How to have fun in the Middle Ages. Sports entertainment "Tournament of knights Entertainment of a knight of the 11th 13th century hunting

Fifty-two regular Sundays, each week for the celebration of the main Christian holidays - Easter, Christmas and Pentecost, other obligatory holidays - Epiphany, Baptism, Meeting, Palm Sunday, Ascension, Trinity, Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, Day of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Transfiguration, Exaltation Cross, Day of the Holy Family, Day of the Immaculate Conception, Day of St. Joseph, Day of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, Assumption of the Virgin Mary, Day of All Saints, plus the days of various saints - patrons of the city, craft workshops and so on, days of their commemoration and days of various events connected with them, as well as the entrances of rulers, bishops and other important persons - in total, about a third of the year the medieval townspeople spent in idleness. How could this time be killed?

Go to church and listen to the preacher

Miniature by Jean Fouquet from the Book of Hours by Etienne Chevalier. XV century Wikimedia Commons

Festive services were performed with great pomp with the participation of the best choral singers. Already from the 9th-10th centuries, the festive mass becomes like an allegorical performance thanks to the dramatization of the Old Testament, Gospel, or hagiographic history. Such performances lasted until about the 13th century, when they were replaced by city theater performances.

On the holiday, women tried to dress up: they went not only to the divine service, but also "to the people" - to look at others and show themselves. Everyone in the church had their own place, which was determined by their position in society. On Sundays and holidays it was forbidden to work, and after Mass the parishioners wanted to have some fun: dancing and singing often took place right in the churchyard, although the clergy at least declaratively condemned such a pastime.

Sometimes a preacher would visit the city, and then, if he did not speak in the courtyard of the temple, the burghers built a platform for him, where the guest could pray with those present, and then deliver an accusatory sermon.

View the show

The wild people dance. Miniature from "Chronicles" by Jean Froissard. 1470-1472 years British library

Medieval theatrical performances were mainly responsible for the spiritual entertainment of the townspeople and explained the Holy Scriptures in one form or another in the folk language. Miracles were based on the apocryphal gospels, hagiography, and knightly novels. In England, miracles were usually erected by members of craft guilds in honor of their patrons. In France, they were popular among the members of the puis - urban associations for joint pious activities, playing music and poetry competitions. The plot of the mystery, as a rule, was the passion of Christ, the expectation of the Savior, the lives of the saints. Initially, the mysteries were part of the church service, then they began to be played out in the courtyard or in the churchyard, and later moved to city squares. At the same time, they were played not by professional actors, but by clergy and members of the pui.

- a cross between religious and comic theater. In an allegorical form, they showed the struggle between good and evil in the world and in man. The outcome of this struggle was the salvation or death of the soul.

The performances were announced in advance, posters were hung on the city gates, and during the performance the city was carefully guarded, “so that no unknown people would enter the mentioned city on this day,” as it is written in one of the documents of 1390, kept in the archives of the city hall in Tours ...

For all the conventions of the performances, what was happening on the stage for the audience completely merged with reality, and tragic events coexisted with comic scenes. Spectators were often involved in the action as participants in the events.

It was possible to have fun without moralizing. For example, gawk at the wandering artists. From about the XIV century in France, troupes of professional actors have been formed - "The Brotherhood of Passions", "Carefree Guys" and the like. Wandering actors - histrions, spielmans, jugglers - tried to surprise and amuse the audience with all kinds of techniques. "The instruction of the troubadour Guiraud de Calançon to the juggler" (he lived at the beginning of the XIII century) contains a whole list of the skills necessary for an actor:

“… [He] has to play different instruments; twirl balls on two knives, throwing them from one edge to another; show puppets; jump over four rings; get yourself an attached red beard and an appropriate suit to dress up and scare fools; train the dog to stand on its hind legs; know the art of the leader of the apes; to excite the laughter of the audience with a funny depiction of human weaknesses; run and jump on a rope stretched from one tower to another, making sure that it does not yield ... "

Listen to music or poetry

Miniature from "History" by Guiron le Courtois. 1380-1390 years

Instrumental music was predominantly the occupation of jugglers and minstrels, singing, dancing and performing to the sounds of their instruments. In addition to various wind instruments (trumpets, horns, flutes, Pan flutes, bagpipes), over time, the harp and varieties of bowed instruments also entered the musical life - the ancestors of the future violin: crotta, rebab, viela, or fidel.

Moving from place to place, jugglers performed at festivals in courtyards, at castles, in city squares. Despite persecution by the church, jugglers and minstrels managed to get the opportunity to participate in spiritual performances in the 12th-13th centuries.

In the south of France, lyric poets were called troubadours, in the north - trouvers, in Germany - minnesingers. The lyrics of the minnesingers were the property of the nobility, and chivalrous poetry and the love songs of the troubadours had a great influence on it. Later, the art of versification in German cities was adopted by the Meistersingers, for whom poetry became a special science.

Like artisans, poets-townspeople made up whole societies, like guilds. In Ypres, Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent and Bruges, festivals were held for the workshop of the so-called rhetoric - artisans and merchants who took charge of poetry. Each workshop had its own coat of arms and motto in the form of a charade, as well as a special hierarchical structure: the dean, the standard bearer, the jester and other members of the “bureau of elders”. City officials funded rhetoric contests in poetry and acting, according to the results of which several prizes were awarded: for literary success, for the best remark of a jester, for the richest suit, for the most luxurious entrance to the city.

To dance

The spirit of love. Miniature from "The Novel of the Rose". 1420-30s Wikimedia Commons

Dance is a favorite pastime of all strata of medieval society; not a single holiday was complete without dancing. Jugglers made the technique more difficult by adding acrobatic elements, but the townspeople loved to move themselves, and not just look at the professionals. The church was usually against such entertainment, and the city government did not at all times have a good attitude towards dancing. However, later the authorities began to give permission for dancing in the halls of city halls, and from the end of the 14th century, so-called dance houses began to appear. Usually the dance house was located next to the town hall and church or opposite them. Loud music and laughter disturbed the godly mood of the parishioners and ministers of the temple, causing their discontent and endless complaints.

In Bavarian Nordlingen, the dance house was housed in a three-story building. During the fairs, the ground floor was connected by passages to the nearby butchers 'and pubs' shops, and visitors could shuttle between the establishments. Where dance houses occupied several floors, the halls of the upper floor were usually reserved for burghers of noble birth, while the lower ones were at the disposal of ordinary citizens. In some cities, such a house, among other things, housed a hotel, and in Munich and Regensburg, prisoners were even held in the basement of the city's "dance house".

In addition, there were dance houses intended exclusively for ordinary townspeople: over a wooden deck, slightly raised above the ground, a roof was erected on four pillars. On them were musicians, and around them danced in a circle of men and women. If the nobility preferred measured and ceremonial processional dances, and dances with hoops, swords and other objects symbolizing handicraft products prevailed at guild festivals, then improvisation dances and round dances, which the church called rude and shameless, were widespread among the urban people.

Go to the fair

Fair. Miniature for Aristotle's "Politics". XV century Bibliothèque nationale de France

Every week, small city markets were at the services of the townspeople, but fairs were held quite rarely - once or several times a year: on Christmas, Easter or on the day of the local saint - the patron saint of the city or patrons of trade and craft workshops.

For example, the fair in Saint-Denis at the walls of Paris took place once a year, but it lasted a whole month. At this time, all trade in Paris ceased and moved to Saint-Denis. Residents were eager to go there not only for shopping, but also to gaze at strange things from distant countries, to performances of jugglers, acrobats and trained bears, to listen to stories told by merchants who visited overseas countries. The spectacle was so popular that Charlemagne gave his managers a special order "to make sure that our people do the work that they are required to do by law, and not waste time hanging out in markets and fairs."

The fairs attracted a lot of all kinds of rabble, so that there were often fights and riots. That is why for a long time they were allowed to be held only in cities where there was a bishop or ruler who could maintain order and resolve disputes that arose between the participants of the fair. In medieval England, there were even special courts with a simplified procedure, which ensured a speedy resolution of cases. They called themselves "courts of dusty feet" (court of piepowder, pie poudre or pepowder) - in 1471 the English Parliament decreed that all persons associated with fairs have the right to demand just such a court for themselves.

