The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century

by Ian Mortimer

rams, 262, 310. See also fleeces; meat

  sheets. See beds and bedding

  shepherds, 249

  Sheriff Hutton, 303

  sheriffs, 12, 56, 68, 103, 217, 218, 220–24, 225–26, 235, 308. See also courts; London

  shields. See armor

  shingles, 13

  ships and boats, 17, 18, 28, 60, 77, 85, 123, 136–39, 238, 252, 278

  carracks, 137, 138

  castles on, 138

  cogs, 136–39, 302

  construction of, 131, 137–38

  ferries, 129–30, 152

  fishing boats, 184

  galleys, 137, 141

  hulks, 137, 140, 141

  life on board, 139–42, 265

  repair of, 140

  rowing, 138. See also lighthouses

  shipwreck 60, 123, 136, 140

  shipwrights. See ships and boats

  Shirburn Castle, 303

  Shitbrook 8–9, 13, 82, 146

  shoemakers, 15

  shoemakers’ thread, 132 shoes, 62, 93–94, 109–10, 114–15, 268

  boots, 114–15, 189

  shopgirls, 103

  shopkeepers, 114

  shopping, 92–95

  shops, 9–10, 12, 14–16, 18, 93, 148

  Shrewsbury, 11, 17, 296

  Shropshire, 33

  Shrove Tuesday 262

  shutters. See windows

  Sicily, 168

  sick care. See medicines; nursing

  sickness. See diseases; malnutrition

  sidesaddle. See horses and ponies

  sieges, 70, 167–68, 209

  signs, 9–10, 16, 145, 174, 213, 233

  silks. See cloth

  silver, 96, 97, 105, 119, 149, 151, 158, 159, 164, 176, 228, 259

  gilt-silver, 106, 119, 149, 151, 158, 159. See also cloth of silver

  silversmiths, 22. See also jewelers

  Simonburn, 34

  Skirlaw, Walter, 39

  slander. See crime

  slates, 163

  slaughterer, 161

  slaughtering, 21, 22

  slings. See hunting

  Sluys, 136, 247

  Smithfield. See London

  smiths. See blacksmiths

  soap, 181, 199–200, 212, 261

  solars, 114, 146, 148, 155, 156, 161, 274, 280 (private parlor)

  Somerset, 27, 304

  soothsayers, 54

  Southampton, 140

  Southwark. See London

  Sowerby 228

  spades, 135

  Spain, Spanish, 44, 57, 71, 72, 77, 139, 179, 199, 201, 258. See also Castile

  Spalding, William de, 263

  Spanish Era, 83

  spectacles, 274

  speeds of travel, 127, 132

  spicemongers, 12, 21, 22, 178, 228 spices, 94, 141, 149, 175, 180, 181, 188, 197, 200, 213, 305

