A Famous Cookbook From the Middle Ages!

Our Medieval Banquet and Faire is almost upon us, and it will be a day when we celebrate our year-long study of the Middle Ages. On this special day you will use what you've learned all year to step back in time and take on the role of a person who lived during this time period. However, what do we know about the food or the table manners of people who would have attended a banquet? Historians might use another interesting primary source document that has survived  from this period, The Frome of Cury. This is one of the oldest cookbooks written in the English language, and it is believed to have been written by King Richard II's master cooks. It is written in the form of a roll.

You need to know more about King Richard and food fit for a king, so here is the first chunk of a video for you to watch. 

If you want to know more, here are the other two chunks of this video:

Part 2:

Part 3, final part:

Time to review what you know about becoming a member of a medieval guild!

You have been working on your Medieval Banquet and Faire projects for several weeks. Hopefully you've learned a lot about how a person in the Middle Ages would become a member of  a craft or merchant guild. So, it is time for you to do a quick review of this process! 

1. Go to this web site and read about guilds. http://www.ducksters.com/history/middle_ages_guilds.php

1. Go to this second web page and take the quiz. Make sure you click DONE at the bottom of the quiz and then wait for your score.            http://www.ducksters.com/history/middle_ages_guilds_questions.php

1. Finally, do the exit ticket. 

This whole process shouldn't take you very long...maybe 15 minutes!


The pictures below show various medieval guilds

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Musicians in the Middle Ages

The life of a musician (also called a minstral) in the middle ages was generally seen as a desirable one. Minstrals might wander from town to town, playing at village squares or in ale houses, or they might be employed by a wealthy or royal family to play at a lord's feast or at a gathering at the royal court. Minstrals told stories through song, the most popular stories and tales being related to romance or the life of a knight. When traveling, minstrals might use light weight instruments like a fiddle or lute. If employed by a wealthy household or at the royal court, a musician might play heavier instruments like a tabor, clarion, or even bagpipes.
One interesting instrument from the middle ages is the hurdy gurdy.
How to play a Hurdy Gurdy from English Heritage on Vimeo.
You can see more pictures of this instrument and listen to some audio clips at this web site: http://www.music.iastate.edu/antiqua/hurdy.htm