Take part in the carnival

Carnival is inseparable from fasting: it was the last multi-day celebration, preceding a long time of abstinence, and it was accompanied by feasts, masquerades, processions and amusing fights over cheeses and sausages. Carnival is the kingdom of gluttony, chaos and the glorification of everything bodily. Masks and mummers, half-beast, half-people and kings of jesters, the ship of fools and the election of the donkey pope - all church and secular rituals were translated into the language of buffoonery, and symbols of power were subjected to public ridicule. The entire church service and sacred texts were turned inside out. The main events of the carnival took place in the church, although already from the 13th century they tried to prohibit these obscenities by official interdicts.

In a letter from the theological faculty in Paris, sent to the bishops of France in 1445, the carnival is described very colorfully:

“You can see priests and clergymen wearing masks and monstrous disguises during the service. They dance in a choir, disguised as women, pimps and minstrels. They sing obscene songs. They eat sausages at the corners of the altar while the priest celebrates mass. They also play dice there. They incense in stinking smoke from the soles of old shoes. They jump, run around the church, without hesitation. And then they drive around the city in dirty carts and carts, causing laughter from their companions and associates, making obscene gestures and uttering shameful and dirty words. "

During the carnival, everything that was forbidden on ordinary days was allowed, the hierarchy was violated, the usual norms were turned upside down - but as soon as the holiday ended, life returned to its normal course.

Greet a guest or ruler

Miniature from a German chronicle. 1383 year Württembergische Landesbibliothek

The ceremonial entries of emperors, kings, princes, legates and other masters to the cities under their control were always burdened with a multi-level symbolic meaning: they reminded of the nature of power, celebrated victory, and asserted political dominion over remote territories. They happened quite often: in the Middle Ages and even in Modern times, the royal courts were nomadic - in order to retain power, the kings had to constantly move from place to place.

The ceremony consisted of several acts, each of which was strictly regulated. It all started with a greeting from the ruler, often far outside the city; then followed the reception of the crowned person at the city walls, the handing over of the keys, the opening of the city gates, the deputation of the nobility and clergy. From the gate, the cortege moved along the main streets of the city, which were sprinkled with fresh flowers and green branches. Finally, in the central city square, bulls and game were roasted and barrels of wine were rolled out for all residents of the city. In 1490, a fountain of good and evil was installed in Vienne at the time of Charles VIII's entrance, which gushed with red wine on one side and white on the other. Such treats were intended to embody the image of a fabulous land of abundance, which the sovereign had to show to his subjects at least once.

A performance was arranged for the guest. In 1453, a whole performance was staged in Reggio: the patron saint of the city, Saint Prospero, floated in the air with many angels who asked him for the keys to the city, so that they could then be handed over to the duke, accompanied by hymns in his honor. When the procession reached the main square, Saint Peter flew down from the church to them and put a wreath on the duke's head.

In the Germanic lands, the sovereign often entered the city surrounded by criminals sentenced to exile, and they did not just move in retinue, but held on to the edge of the patron's clothing, harness, saddle or stirrup of his horse - so they could return to the city. So, in 1442, King Frederick III ordered 11 people to be taken with him to Zurich, and in 1473 to Basel - 37. True, the city authorities could expel the criminal again as soon as the ruler left the city.

View knightly tournament

Miniature from the Zurich songbook "Manes Codex". XIV century Wikimedia Commons

The tournament was a real celebration of the demonstration of military valor and knightly honor. Anyone would like, if not to take part in it, then at least to see how the noble youth gains fame and prey for themselves. Initially, the whole action resembled a mixture of a fair and a real battle: the participants converged wall to wall, some were seriously injured or even died, and a motley crowd gathered around, which, in addition to knights, their squires, foot soldiers and servants, also consisted of blacksmiths, sellers, changed and onlookers.

Under the influence of knightly romances, the tournaments gradually became more organized, the participants began to use special weapons, the knights converged for a one-on-one duel, and the lists were surrounded by a fence. Stands were built for the spectators, and each of them had its own "queen", and the prize for the best tournament fighter was traditionally awarded by women. In 1364, Francesco Petrarca described the atmosphere during the Venetian Jostra (from the Italian word giostre - "duel"):

“There is no free place below ... a huge square, the very temple [of St. Mark], towers, roofs, porticos, windows are not only full, but overflowing and filled: an incredible crowd of people hides the face of the earth, and a joyful, large population of the city, spilling around through the streets , further increases the fun. "

In the end, tournaments turned into expensive and sophisticated court entertainment, accompanying various kinds of festivities on the occasion of a ruler's wedding, coronation, peace or union - together with festive masses, processions, dinners and balls, for the most part not intended for ordinary citizens.

The townspeople responded to this with a parody "knightly tournament" (it was often held during the big carnival on Maslenitsa), in which the entire knightly ritual was turned upside down. A man imitating a knight went to a duel with a basket-helmet on his head, sitting on an old nag or barrel, and threatened the enemy with a rake or something from kitchen utensils instead of a spear. After the end of the event, everyone immediately went to celebrate it with a merry feast.

Take part in sports

The burghers had every opportunity to exercise and compete in the possession of real weapons. For training, archery societies and fencing schools were organized, which existed in Flemish, North Italian, English, French and German cities, as well as in Krakow, Kiev and Novgorod. Associations of archers and fencers had their own charters and resembled workshops. The preparation was carried out in different directions, but for competitions in each city a certain type of single combat was chosen. For example, in Spanish cities, preference was given to duels with the use of edged weapons and horse bullfighting, in southern England and Novgorod - fist fighting, in German and Flemish cities - fencing and wrestling.

In Italy, the games and competitions of the inhabitants of the city-republics resembled exercises. In Pavia, for example, the townspeople were divided into two groups, they were given wooden weapons, and protective helmets were put on their heads. Prizes were awarded to the winners. In river cities, battles for the symbolic capture of the bridge could be arranged. The image of a seething crowd fighting on such a bridge is a favorite subject of engravings of that era: in the foreground, gondoliers pick up those who have fallen into the water, and numerous fans crowd in the windows and on the roofs of the surrounding houses.

In England popular species recreation for the young men was a ball game. Everyone took part, but there were almost no rules. A ball stuffed with bran or straw could be kicked and dribbled, rolled and carried in hands. The goal of the competition was to get the ball over a certain line. In cities, such crowded battles were fraught with great dangers, and it is no coincidence that restrictions were introduced quite early in London, Nuremberg, Paris and other places, with the help of which the authorities sought to moderate the ardor of the players.

Play

Miniature from the treatise by Alfonso the Wise. 1283 year Real Academia de la Historia

For those who disliked the street fun, there was home entertainment. For example, blind man's buff and "The Frog in the Middle". The rules of the last game are as follows: the person sat in the center, and the others teased and beat him. The task was to catch one of the players without leaving the circle, and then he became a "frog".

There were also quiet games: according to the rules of some it was necessary to answer the question of the presenters without concealment, others - to tell a story. In addition, they played in "Saint Cosmas": one of the participants took on the role of a saint, while others kneeled in front of him in turn. The presenter had to make the kneeling player laugh in any way, and then he performed some task.

Already in the Middle Ages, checkers, chess, dice and even cards were popular. Chess was the fun of the nobility, and chess boards made of wood or metal were considered a luxury item and were often a real work of art.

The rules for playing cards were different: for example, one of the participants took out a card from the deck, all those present put money on it. If after that three or four cards of the same suit were taken out of the deck in a row, then the player who took out the first card received the entire amount bet on it.

But the most popular game was dice. Representatives of all social categories indulged in this game - in huts, castles, taverns and even monasteries - and lost money, clothes, horses and dwellings. Many people complained that they lost everything they owned in this game. In addition, there were often cases of fraud, especially because of fake bones: some had a magnetized surface, others had the same edge reproduced twice, and in others, one side was made heavier due to the impurity of lead. As a result, numerous feuds arose, sometimes escalating even into private wars.