  alkanet, 181

  aniseed, 177, 200

  cardamom, 118, 200

  cinnamon, 173, 175, 177, 178, 183, 200

  cloves, 118, 173, 177, 178, 181

  coriander, 177

  cumin, 200

  curry powder, 178, 181 powder forte; fennel. See herbs; fenugreek 212

  galingale, 175, 183

  ginger, 177, 178, 183

  licorice, 177, 200

  mace, 173, 178

  mustard, 181, 304

  nutmeg, 118, 177, 178

  pepper, 95, 175, 177, 178, 181, 183

  saffron, 99, 177, 181

  sugar. See sugar

  spinning, 117

  spiritual cleanness, 195–98

  spiritual devotion, 65–66, 76, 191, 195, 201, 252–53

  charity 129, 143, 145

  pious works, 129. See also pilgrimages

  spits. See cooking utensils

  sponges, 198, 214

  spoons, 132, 149, 151, 158, 164, 287

  spurs, 131–32

  squirrels, 26, 93

  Sri Lanka, 73–74

  St. Agatha, 271

  St. Albans, 83, 124, 226, 296

  St. Anselm, 270

  St. Asaph’s, diocese of, 296

  St. Augustine, missionary, 275

  St. Augustine of Hippo, 46

  St. Bartholomew’s. See London

  St. Benedict, rule of, 46, 152, 188

  St. Benet Hutne, 296

  St. Catherine, 271

  St. Catherine’s Lighthouse, 140

  St. Chad, 269

  St. Christopher, 132, 302

  St. Cuthbert, 269

  St. David’s, diocese of, 296

  St. Dunstan, 269, 270

  St. Edmund, king and martyr, 269

  St. Edward the Confessor, 20, 270, 272

  St. Ethedreda, queen and abbess, 269

  St. Francis, 271. See also Franciscans

  St. Frideswide, 269

  St. Gilbert of Sempringham, 46

  St. Guthlac, 269

  St. Hugh: bishop of Lincoln, 268, 269

  martyr of Lincoln, 269

  St. Inglevert, 258

  St. John of Beverley 269

  St. John the Baptist, 119

  St. Louis, 39

  St. Martin’s le Grand. See London

  St. Mary the Egyptian, 271

  St. Oda, 270

  St. Paulinus, 270

  St. Paul’s Cathedral. See London

  St. Peter, 270

  St. Philip, 271

  St. Richard de Wyche, 269

  St. Swithin, 270

  St. Thomas (Doubting Thomas), 271

  St. Thomas Becket, 18, 77, 268, 269, 270, 271

  St. Walter Cantilupe, 269

  St. Werburgh, 269

  St. Wilfrid, 270

  St. William, 271

  St. William, martyr, 269

  St. William of Perth, 268

  St. William of York, 270

  St. Wulfstan, 270

  St. Wylgefbrte, 59 stables, 16, 23, 30, 32, 146, 147, 160, 185

  accommodation above, 153

  on ships, 141

  Stafford, Earl of, 62

  Stafford, Ralph, 62

  Staffordshire, 33, 174

  Staines, 128

  stallage, 94, 130

  Stapledon, Walter, 274

  Staplefbrd, Gilbert of, 228–29

  starvation. See famine

  steel. See metal

  stewards, 52, 69, 159, 160, 219, 227, 254

  stews. See baths and bathing; prostitution

  stocks, 180, 216, 223, 227, 229

  stone, 32

  granite, 31

  slate, 31

  stone crosses, 126

  Stonor, John, 242

  Strange, Hamon le, 304

  Stratford Bow, 22, 205

  Stratford upon Avon, 92

  straw, 24, 31, 146, 147, 153, 154, 163, 164, 166, 184. See also thatch

  strength, physical, 120, 264

  students, 68, 122, 164. See also Cambridge; education; Oxford; universities

  Suffolk, 33, 252, 295

  suffragans. See archbishops; bishops

  sugar, 99, 177, 178, 181–82, 188, 200

  syrup, 182, 183

  sumptuary laws, 103–4

  sundials, 84

  superstition, 74–78, 193. See also alchemy; diseases (King s Evil); magic; numerology; votive offerings; witchcraft

