most of the people living in the Middle Ages were peasants. They had a hard rough life. Some peasants were considered free and could own their own businesses like carpenters, bakers, and blacksmiths. Others were more like slaves. They owned nothing and were pledged to their local lord. They worked long days, 6 days a week, and often barely had enough food to survive.”(Ducksters) This  shows that most peasants were very poor.

Lords, on the other hand, were much more satisfied with their position in rank. They might as well been at the highest rank because of their power. Even though everybody knew the kings were in complete control, the lords might have been even more because they were more respected in their territory. In Britain Express they wrote, “Usually, the lords could field greater armies than the king. In theory, the king was the chief feudal lord, but in reality, the individual lords were supreme in their own territory. Many kings were little more than figurehead rulers.”(Britain…) This makes sense as kings wouldn’t want to have to deal with much commotion in battles or wars. They left most of that to the lords, which may or may not have given them more power over armies.

Sports

Sports in the Middle Ages were made to increase the strength in men to help them in battles and wars. One game in particular was done by getting up on a horse and putting on armor and got swords. Then the two men going against each other got out their swords and started fighting. Whichever man got knocked off their horse first lost. This sport was called jousting. All the sports during the middle ages included; archery, bowls, colf, gameball, hammer-throwing, hurling or shinty, horseshoes, jousting at tournaments, quarter-staff contests, skittles, stoolball, and wrestling. Most of these were to make knights stronger for battle. Lords and Ladies stated, “Lords were expected to provide trained soldiers to fight for the King. It was imperative for Knights to acquire excellent fighting skills. The Medieval Sports in the Middle Ages were therefore designed to provide weapon practice and to increase a man's fitness.”(Alchin) This explains that sports helped increase strength in men.

 Sports in the Middle Ages also helped knights or peasants move up in rank. When knights played and won, they won money. With that wealth they moved up in rank. Peasants could also move up in rank to get more money. Lords and Ladies also showed, “Feudalism can be well described as a Pyramid of Power. It was possible for everyone to move higher up the ranks of the pyramid and this is what everyone aspired to do. A Knight who proved valiant in battle or was successful at jousting in tournaments would become wealthy. His wealth could pay for a castle. His importance in the land would increase and he would join the nobility. A peasant who excelled in Medieval sports of the Middle Ages could win a purse at a Sporting contest, gain an important reputation and increased value by his lord and his position in life would improve.”(Alchin) This shows that sports in the Middle Ages helped knights and peasants move up in their rank.

Dragons

In many places today people imagine dragons as big, fire-breathing, mythical creatures with wings, but in the Middle Ages most people thought differently. In the Middle Ages, people  mostly just described these mythical beasts as giant snakes. They had no fire, no wings, no legs, and with that, no claws. These dragons maybe wouldn’t have been the scariest types of dragons, but they were still scary enough to write stories about them. Many authors in the Middle Ages did write many poems about these dragons where they described them as giant snakes. In Medievalists.net it stated, “Fáfnir is, for all intents and purposes, a giant snake. He spews clouds and rivers of venom, much like a giant snake. A frequent attribute of dragons in medieval bestiaries (descriptions of animals and their characteristics meant as moral lessons for people) recounts their ability to kill animals as large as elephants through constriction and suffocation—again, like a giant snake.”(Stevenson) This shows that dragons in the middle ages were described as snakes sometimes.

Another way that medieval dragons were described as were big, lizard-like creatures that leapt onto humans. These type dragons might’ve been even scarier than the others because they hid in trees and jumped on top of humans when they were walking by. In Medievalists.net it stated, “For medieval people, “dragon” encompassed a much wider range of forms than the colour-coded schemes of modern fantasy. Which brings us to one of the most fascinating types of medieval dragon: 3. Before they acquired the ability to fly, medieval dragons dropped out of trees onto people’s heads.”(Stevenson) This explained that dragons were very different from now because they didn’t really have wings.

Conclusion 

Now that you know all good things they had and bad things they had with the Middle Ages, it’s time for you to decide: what did you like the most? Maybe it would have been the many different types of dragons. Or all of those sports and how you could move up in rank. Or if you could’ve been a lord in the Feudal System. But no matter what, this time of history is very important for its government system, way of sports, dragons, and much more.

Works Cited 

Alchin, Linda. “Medieval Sports.” Lords and Ladies. www.lordsandladies.org/medieval-sports. 

htm Accessed 27 January 2025.

Donn. “Middle Ages for Kids Mythical Beasts.” Medieval Europe medievaleurope.mrdonn.org 

/beasts.html Accessed 27 January 2025.

“Middle Ages Feudal System.” Ducksters. www.ducksters.com/history/middle_ages_feudal _system.php  

Accessed 22 February 2023. 

Newman, Simon. “Sports in the Middle Ages.” The Finer Times. 29 September 2012 www.the 

finertimes.com/sports-in-the-middle-ages#google_vignette Accessed 27 January 2025.

Ross, David. “Feudalism and Medieval Life.” Britain Express. www.britainexpress.com 

/History/Feudalism_and_Medieval_life.htm Accessed 7 February 2023.

Stevenson, Cait. “7 Surprising Facts About Dragons in the Middle Ages.” Medievalists. www. 

medievalists.net/2025/01/dragons-middle-ages/ Accessed 27 January 2025.