Go to the bathhouse and have a good drink

Most medieval cities had city baths. In Paris at the end of the XIII century there were 26 baths, half a century later in Nuremberg - 12, in Erfurt - 10, in Vienna - 29, in Wroclaw - 12. A visit to the bath was not limited to hygienic procedures, rather it was a place for entertainment, pleasure and secular communication. After bathing, visitors participated in receptions and dinners, played ball, chess, dice, drank and danced.

In German cities, wine merchants rolled out wine barrels into the streets to the baths, placed stools around, took out mugs and gave wine to everyone who wanted to taste it. On the street, a drinking party was immediately drawn up, so that the city councils were forced to prohibit this custom. An exception was made only for a few days a year, for example, St. Martin's Day, when it was customary to open young wine. But on the other hand, these days people stood, sat and lay in the streets - and drank wine.

Despite the prohibitions on the part of the authorities and churchmen, some of the bathhouses and adjacent taverns acquired the character of a brothel: not only food and drink were available to the townspeople, but also massage and the services of prostitutes, who were often called “bathhouse attendants”.

In general, though prostitution was condemned by the church, it was considered an inevitable phenomenon. "Houses for women" or "glorious houses" belonged to noble families, merchants, royal officials, and even bishops and abbots, and the most prestigious of them were often located near the magistrate or courthouse. In the High Middle Ages, visiting a brothel by unmarried men was not considered shameful - rather, it was seen as a sign of health and well-being.

Relax by the city fountain

Jean de Courcy is dreaming of nature, asleep by the fountain. Miniature from the poem "The Way of Valor". XV century British library

Not all townspeople could afford to have a separate garden or pond built behind the house: many lived in rooms, closets and outbuildings rented. Water for the household was taken from a public well or fountain located in the square, usually not far from the church. In the Late Middle Ages, such fountains served not only as a decoration and a source of drinking water, but also as a meeting place and a walk for the townspeople.

View execution

Miniature from "Chronicles" by Jean Froissard. No later than 1483 British library

The execution place could be located in front of the city, on the other side of the moat, it could be on the square or even in front of the victim's house, but the execution was invariably a public action. The place and time of the execution, as well as the path of the criminal, were known in advance to all the townspeople. The spectators were summoned by the heralds. Optimal time it was considered noon, often the authorities staged executions on market day in order to achieve the maximum gathering of people - however, not on religious holidays.

The crowd gathered around the criminal gradually as the procession advanced through the city. The entire ritual of punishing the offender was designed for the audience; the slow theatrical performance involved the participation of others in the ceremony. In some cases, the offender was given the right to a duel with the executioner and people could contribute to his release. This happened in Saint-Quentin in 1403, when during the struggle the executioner fell to the ground and a crowd of townspeople demanded from the royal provost to release the winner. The spectators monitored the exact execution of the ritual and could demand a reconsideration of the case if something went wrong.

The bodies of criminals were forbidden to be buried in the cemetery, and their corpses remained on the gallows for many years until complete decomposition, serving as an edification for the public walking around.

Variety! Conventionally, knightly entertainment can be divided into two periods:

1.From the 10th to the 14th century, the main entertainment of the knights was the tournaments-tyos and tournaments-buhurts.

The first were buhurts: when two teams of knights ran around a certain territory in armor with weapons and knocked shit out of each other. The purpose of this action was not only entertainment and demonstration of strength, but also training. That is, noble dons and sirs organized a natural war, during which they maimed and died, and heatstrokes were almost an obligatory accompaniment to this celebration of life.

A little later - somewhere in the 1170s - darkness appears ( Tjosten)- a canon tournament, during which two canned food on horses knock over a fence. They quickly became popular and began to supplant the buhurts, since the knights in them were crippled and died much less often, everything happened in front of the audience and looked much cooler.

A rich ceremonial has developed around all this: divine services, performances by actors and acrobats, duels of squires, swearing of oaths and the election of queens of love and beauty. Then, when everyone had planned, prayed and chose queens, the same darkness began, at the end of which - a group duel Melee with knights divided by "nations". After the group duel, the winners took the horses and armor of the conquered, held a divine service and arranged another couple of days of drinking.

2. Since the beginning of the 15th century, all this gimmick has become much more complicated. The appearance of plate armor, the position of the Church and the fact that the knights once again did not want to die, ousted the buhurts in favor of the tyes, who, in turn, were divided into a bunch of varieties, adding also battles with clubs in funny latticed helmets, equestrian exercises and a bunch of others perversions.

By the end of the 15th century, all this took on an even more intricate look and the tournament of the times of the "last knight" Maximilian included the following elements:

a fight on foot on peaks over a barrier (which Max himself loved very much, by the way), in which it was necessary to break the pike;
fighting on foot with swords;
a gesture collision with a barrier, during which it was necessary to break the spears;
a field tournament in which the knights were divided according to "nations" into two lavas and broke spears;
and a whole cadre of equestrian fights-rennen, which had many varieties.
A little more about the rennens:

actually rennen: knights in significantly lightweight armor with special saddles without high bows knock down until one of them falls;
mechanical rennen: the tarch shield was attached to a special mechanism, which shot it on impact. Sometimes the tarches flew away, sometimes they flew away with a special sound, sometimes all at once;
the version of the mechanical rennen bundrennen was distinguished by the fact that the shield flew up along the guides and the knight had to tilt his head so that the tarch would not fly away with his nose and chin;
accurate rennen required accuracy, since the tarch had to be hit exactly in the center so that it would fly off the hinges;
rigid rennen differed from the rest in that the tarches did not fly away and did not break, but were fastened very rigidly, therefore the knights knocked out each other the first time.
The difference between the rennen was not so much armor (google, they are very interesting), but in the fact that here the knight needed to show his possession with a horse, dressed in a forehead without cutouts for the eyes, to grab spears at full gallop, and so on.

In some cases, the knights could be puzzled, for example, with an equestrian duel with maces, a foot duel with halberds or two-handed swords, some kind of horse riding and an offer to dance or walk with a wheel in full armor.

Knights | Leisure

Tournaments

The purpose of the tournament is to demonstrate the fighting qualities of the knights who made up the main soldier. the power of the Middle Ages. Tournaments were usually organized by the king, or by barons, large lords on especially solemn occasions: in honor of the marriages of kings, princes of the blood, in connection with the birth of heirs, the conclusion of peace, etc. Knights from all over Europe gathered for the tournament; it took place in public, with a broad concourse of the feudal. nobility and common people.
For the tournament, a suitable place was chosen near big city, the so-called "lists". The stadium had a quadrangular shape and was surrounded by a wooden barrier. Benches, boxes, tents for spectators were erected nearby. The course of the tournament was regulated by a special code, the observance of which was monitored by the heralds, they called the names of the participants and the conditions of the tournament. The conditions (rules) were different. In the XIII century. a knight did not have the right to participate in the tournament if he could not prove that 4 generations of his ancestors were free people.
Over time, they began to check the emblems at the tournament, introduced special tournament books and tournament lists. Usually the tournament began with a duel of knights, as a rule, who had just been initiated into a knighthood, the so-called. "jute". Such a duel was called "thiost" - a duel with spears. Then the main competition was held - an imitation of a battle between two detachments, formed according to "nations" or regions. The victors took their opponents prisoner, took away weapons and horses, forced the defeated to pay a ransom.
Since the XIII century. the tournament was often accompanied by severe injuries and even death of the participants. The church forbade tournaments and the burial of the dead, but the custom turned out to be ineradicable. At the end of the tournament, the names of the winners were announced, and awards were handed out. The winner of the tournament had the right to choose the queen of the tournament. The tournaments ended in the 16th century, when the knightly cavalry lost its significance and was driven out by infantry riflemen recruited from the townspeople and peasants.