  surgeons, 10, 22, 68, 160, 191, 193, 213–15. See also Arderne

  surgery, 210, 211–12, 213–15

  amputation, 191

  eye surgery, 214

  phlebotomy, 192, 211, 214–15. See also medicine

  surnames, 87

  Surrey, 188, 294

  Sussex, 34

  swans. See wildfowl

  Sweden, 71, 138

  sweetmeats, 176, 177

  swine. See pigs

  swine killers, 22

  swineherds, 105

  swords, 60–62, 119, 120–22, 141, 144, 149, 161, 232, 238, 251, 266–67

  Swynford, Katherine, 284

  Syria, 72

  tablecloths, 149, 150
, 153, 158, 159, 164, 165, 176, 179

  tables. See furniture

  tables (game). See backgammon

  tailors, tailoring, 15, 22, 53, 57, 93, 102, 108, 300

  Guild of Tailors and Armourers, 300

  Talbot family 34

  tallow, 146, 153, 164, 200 mutton fat

  tally sticks, 67

  tanning, 21

  tapestries, 134, 157. See also rugs; wall hangings

  tapets. See beds and bedding; cloth

  Tartary 157, 276

  taverners, 149, 179, 185, 229, 264, 303

  taverns, 8, 85, 178–79, 229, 277, 292. See also ale houses

  Tavistock, 297

  tax collectors, 56

  teeth, 213, 226, 257–58, 271

  care of, 200

  Teigh, 241–42

  tennis, 231, 263

  terracotta, 141

  Thames River, 17, 19, 22, 125, 149, 197, 278

  thatch, 24, 29–30, 32, 163, 165, 231

  thieves, theft. See crime

  Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, 41, 159

  Thomas of Woodstock, duke of Gloucester, 155, 273

  Thorney Abbey, 296

  Thorp, William, 241

  three estates, the, 39–51, 202

  tilers, 100, 233

  tiles, 156, 163, 197, 231

  timber, 31, 32, 93, 127, 141, 163, 231

  alder, 15

  ash, 15, 163

  beech, 137

  elm, 20, 31, 163, 209, 294

  fir, 26, 294

  fruit trees, 171

  oak, 14, 26, 31, 131, 134, 137, 163, 209

  poplar, 15

  unseasoned, 163

  yew, 263. See also trees

  time: for meals, 169

  telling the, 83–85

  for trading, 15, 84, 92. See also bells; clocks

  tin. See metal

  tipping, 147

  tithes, 188

  tithings, 51, 58, 217, 219, 221–23, 227

  tofts, 30, 31

  toilets. See latrines

  tolls, 96, 129–30

  freedom from, 130. See also cranage; lastage; murage; pannage; pavage; pontage; stallage; wharfage

  tomato(es), 168

  tonsuring, 67

  torches, 233, 254

  torture, 225

  Toryntone, Desiderata de, 228

  Toty Richard, 138, 139, 302

  tournaments. See jousts

  tourns. See courts

  Towcester, 124

  towels, 158, 165, 181, 197

  Tower, the. See London

  town: criers, 10, 16, 88

  gate(s), 8, 9, 14, 130, 167, 220, 233, 249

  houses. See house; incorporated, 42, 88, 218

  ordinances, 145, 218

  bylaws, 229, 230–33, 238, 304, 308

  walls, 7, 9, 14, 21, 23, 53, 176, 229, 233

  watchmen, 220, 249. See also aldermen; freemen; London; mayors

  towns; small, 22–24

  townships, 69, 217, 220, 221, 226

  trailbaston. See courts

  travel, regularity of, 69–70, 71

  treacle, 177

  treason. See crime

  treasurer, the, 17

  trees, 26–27, 130–31, 167, 226, 294. See also timber

  trenchers, 170, 171, 176, 181, 183

  Tresilian, Robert, 245

  Trevisa, john, 39, 276

  trial by battle. See courts

  Trim, 39

  tripods, 150, 163. See also cooking utensils

  Trivium, 67

  Troglodytes, 73

  trout. See fish

  trumpets. See musical instruments

  Trumpington, 122

  tuberculosis. See diseases

  tubs, 17, 21, 151, 163, 166. See also washtubs

  Tuchet, Robert, 242

  tumblers, 53. See also acrobats

  tunics. See clothes

  turf roofs, 165

  Turkey, 72

  turkeys. See poultry

  turners, 96

  tweezers, 118

  Tyburn. See London

  Tyngewick, Nicholas, 212

  underwear. See clothes

  unfit, the, 168

  unicorns, 74

  units of currency, 96–97

  units of measurement, 85–86, 95, 229, 235

  universities, 41, 48, 67–68, 88, 191, 193, 211, 284

  Urban VI, 44

  urinals, 141

  uroscopy 194–95, 211

  ushers, 89

  vagrants, 145, 153, 154, 217, 224, 239. See also beggars; paupers

  valets, 101, 133, 159, 160, 162, 180

  vegetables, 164, 169, 171, 176, 185, 209

  beans, 170, 171 white, 172, 185

  cabbage, 169, 171–72, 185, 209

  carrots, 168

  cauliflower, 185

  celery, 185

  chervil, 172

  chibols, 171–72

  colewort, 185

  garden produce, 169, 171, 176, 185

  garlic, 93, 171, 185

  leeks, 171–72, 185

  onions, 171, 173, 181, 185

  parsnips, 185

  peas, 168, 170, 171, 185

  peascods, 172, 185

  potatoes, 168

  potential harmful effects of, 171

  spring onions, 171

  turnips, 171

  Vegetius, 272

  veils. See clothes

  vellum, 123

  velvet, 109, 115

  velvet. See cloth

  Venice, 12, 82, 265

  verdigris, 94

  Vere, Robert de, constable of Rockingham, 242

  Vere, Robert de, marquis of Dublin, 124–25, 295

  verjuice, 185

  vetches, 167

  veterinary care, 133

  vicars, 43, 203 beneficed clergy. See also priests

  Vicars Choral, 16

  villeins, 43, 48–51, 57, 67, 68, 72, 86–87, 99, 116, 165, 172, 198, 216–17, 219, 222, 227. See also bondmen

