Middle Ages Research Project

Ulises Villa

Encounters 6

Ms. Damante

April 8, 2022

The Great Middle Ages

Introduction

During the Middle Ages there were a lot of interesting things, for example dragons and very respected kings! I will be talking about 3 topics which include Feudalism, Dragons, and King Arthur. The middle ages are very interesting and intriguing and the good thing is you can learn a lot from it.

Feudalism

During the Middle Ages they used a basic government system and it was called the feudal system. Small communities were formed around the local lord and the manor. The lord owned the land and everything in it so he had free range of whatever he wanted. He would keep the peasants safe asking in return for service. The way the lord would return is by providing the king with soldiers and/or taxes. The manor was run by the local lord of that plot. He took shelter in a large house or castle where all the people would go to gather for celebrations or for protection if they were ever attacked by enemies. A small village would be around the castle which would include the local church. Farms would then be spread out from there which would be worked by the peasants. Villages would consist of about 10-60 families living in rough huts built on dirt floors, with absolutely no chimneys or windows. Most of the time, one end of the hut was used for storing livestock. The furnishings consisted of three-legged stools, a trestle table, beds on the floor which were softened with straw or leaves. The peasant diet was mainly porridge, cheese, black bread, and home-grown vegetables. Peasants lived hard lifes, but they did not work on Sundays or on saints' days, and they could go to nearby fairs and markets. The serfs’ lives were much harsher compared to the peasants . Although they weren’t technically slaves, the serfs werebound to the lord for the rest of there life. The seft was not allowed to own any property and required the persimmon of the lord to marry. No matter what the serf was not allowed to leave the land without the permission from the lord unless the surf decided to run away but if the surf managed to run to a town and stayed there for a year and a day the surf was considered free.

Dragons

There was also a time During the Middle Ages there were dragons that existed. As said in the article “What is a Dragon '', Dragons have always been in mythology and legend for thousands of years. Almost every country in the world has some sort of dragon story. Where did they originate from? By some strange chance, were there dinosaurs still roaming the earth only a few millennials ago? Were some of the dragons people saw actually lizards that had outer skin, and could glide such as the Kuehneosaurus, or the flying dinosaurs the Archaeopteryx or Pterosaurs?.

So they were well known for a long time, there were many types of dragons with the most famous one being the fire dragon. Dragons were big scaly creatures which either swam or flew and maybe even both with all having different elemental powers. They were very feared all over the world because of how strong and versatile they were. They could take down armys and were able to carry such big things to move around. So they were very useful when it came to fighting and moving things.

There are even dragons today as stated by, “What is a Dragon” ,”Dragons will always live on the Earth, there is even a genus of lizard called draco. Two "dragon" lizards are water dragons and komodo dragons.”. There are other types of “dragons” today as well which are the Dragonfly and the Snapdragon flower. According to the article, “ Dragonflies could have been mistaken for a small flying dragon in the past, although, in Jurassic times, Dragonflies were as big as a seagull.” As well, the Snapdragon flower looks like it is a red mouth with a yellow throat, which could be the reason it got its name.There is also a constellation in the sky that humans have even named draco for the shape of the constellation is that of a dragon.

King Arthur

There was a time during the middle ages when someone who could be considered famous,King Arthur, was one of the most respected people during the middle ages. According to the article, “How King Arthur Worked”, it was said “King Arthur was ranked number 51 in a 2002 BBC poll of 100 Greatest Britons” so he was greatly known all throughout the lands. There are many stories on how he obtained the sword known as the Excalibur, some stories state that King Arthur pulled the sword out of a stone which no one else could do, another one says that his sword was given to him by a mysterious woman who lives in a lake. It was stated by the article that Arthur ascended to the throne right after all of Britain was invaded and the king was deceased. And there was a prophecy that said the only man who could take the throne had to be able to pull something from an ancient stone and the item was a sword . Then one day a young stranger went to the stone and pulled the sword from the stone with no effort needed. All the peasants cheered because they finally had a king again And that young stranger was Arhur. It was also said “During his travels, Arthur met and married a beautiful young woman who was named Guinevere. And after Arthur and his knights defeat all outsiders and calm reigns over Britain, there was a period of peace and happiness in Camelot for a while. However, Lancelot, Arthur's most trusted knight and companion, fell in love with Queen Guinevere. And in some stories of the legend, the secret affair is what led to the fall of King Arthur and of Camelot. When the affair is exposed, Arthur goes to war with Lancelot after putting Guinevere to death.” and that is what led to his downfall.

Conclusion

The middle ages was a very important time in history which introduced a lot of new things which are very important like the feudal system. And people should learn about the middle ages because it can help you be more informed about things which you don't know about. The three main topics of this essay were the feudal system, King Arthur, and dragons. There are still a lot more facts you can learn about the middle ages and a lot of it is very interesting and fun to learn about!

Works Cited

Freeman, Shanna. ”How King Arthur Worked” howstuffworks. history.howstuffworks.com/historica

l-figures/knight.htm Accessed 28 February 2022.

“Middle Ages Feudal System.” Ducksters.www.ducksters.com/history/middleagesfeudalsystem

learning.php Accessed 7 February 2022.

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

/History/FeudalismandMedievallife.htm Accessed 7 February 2022.

The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. ”King Arthur” Britannica. www.britannica.com/topic

/King-Arthur Accessed 28 February 2022.

“What is a Dragon?.” Draconian.com. www.draconian.com/whatis/whatis.htm

Accessed 7 February 2022.