Hunting and feasts

The knights' entertainment was closely related to their paramilitary lifestyle. One of the favorite ways of rest was hunting, where knights could show their daring and courage. Most often, wild boar or deer were hunted in Western Europe. Falconry was also very popular. Usually, for hunting, each feudal lord had his own reserved forests. Especially huge and rich in game were, of course, the royal reserves. The ability to hunt was one of the qualities of a real knight. Therefore, most feudal lords and kings were passionate hunters. The hunt was usually carefully prepared by the huntsmen, and the vassals and guests of the feudal lord took part in the corral. The right to kill game was usually given to the most distinguished lord.

Hunted game decorated the feudal lord's banquet table. Feasts were also an important attribute of the life of knights. Especially warm, friendly relations were established between the feudal lord and his vigilantes. In addition, feasts often served as the payment of a feudal lord for service to his vassals. Often, it was at feasts that feudal lords gave their loyal servants money and treasures as a sign of their affection for them. Knights' feasts were the venue for the performances of numerous medieval artists; here, promises were often made to accomplish some feat, to take part in a crusade or to serve their beloved forever.

To gaze at strange animals, fight with sausages, drink from a wine fountain, attack a knight with a rake, play Saint Cosma, visit a “glorious house”, gossip at the fountain and other ways to have fun available to city dwellers in the Middle Ages ...

How could this time be killed?

Go to church and listen to the preacher

Miniature by Jean Fouquet from the Book of Hours by Etienne Chevalier. XV century.

Festive services were performed with great pomp with the participation of the best choral singers. Already from the 9th-10th centuries, the festive mass becomes like an allegorical performance thanks to the dramatization of the Old Testament, the Gospel, or hagiographic history. Such performances lasted until about the 13th century, when they were replaced by city theater performances.

On Sundays and holidays it was forbidden to work, and after Mass the parishioners wanted to have some fun: dancing and singing often took place right in the churchyard, although the clergy at least declaratively condemned such a pastime.

View the show

In England, miracles were usually erected by members of craft guilds in honor of their patrons. In France, they were popular among the members of the puis - urban associations for joint pious activities, playing music and poetry competitions.

The plot of the mystery, as a rule, was the passion of Christ, the expectation of the Savior, the lives of the saints. Initially, the mysteries were part of the church service, then they began to be played out in the courtyard or in the churchyard, and later moved to city squares. At the same time, they were played not by professional actors, but by clergy and members of the pui.

Moralize is a cross between religious and comic theater. In an allegorical form, they showed the struggle between good and evil in the world and in man. The outcome of this struggle was the salvation or death of the soul.

Wandering actors - histrions, spielmans, jugglers - tried to surprise and amuse the audience with all kinds of techniques. "The instruction of the troubadour Guiraud de Calançon to the juggler" (he lived at the beginning of the XIII century) contains a whole list of the skills necessary for an actor:

“… [He] has to play different instruments; twirl balls on two knives, throwing them from one edge to another; show puppets; jump over four rings; get yourself an attached red beard and an appropriate suit to dress up and scare fools; train the dog to stand on its hind legs; know the art of the leader of the apes; to excite the laughter of the audience with a funny depiction of human weaknesses; run and jump on a rope stretched from one tower to another, making sure that it does not yield ... "

Listen to music or poetry

Miniature from "History" by Guiron le Courtois. 1380-1390 years.

Instrumental music was predominantly the occupation of jugglers and minstrels, singing, dancing and performing to the sounds of their instruments.

In addition to various wind instruments (trumpets, horns, flutes, Pan flutes, bagpipes), over time, the harp and varieties of bowed instruments also entered the musical life - the ancestors of the future violin: crotta, rebab, viela, or fidel.

The city authorities financed contests of rhetoric in the field of poetry and acting, according to the results of which they awarded several prizes: for literary success, for the best cue of a jester, for the richest suit, for the most luxurious entrance to the city.

To dance

The spirit of love. Miniature from "The Novel of the Rose". 1420s – 30s.

Dance is a favorite pastime of all strata of medieval society; not a single holiday was complete without dancing. Jugglers made the technique more complicated by adding acrobatic elements, but the townspeople liked to move themselves, and not just look at the professionals.

The church was usually against such entertainment, and the city government did not at all times have a good attitude towards dancing. However, later the authorities began to give permission for dancing in the halls of city halls, and from the end of the 14th century, so-called dance houses began to appear.

Usually the dance house was located next to the town hall and church or opposite them. Loud music and laughter disturbed the godly mood of the parishioners and ministers of the temple, causing their discontent and endless complaints.

Where dance houses occupied several floors, the halls of the upper floor were usually reserved for burghers of noble birth, while the lower ones were at the disposal of ordinary citizens. In some cities, such a house, among other things, housed a hotel, and in Munich and Regensburg, prisoners were even held in the basement of the city's "dance house".

If the nobility preferred measured and ceremonial processional dances, and dances with hoops, swords and other objects symbolizing handicraft products prevailed at guild festivals, then improvisation dances and round dances, which the church called rude and shameless, were widespread among the urban people.

Go to the fair

The spectacle was so popular that Charlemagne gave his managers a special order "to make sure that our people do the work that they are required to do by law, and not waste time hanging out in markets and fairs."

In medieval England, there were even special courts with a simplified procedure, which ensured a speedy resolution of cases. They called themselves "courts of dusty feet" (court of piepowder, pie poudre or pepowder) - in 1471 the English Parliament decreed that all persons associated with fairs have the right to demand just such a court for themselves.

Take part in the carnival

Carnival is the kingdom of gluttony, chaos and the glorification of everything bodily. Masks and mummers, half-beast, half-people and kings of jesters, the ship of fools and the election of the donkey pope - all church and secular rituals were translated into the language of buffoonery, and symbols of power were subjected to public ridicule.

The entire church service and sacred texts were turned inside out. The main events of the carnival took place in the church, although already from the 13th century they tried to prohibit these obscenities by official interdicts.

In a letter from the theological faculty in Paris, sent to the bishops of France in 1445, the carnival is described very colorfully:

« One can see priests and clergymen wearing masks and monstrous disguises during the service. They dance in a choir, disguised as women, pimps and minstrels. They sing obscene songs. They eat sausages at the corners of the altar while the priest celebrates mass. They also play dice there. They incense in stinking smoke from the soles of old shoes. They jump, run around the church, without hesitation. And then they drive around the city in dirty carts and carts, causing laughter from their companions and associates, making obscene gestures and uttering shameful and dirty words. "

Greet a guest or ruler

Miniature from a German chronicle. 1383 year.

They happened quite often: in the Middle Ages and even in Modern times, the royal courts were nomadic - in order to retain power, the kings had to constantly move from place to place.

From the gate, the cortege moved along the main streets of the city, which were sprinkled with fresh flowers and green branches. Finally, in the central city square, bulls and game were roasted and barrels of wine were rolled out for all residents of the city.

In 1490, a fountain of good and evil was installed in Vienne at the time of Charles VIII's entrance, which gushed with red wine on one side and white on the other. Such treats were intended to embody the image of a fabulous land of abundance, which the sovereign had to show to his subjects at least once.

So, in 1442, King Frederick III ordered 11 people to be taken with him to Zurich, and in 1473 to Basel - 37. True, the city authorities could expel the criminal again as soon as the ruler left the city.

View knightly tournament

Knight Tournament. 1470.

Initially, the whole action resembled a mixture of a fair and a real battle: the participants converged wall to wall, some were seriously injured or even died, and a motley crowd gathered around, which, in addition to knights, their squires, foot soldiers and servants, also consisted of blacksmiths, sellers, changed and onlookers.

Stands were built for the spectators, and each of them had its own "queen", and the prize for the best tournament fighter was traditionally awarded by women.

Knight Tournament. Miniature from the Chronicle of Froissard.

In 1364, Francesco Petrarca described the atmosphere during the Venetian Jostra (from the Italian word giostre - "duel"):

« There is no vacant place below ... a huge square, the very temple [of St. Mark], towers, roofs, porticos, windows are not only full, but overflowing and filled: an incredible multitude of people hides the face of the earth, and the joyful, large population of the city, spilling around through the streets, further increases the fun».

After the end of the event, everyone immediately went to celebrate it with a merry feast.

Take part in sports

Associations of archers and fencers had their own charters and resembled workshops. The preparation was carried out in different directions, but for competitions in each city a certain type of single combat was chosen.

For example, in Spanish cities, preference was given to duels with the use of edged weapons and horse bullfighting, in southern England and Novgorod - fist fighting, in German and Flemish cities - fencing and wrestling.

In river cities, battles for the symbolic capture of the bridge could be arranged. The image of a seething crowd fighting on such a bridge is a favorite subject of engravings of that era: in the foreground, gondoliers pick up those who have fallen into the water, and numerous fans crowd in the windows and on the roofs of the surrounding houses.

In England, a popular form of recreation for young men was the ball game. Everyone took part, but there were almost no rules. A ball stuffed with bran or straw could be kicked and dribbled, rolled and carried in hands. The goal of the competition was to get the ball over a certain line.

In cities, such crowded battles were fraught with great dangers, and it is no coincidence that restrictions were introduced quite early in London, Nuremberg, Paris and other places, with the help of which the authorities sought to moderate the ardor of the players.

Chivalry

The origin of chivalry and the time of its emergence are dark questions that still cause controversy in the special literature. Some take the emergence of chivalry to Homer and ancient Hellas, others begin with Tacitus' Germany, others take the early Middle Ages as their starting point, pointing to the Edda and Beowulf, and some place chivalry entirely in developed feudalism and take it out of Crusades. Without going into useless polemics, we note that chivalry as a military estate is invariably closely associated with service on horseback; not without reason in most Western European languages the term "knight" itself is synonymous with the word "horseman", "cavalryman" (German Ritter, French chevalier, Italian cavaliere, ucn. caballero). Equestrian service was first established in the medieval West under the Carolingians, more precisely under Karl Martell (early 8th century), and it was for this service that he began to distribute land grants. These awards were called "military benefits" and later turned into hereditary possessions - fiefs or fiefs, and their holders, respectively, - into feudal lords (knights). This is how the feudal (knightly) estate developed, which became the ruling class of society.

Education of knights. Pages and squires

The more chivalry acquired fame, significance and splendor, the more difficult it became to receive young candidates who longed to enter this noble title. Only a nobleman who had reached the age of 21, ancestral to his father and mother, could be knighted. But noble origins alone were far from enough; the need demanded a strict and harsh education from a very young age to prepare for the transfer of military labors, it was necessary to thoroughly study all knightly duties. Through long tests at the lower degrees, the applicant had to prove that his courage and valor were able to support the honor and glory of the estate in which he wished to enter. The upbringing of a person destined for a knighthood began in childhood; the child's games and activities were supposed to develop a warlike spirit in him.

Pages. From the age of seven, the child passed from female hands in the male, and for the initial lessons under the parental roof, the nobility, according to the established custom, sent their children to the main knights, with whom they reckoned in friendship or kinship. Their advice and example constituted a true and definitive upbringing called bonne nourriture. The knight considered it a special honor for himself when his father instructed him to complete the education of his son.

The custom of teaching young people to another knight was based on a fair fear that parental tenderness would not dare to subject his son to the hard trials that were necessary for knightly service.

Parting with his son, sometimes for many years, the father blessed him and expressed his last instructions. The young man rode away on a ceremonial horse, accompanied by an old minister. Upon arrival at the castle of his patron, he received the title of page or jack. The page's life was not boring: the pages accompanied the patron and his wife on hunting, traveling, visiting, on walks, were on parcels and even served at the table. Respectfully, with a drooping gaze, the young page, obeying, learned to command and, always keeping a deep silence, to answer questions intelligently. Helping the chamberlain, he had to cover the room of his patron in winter with straw, and in summer with reeds, keep his chain mail and horse armor in order, and prepare ablutions for itinerant knights.

The subject of the page's first lessons was religion, the statutes of which he not only had to observe, like any Christian, but also to protect them at the cost of life and death. The young pages were usually taught this important subject by one of the noblest, most pious, and virtuous ladies of the castle. Religious lessons instilled in them an indelible respect for sacred objects; at the same time, the meekness, courtesy and dignity of female teachers engendered

in the hearts of the listeners, attention and deference to the fair sex, which was the hallmark of chivalry. The example of the ladies and knights whom the pages served, constantly supported in them modesty and good decency. But most of all they tried to develop in the pages respect for the majestic character of chivalry and reverence for those valor that is elevated to this title. The very games and pleasures contributed to such a deliberate education: they were accustomed in advance to various tournaments and, in general, to knightly duties. So, for example, they humbled rebellious horses, ran in heavy armor, jumped over fences, threw darts and learned to wield a spear and fight a wooden knight. War games were followed by conversations about war, hunting, the art of carrying birds and training dogs. Sometimes a young page was taught to play chess or sing a song of love or military glory to the accompaniment of a lyre. This is how the life and education of the pages passed.

Squires: To show the youth the purpose of the sword, when the page passed into squire, when the sword was first put into his hands, they performed a religious ceremony. Father and mother, or followers, holding wax candles, led to the altar who came out of the pages. The priest took a sword and a belt from the throne and, blessing them several times, girded the young nobleman.

Squires were divided into classes in accordance with the duties imposed on them, such as: for squires who were with the person of a knight or his wife (the first of the positions was higher), for room squires or chamberlains, for equestrians or equestrians, whose duty was to take care of the horses; on kravchiks or forschneiders who set the table, served food, cut food, etc .; for mouthpieces, mundkokhs, etc. The most honorable of the positions was that of a squire, who was attached to the person of a knight.

In the rank of squires, which they usually attained at the age of 14, young pupils were allowed closer to their lords and more freely participated in their conversations, so they could better study the patterns by which they were supposed to be brought up. They watched them with great attention, trying to earn both affection and pleasing the noble foreigners and courtiers of their patron; they strove to acquire grace of movement, affability, politeness, modesty, prudence, restraint in conversation and swagger when needed.

The squires kept the weapons of their masters in order and cleanliness, in case of need. And all these various household chores were intermingled with military service... The squire was obliged to go around all the rooms and courtyards of the castle at midnight.

The squires also dressed the knight in armor when needed, at the same time, while equipping the knight, they themselves learned this art. If the knight rode out, the squires rushed to him with services: they supported the stirrup, supplied bracers, gloves, helmet, shield, spear and sword; the knight had to wear armor all the time ..

The squires accepted from the knight a helmet, spear, sword, etc., when he took them off at the entrance to the church or at the entrance to the castle. In battles, squires stood behind their knights and were, as it were, spectators of the battle.

If there was a tournament or even a battle, each squire closely followed the actions of his knight; supplying a new weapon, reflecting blows, raising it, bringing in a fresh horse, he helped his knight dexterously and diligently. The knights were entrusted to the squires of prisoners taken in the heat of battle. Here the young warrior got used to defending himself and winning, and found out if he was able to endure so much work and dangers.

The one who sought the knighthood combined in himself the strength necessary for this difficult service with the dexterity and other properties of an excellent cavalier. Therefore, it is not surprising that the title of squire was held in high esteem. After some time spent by young people in the performance of the duties of a squire in the castle of the patron, they began to visit the courts of their sovereigns, then in wartime they were with the army, and in peacetime they wandered and sent the posts of ambassadors in distant lands. Thus, they acquired the skill of wielding weapons, participated in tournaments and got acquainted with foreign customs. These three occupations were called les trois metiers des armes, and the one who performed them was porsuivants d \\ "armes. This is how the life of the squire passed. his main dream - Knighting.

Knighting

The knighting was for the young squire such a grand, solemn, great event that changed his whole life: a simple squire turned into a member of a noble and majestic, valiant and courageous, honest and worthy class of knights. The dedication was remembered by the squire for life. This is how it happened.

The squire, seeking a knighthood, asked to make inquiries about himself, when the sovereign or grand seigneur, who was approached with a request, assuring himself of the courage, straightforwardness and other valor of the young poursuivant d \\ "armes, appointed a day of consecration. or celebrations, such as the declaration of peace or truce, the crowning of kings, the birth, baptism or marriage of princes, major church holidays and, mainly, the eve of Pentecost.

Through prayer, strict fasting, and sincere repentance for sins, the novik (la novice) prepared for dedication for several days. After confession and reverent communion of the Holy Mysteries, he was clothed in white, like snow, linen clothes - a symbol of the purity necessary in the knighthood, which is why the word candidate came about (candide from candidus - white). In this attire, the candidate went to church for the night vigil. There, in front of the altar of the Mother of God or his patron, near the tombstones with statues of princes and great warriors, he knelt down and, folding his hands in a cross, with a drooping gaze, spent the whole night in prayer and meditation, recalled the departed heroes and prayed to the Creator to grant him the same ascetic life and death.

At dawn, the old knights came for him, his successors, that is, the chosen ones to stand with him during the initiation, and they took him to the bath, prepared, out of respect for chivalry, by the great chamberlain. Upon leaving the bath, they put a sling with a sword around his neck, put him to bed and covered him with a simple white tunic, and sometimes with black cloth, as a sign that he said goodbye to the filth of the world and entered into a new life.

In this outfit, the successors, accompanied by relatives, friends and all the surrounding knights, who were invited to the magnificent ceremony, led the new initiate into the church. Here the priest, blessing the Novik's sword, read psalms and teachings in Latin.

At the end of this rite, the followers took the candidate to the rooms, where they first put on something like a dark sweatshirt, then a gas shirt woven in gold, over this light garment, chain mail and, finally, a mantle speckled with paints and the arms of a knight.

In such vestments, he appeared where the sovereign or some famous knight was supposed to kiss him. Usually this kiss was given to the newly received gentleman in a church or in a chapel; however, sometimes it was given in the hall or in the courtyard of a palace or castle, and sometimes even in an open field. The procession was ceremonial, to the sound of drums, trumpets and horns; the candidate was preceded by the chief knights, wearing on velvet cushions

the armor with which he was armed upon arrival at the site; only the shield and the spear had not yet been given to him: he received them after consecration. Then the liturgy was performed in the name of the Holy Spirit. The initiate listened to her on his knees, placing himself as close to the altar as possible, in front of the one who gave him the kiss. As soon as the mass was over, the clergy carried them out with a book of knightly laws, the reading of which they listened attentively.

After this reading, the initiate knelt before the sovereign, who pronounced the following words: "For the glory and in the name of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I grant you a knight. Remember that it is your duty to observe all the rules and good statutes of chivalry. - this true and bright source of politeness and community (la courtoisie). Be faithful to God, the sovereign and your friend; be slow in revenge and punishment and quick in mercy and help to widows and sires; attend mass and give alms; honor women and do not tolerate backbiting on them, because male honor, after God, descends from

The candidate replied: "I promise and swear, in the presence of my Lord and my sovereign, by the position of my hands on the Holy Gospel, to carefully observe the laws and our glorious chivalry."

Then the sovereign took out his sword, hit him on the shoulder of the newly elected one, kissed him, then with a sign ordered the successor to put on the new knight golden spurs - a symbol of the imposed dignity, anoint him with oil and explain to the successors the mysterious meaning of each part of his weaponry.

After all parts of the knightly armor were put on

successors to the newly ordained knight, all ceremonially left the church, and the newly accepted knight walked on the side of the one who gave him a kiss. Then one of the old knights let a handsome horse, covered with a rich blanket, on the four ends of which the family coat of arms of the young knight was embroidered or painted; the headpiece on the horse was decorated with a crest, similar to the crest on a knight's helmet.

When the heralds began to play trumpets under the windows of the palace, the new knight, despite the heaviness of his armor, often without wetting his legs in the stirrup, instantly jumped on his horse and pranced, shaking his spear and flashing his sword.

A little later, in the same outfit, he appeared on the square. There he was greeted by the exclamations of the people, who, with cheerful shouts, expressed their delight at the acquisition of a new defender.

This was the rite of knighthood at the courts of kings, princes and grand seigneurs in peacetime. But during wars, the knighthood was complained among the camp, on the battlefield, before the victory or after, in the gap of the city taken by the assault.

Book of Knightly Laws

In order to better understand the aspects of the moral foundation of chivalry, the way of life that they had to lead, those ideals, the perfection to which they had to strive, one should mention the book of knightly laws, which the knights had to strictly observe and follow them (but in they did not always follow them in real life). These laws were read by the clergyman during the initiation. Here are some articles from this book:

2. They are obliged to serve their lawful sovereign and protect him and their fatherland.

3. Let their shield be a refuge for the weak and oppressed; Let their courage support them everywhere and in everything the just cause of the one who turns to them.

4. May they never offend anyone, and may they fear most of all to offend friendship, integrity, absent, grieving and poor with slander.

5. Thirst for profit or gratitude, love for honor, pride and revenge do not guide their actions; but may they be everywhere and in everything inspired by honor and truth.

6. Let them obey the commanders and commanders appointed over them; let them live brotherly with their peers, and let their pride and strength not prevail over them to the detriment of the rights of their neighbors.

7. May they not enter into an unequal battle: several against one, and may they avoid all deception and lies.

8. At tournaments and other amusement fights, let never the edge of the sword be used in business.

9. Honest guardians of the given word, may they never shame their virgin and pure trust with the slightest lie; may they unwaveringly preserve this trust in everyone and especially in their associates, protecting their honor and property in their absence.

10. May they not lay down their weapons until they have finished the work undertaken according to the vow, whatever it may be; so they follow him day and night throughout the year and one day.

11. If, while following the deed begun, someone warns them that they are traveling along a path occupied by robbers, or that an extraordinary beast is spreading terror there, or that the road leads to some destructive place, from which there is no return to the traveler, but not they turn back, but let them continue their way even in such a case, when they are convinced of the inevitable danger and inevitable death, if only the benefits of such an enterprise for their fellow citizens would be visible.

12. Yes, they do not accept titles and awards from foreign rulers, for this is an insult to the fatherland.

13. May they preserve order and discipline under their banner among the troops entrusted to their superiors; let them not allow the ruin of harvests and vineyards; may they severely punish a warrior who kills a widow's hen or a shepherd's dog, who will inflict the slightest harm on anyone on the land of the allies.

14. May they honor their word and the promise given to the winner; taken prisoner in a fair fight, may they pay the rightly agreed ransom, or may they return on a promise, on the designated day and hour, to prison, otherwise they will be declared dishonorable and treacherous.

15. Upon returning to the court of the sovereigns, may they give a correct account of their adventures, even when this report does not serve them in their favor, the king and rulers under the fear of being expelled from chivalry. "

It should also be noted that these laws were not empty words, for their violation the knight was severely punished. So, for example, for grave offenses there was a whole rite of demotion of a knight: former knight was taken out in public to the square, the herald asked those present: "Who is this knight?" He was answered: “This is not a knight, but a scoundrel, a scoundrel, a scoundrel”, then the helmet, armor, shield, etc. were removed from the “knight”, the heralds would say: “This shield, this helmet, these bracers, etc. a scoundrel, a scoundrel, a scoundrel. " Having undressed the "knight" completely, they poured warm water on him, his half-coat was torn, the sword was broken and his shield was shattered into 3 parts. Then the culprit was put on a stretcher and carried to church, in the church they sang memorial prayers over him.

If the knight was not guilty, then he was punished in proportion to the degree of guilt: for example, his shield was hung overturned to a pillar, the coat of arms was erased from it, symbols of dishonor were drawn, blame was written and finally broken, or, for example, for less serious crimes they were limited to drawing on the coat of arms of the shield some shameful sign. All this was done in public, it was an object lesson to both young pages and squires and mature knights.

The life of a knight after initiation in peacetime

Itinerant Knights In peacetime after initiation, young knights generally did not remain idle: faithful to the oath to help the oppressed and destroy harmful customs, they wandered through valleys and mountains, looking for adventure and everywhere inquiring whether good customs were observed. Thus, the first years of their knighthood were devoted to travels to distant countries, to foreign courts, in order to become perfect knights. From different peoples and from the most excellent knights they adopted different methods of breaking the spear. To test themselves and learn, they sought the honor of competing with these masters of their craft.

But the most useful lessons for them were in the war, where they served voluntarily, trying to take the side of the right. They also studied the ceremonial customs and etiquette of each court. The desire to distinguish themselves with courage, talents and knowledge of decency prompted them to get acquainted with the most famous princes and princesses, knights and ladies; they tried to learn their history and memorized their best deeds, so that upon their return to their homeland they convey everything in instructive, entertaining and pleasant stories.

In addition to incessant occasions to participate in tournaments and in war, itinerant knights sometimes had to, in secluded places, punish atrocities, curb violence and be useful; in this way they realized those feelings of justice and generosity that had been instilled in them. Often, several knights gathered at some court, at which they were awarded the knighthood or at which they were simply present at solemn festivities, united and a whole society planned wanderings, called searches (quetes), or to find some disappeared knight or lady falling into the hands of enemies, or for another higher enterprise. The heroes, moving from country to country, passing through the forests, had nothing with them except the weapons necessary for their own defense; they ate only by hunting.

During such beneficent wanderings, the knight rested sweetly in the castles, where he kept him warmly welcome. Golden helmets were placed on the gates and tower spiers of such castles - conventional signs of hospitality and shelter, ready for itinerant knights. This was the custom, and while chivalry existed, all nobles and noble ladies put their helmets on high places of their castles so that a wandering knight could enter someone else's castle as boldly as in his own .. A year and one day is their usual time for the end of the enterprise. According to their oath, they were obliged, when they returned home or to a gathering place, to speak frankly about their adventures, failures and disasters.

It often happened that in their wanderings the knights did not find enough adventures, and therefore, upon their return from wanderings, and even during their wanderings, they invented them themselves: they announced that at the appointed place and at a certain time they would fight with everyone at such and such - something conditions for maintaining the dignity of their people, the honor of their king and the glory of weapons. This proposal was called an enterprise (emprise), and its execution was called a military feat, a duel (pas d \\ "armes), because it usually consisted of protecting a passage either on a bridge, or a road, or even in a square.

When the challenge, containing the conditions of the battle, was made public, the knights-protectors began to flock to the designated place. There, having established their banner, they hung shields decorated with their emblems and mottos on trees or on specially set pillars, and forced all the knights who wanted to pass by, fight or break spears with them. If several knights entered into an alliance to protect the passage, then as many shields were hung as there were knights; in order not to arouse envy, a passing knight touched one of the shields with his spear, and the owner of the shield had to fight.

The promulgated challenge soon reached the distant lands, and therefore the knights who wanted to fight the defenders of the passage, and the ladies who longed for such spectacles, usually offered in their honor, quickly gathered from all over. On the appointed day, fights began in the morning and took over part of the day. They fought either with a sharp weapon or blunt spears, according to the terms of the challenge or permission received from the sovereigns on whose land the duel took place. Most often, the defeated was obliged to give the winner as a guarantee of victory either a gold ring, or a seal, or a fur, or some kind of precious stone. Sometimes the conditions of a duel were that the defeated had to go captive to the victor's sovereign and there, admitting himself defeated, fall at the sovereign's feet and remain a prisoner for as long as the sovereign wanted. In these cases, the kings usually used their rights, as generously as possible; they caressed, consoled and honored the knights thus sent to them. During the duels, the breaking of the spear was resumed daily; daily battles were followed by dances, concerts, games and feasts. These fights were ubiquitous in peacetime.

Upon returning from his wanderings, the knight returned to the castle. Either to the patron's castle, or to the castle of his parents, or, if his parents were rich, and he himself was a noble prince, even his own.

The life of a knight in a castle

Knights lived in castles. The castle was the main stronghold of the knight and his dominions. It was both a house and a fortress and a military stronghold from the encroachments of enemies. The population of the castle is very large, since the children of the vassals were brought up in the house of the overlord. Castles usually consisted of wide round or quadrangular towers with crenellated platforms; sometimes huge stones were attached to the towers, supporting the belvederes. These towers were a special lot of the nobility, so, wishing to show the greatness of some nobleman, they said: he has a tower. The first castles were surrounded only by the tynom, and in the middle they built the main tower on a dais. Sometimes the castle was a fortified camp. Then these buildings were improved. Castles were erected in a difficult natural place. First, they built the main tower, surrounded it with a high wall, at the corners of which they built

other towers. The wall, moat and tyn are the main elements of the castle. Among the towers of the castle there was one main one - the donjon, where the owner of the castle and his family lived, the donjon also played an important defensive role - it was the largest and strongest of the towers. On the first floor of the donjon, as a rule, supplies were kept, on the second there was usually a garrison, in the hall, which was located on the floor above, they took food, and sometimes slept. The lord's family occupied the topmost floor.

Of the towers of the castle, one, smaller in volume, towered significantly above the others; she had dormers on all four sides. This tower, called a watchtower, served as an observation point. Here, alarm bells hung on two beams, which sounded the alarm when they saw an enemy in the vicinity, in order to warn residents about his approach. The castle courtyard was divided in two by an inner wall. On one side there were outbuildings, and during the siege, vassals were camped there. On the other hand, there is the donjon, where the lord lived, who could fence himself off both from enemies and from his own vassals. There were food cellars in the castle, so people could withstand a long siege. In addition to walls, defensive towers and a keep, the castle also had a chapel, an armory, a smithy, a stable, a kennel, cattle pens and pantries with food supplies. Highly important element the castle had a well. It was he who supplied the inhabitants of the castle with water during the siege.

What did the interior of the castle look like? The castle had several halls, one above the other. The halls were divided by a log floor, later they began to make stone vaults. One of the halls is the main one. Feasts, dances, jugglers' performances took place here. The hall was 7-12 m high, with an area of 50-150 sq. m. Internal rooms - a bedroom, a warehouse for weapons, special rooms for handicrafts, a kitchen. The main tower housed a chapel. The castle towers looked gloomy as there were few windows. Due to the enormous thickness of the walls, there were spacious embrasures in front of each of the 2-3 windows of the hall, one step or two above the belt. Here the wives of the feudal lords spun their endless yarns, sadly singing "spin songs" about the unhappy love of Aeliz or Iduan.

Knights' occupations. The life of a knight in the castle was rather boring, the knight tried to leave it as often as possible, be it an invitation to a tournament, going hunting, or just in the field. The main occupations of the knights in peacetime were: raising pages and squires, feasts held in honor of some event, hunting, tournaments, playing chess and backgammon. The beginning of summer is the season of fun: knighthood. Weddings and tournaments took place in the spring - on Easter, Trinity Day. Then the monotonous flow of life in the castle was interrupted. Every visit was received with joy - a pilgrim, a juggler, a minstrel, telling about the exploits of King Arthur.

The knights loved to have feasts. This was done either in honor of some holiday, or when a guest visited the castle: be it a wandering knight, pilgrim, juggler, minstrel. What was on the table? There was little bread on the feudal lord's table, but a lot of meat. Basically, they ate game caught in the hunt - these are moose, wild boars, rabbits, pheasants. Then the bird was served - chickens, partridges, swans, cranes, herons. The feast ended with pork. They did not eat horse meat, since a horse is an animal to ride. They did not eat beef either, since the bull is a draft animal. Ate fish, and raw - river. We ate a lot of herbs - vegetables, salad. They had a snack with cheese and cakes. For dessert, they ate flour cakes, sweet pies, fruits. Since the XII century. apricots, melons, dates, figs and oranges were obtained from the Holy Land. We drank cider and beer.

The knights' favorite pastime is hunting. Already young knights were involved in the hunt. She arranged herself at all seasons of the year. For many aristocrats, hunting was an insane passion. The French monarch Philip II Augustus loved to hunt all day long in France and abroad, he hunted even during the Crusades in the Holy Land. But hunting was not only a passion, but also a necessity. After all, game was supplied to the table due to hunting, which was regulated. Chasing big game in forests, rabbits and hares in reserves is the exclusive privilege of feudal lords. The peasants could only set up nets at the edge of the forest. But the purpose of the hunt is not only the search for meat. Sometimes it was about how to destroy the ferocious wild animals (wolves, bears) that threaten the poultry, or even the peasants themselves.

The role of falconry, introduced in Western Europe in the 11th century, was enormous. This is a difficult matter to which the knight devoted long hours. It was necessary to be able to catch a bird, feed it, teach it to obey gestures and whistles, and recognize the prey. In the Middle Ages, many treatises were written about falconry... These treatises come mainly from Sicily. They teach how to tame a young falcon. The falcon is the knight's favorite pastime. This is a very noble bird. Buying a falcon is expensive, giving a falcon is a great luxury. The death of a falcon is a great loss for the owner.

Another entertainment of the feudal lord is playing chess. There are many references to them in heroic deeds. In the Middle Ages, even ladies loved to play chess. The mother of Richard the Lionheart, Eleanor of Aquitaine, easily beat the princes of the blood of France and England in chess. Chess was huge, made of wood or metal. In the beginning, they were monochrome, most often white. Chess acquired its modern look only during the time of Philip II Augustus (1180 - 1223). Chess often played out the fate of the army, the prisoner. It was the favorite sport of medieval knights.

Tournaments were a real holiday for the knights. Many chivalric romances are about tournaments. For a knight, a tournament is an excuse to leave his castle, to change the monotonous course of life. Despite the prohibitions of the church, the fashion of nature was great. "God's worlds" limited tournament activities. In the XI-XIII centuries, the church was especially sharply opposed to tournaments. During tournaments, evil quarrels often arose, and the knights, participating in tournaments, were distracted from their main business - the fight against the infidels in the Holy Land. Tournaments were arranged to excite the warlike spirit of the knights and respect for the lady. The merit of the invention of tournaments is attributed to a French knight of the 12th century. Godefroy de Pregli. The tournaments took place at a lonely fortress, on the border of two fiefs or principalities. The senior who provided the organization of the tournament was appointed in advance. Special heralds - heralds - shouted the day and place of the tournament. Stands, tents, stables were being prepared. Many nobles came to the city, balls were held. The battle site was surrounded by a high wall, inside which only a select audience was allowed. There was an arena, separated by a railing from the audience. For ladies, judges and the oldest knights, boxes were arranged on wooden platforms. During the tournament, the heralds called out the names of the performers, composed panegyrics in which they glorified the exploits of the knight and his ancestors, appealed to the ladies with a request to stop the battle if necessary. The tournament consisted of three parts: first, horse rides, the purpose of which is to knock the enemy out of the saddle, then a battle with swords, then throwing spears and arrows. The winner was the one who, breaking three spears, inflicted a dangerous blow on the enemy. This was followed by the siege of wooden castles. It was necessary to follow the rules of the tournament: you cannot fight out of turn, hit the enemy other than in the face and chest, continue the fight after the enemy has opened the visor. The verdict was pronounced by the crowned persons - the elders and specially elected judges. Quite often the question of who deserves the highest award was entrusted to the ladies. A lady was also chosen for the presentation of the award. Very often, the winner was awarded a reward in the form of ... a pike. This fish was considered a talisman. After the presentation of the award, the winner was taken to the palace, where the ladies disarmed him and held a feast. The names of the winners were entered into special lists, and the minstrels composed songs about them. The winner of the tournament took away the horse and weapon from the enemy, took him prisoner or demanded a ransom.

The idea of tournaments contained a high ethical principle. Only knights with a spotless reputation could participate in the tournament. A knight in the tournament played with a badge received from the hands of his lady, if the badge fell or got to the enemy, then the lady threw a new one. The last blow was struck in honor of the Lady.

The tournaments were a real celebration of the feudal aristocracy, they attracted many spectators and participants. During the XI - XIII centuries, tournaments experienced their heyday.

This way of life was led medieval knights, such were their activities and entertainment in peacetime.

Knight at war

The knights fought very bravely, very courageously, very bravely, they were eager to fight at breakneck speed, they always fought to the last, they preferred to die on the battlefield, but not to retreat before the enemy. The most terrible accusation for the knight was the accusation of lack of courage, so one can imagine with what zeal and impatience they rushed into battle, fought fearlessly, sometimes, sometimes, showing simply miracles of courage: Richard the Lionheart, by the way so nicknamed for his bravery, in one of the battles “so impetuously one rushes after the Saracens that no one can keep up with him. And the king disappears from sight. The crusaders considered their king already dead when he returned to them. The horse was covered in blood and dust, and Richard himself was riddled with arrows. An eyewitness said that the king was like a pillow, studded with needles on all sides. "

For a knight to retreat meant to lose honor, so they almost never retreated in battle, and if they retreated, then there were very serious reasons for this. So, Richard the Lionheart in the battle of Arsuf (third crusade) repelled 2 attacks of the Saracens, and without retreating, for the third time rushed into battle, accompanied by only 15 knights. In battle, the knights tried to behave with dignity, as the knightly morality prescribed for them, but this did not always work out, especially in the heat of battle. So, the knights attacked from behind, and killed the unarmed enemy, and finished off the wounded.

Knightly honor was understood in a very peculiar way. The Templar charter, for example, allowed the knight to attack the enemy from front and back, right and left, wherever he could be damaged. But if the enemy managed to force at least a few knights to retreat, their comrades-in-arms, noticing this, as a rule, fled into a panicky flight, which not a single commander was able to stop. How many kings lost their victory just because they lost their heads prematurely from fear!

In addition to the knights, the infantry also participated in the battles - each knight brought with him servants armed with spears and axes, and the large rulers hired large detachments of archers and crossbowmen. But until the XIV century. the outcome of the battle was always determined by a few gentlemen-knights, while numerous servants-infantrymen were for the gentlemen, although necessary, but only a help. The knights did not take them into account at all. And what could a crowd of untrained peasants do against an armored one? professional fighter on a mighty horse? The knights despised their own infantry. Burning with impatience to fight a worthy enemy, that is, a knight, they trampled down their own foot warriors with their horses. With the same indifference, the knights treated horsemen without armor, only with swords and light spears. In one of the battles, when a detachment of light horsemen flew into a group of knights, they did not even budge, but simply chopped the enemy's horses with their long spears and only then galloped to a worthy enemy: the knights. It was here that the real battle took place: two riders encased in iron, covered with shields, throwing long spears forward, knocked down from the raid, and from a terrible ramming blow, reinforced by the weight of the armor and the weight of the horse in combination with the speed of movement, the enemy with a cracked shield and ripped open chain mail or simply stunned flew out of the saddle. If the armor held out, and the spears broke, cutting with swords began. It was by no means elegant swordsmanship: the blows were rare but terrible. Their strength is evidenced by the remains of warriors who died in the battles of the Middle Ages - severed skulls, severed shin bones. It was for the sake of such a battle that the knights lived. In such a battle, they rushed headlong, forgetting about caution, about the elementary system, violating the orders of the commanders. At the slightest sign of victory, the knight rushed to plunder the enemy's camp, forgetting about everything - and for this, the knights also lived. It is not for nothing that some kings, forbidding the soldiers to break the order of battle during the offensive and the course of the battle because of robbery, built gallows for the unrestrained vassals before the battle. The fight could be quite long. After all, he usually broke up into an endless number of fights, when opponents chased each other.

Such was the brave, courageous, furious, persistent, stubborn and unrestrained behavior of the knight in battle.

Second half of the 15th century. the decline of chivalric ideology and chivalry began. At the same time, gunpowder began to be actively used. At first, it was used only to blow up the walls of fortresses. As a result, the mighty knightly castles ceased to be invulnerable. Then the use of gunpowder led to a change in the methods of war and to a decrease in the role of the cavalry. Chivalry ceases to play an important role in the life of society. At the same time, the chivalrous ideology fell into decay.

However, for many centuries chivalry was an important life ideal of medieval society, and the chivalrous way of life and style of behavior was the most important moral standard of the medieval aristocracy. Chivalry, like other estates, was essential element medieval society, ensuring the stability of a social structure in which the "warring" were as important as the "praying" or "workers".