  Vilnius, 72

  vine stems, 118

  vinegar, 118, 173, 178, 183

  vintners, 96, 179, 284

  violence, 37, 57, 60–66, 89, 190

  violets, 65

  Virgin Mary 268, 270

  Virtual History 2–3

  vitamin C, 169

  vitamin D, 210

  voters, 69

  votive offerings, 191, 261

  wafers, 176, 183

  wages. See incomes

  wagons, 133, 252. See also carts; coaches

  Wakefield, 252, 263, 274

  Wales, 34, 41, 43, 81

  Marches of, 61, 229

  wall hangings, 148. See also tapestries

  Wallace, Sir William, 236

  Wallingford, 101

  walnuts, 172

  Walsingham Priory, 268, 270

  Walsingham, Thomas, 60, 75, 184, 297

  Waltham Holy Cross, 296

  wapentakes. See hundreds

  Waraunt family, 240

  Warauntjohn, 240

  warehouses, 15, 148

  warfare, 38, 41, 56, 65, 70, 99, 123–25, 168, 220. See disc jousts of

  war warhorses. See horses and ponies

  Warwick Castle, 155

  Warwick, countess of, 113

  Warwick, Earls of. See Beauchamp

  Warwickshire, 124, 202

  washbasins. See basins

  washerwomen, 159, 199, 306

  washing. See baths and bathing; cleaning

  washtubs, 64, 199, 306

  watchmen, 85, 249. See also towns

  water, attitudes toward, 175

  water carriers, 53

  water supply, 15, 22, 141, 153. See also

  wells water transport, 15

  Watling Street, 124, 126

  wax, 88, 94, 159, 212, 254, 261

  weavers, weaving, 94, 115, 117

  weeping, 91

  weights, 10

  weirs, 184

  wells, 31, 156, 166, 270

  Wells Cath
edral, 84, 296

  Welsh language, 81

  Wensley Roger de, 242

  West Country, 32, 34, 128, 170, 175, 203. See also Cornwall; Devon; Dorset; Somerset

  Westminster, 17, 19, 130, 236

  Abbey 20, 47, 188, 201, 245, 270, 296, 301

  abbot, 87, 261

  palace of, 19, 84, 123

  Westmorland, 33, 295. See also Lake District

  wetnurses, 103

  whales. See fish

  wharfage, 130

  wharfs. See ports and harbors

  wheat. See grain

  Wheel of Fortune, 254

  wheelwrights, 134

  whips, 116

  White Canons. See Premonstratensians

  White Friars. See Carmelites

  White Monks, 46

  Whittington, Dick, 99

  Whittington, William, 99

  Whyte, John le, 228

  Wife-Givers, 73

  Wigmore, 155, 273

  wild boar. See boar

  wildfowl, 173, 260, 276

  bustard, 182

  cranes, 182, 260

  curlew, 182

  ducks. See poultry; egret, 182

  herons, 182, 260

  larks, 177, 182

  martinets, 182

  partridges, 177, 182, 261

  pheasants, 177, 181, 253–54, 259

  plover, 182

  snipe, 177

  sparrows, 182

  stork 182

  swans, 17, 254

  teal, 177

  woodcock 177, 182

  William of Malmesbury 251

  Willoughby Richard, 241

  wills, 70, 81, 274

  Willysdon, Richard, 148–49

  Wilton Diptych, 301

  Wiltshire, 228–29

  Wimborne Minster, 270–71

  wimples. See clothes

  Winchcombe, 296

  Winch elsea, 136

  Winchester, 11, 17, 213, 293, 296

  bishops of, 20, 39, 203, 299, 309

  Cathedral, 270

  diocese of, 296

  Statute of, 121, 130, 220

  windows: coaches,’ 134

  glazed, 15, 148, 156

  oriel, 15

  shuttered, 13, 30, 148, 153, 163, 166

  unglazed, 14

  Windsor Castle, 84, 101, 154, 155, 294

  wine, 22, 86, 93, 95, 134, 138, 139, 141, 147, 148, 151, 175, 177–80, 185, 189, 285, 288, 303–4

  English, 28, 179

  Gascon, 71, 136, 179, 185, 305

  hypocras, 183

  Lepe, 179

  Malvesey 179

  Osey 179

  red, 176, 179

  Rhenish, 179, 185

  Rochelle, 179

  Romonye, 179

  Spanish, 179, 185

  sweet, 186

  Wingfield Castle, 303

  witchcraft, 75–76, 238

  woad, 93

  wolves, 27

  women, position of, 49–50, 54–59, 64, 91, 101, 102–3, 111–14, 159, 164, 168, 174–75, 198, 200, 221, 223, 225–26, 230, 234

  women’s milk as a medicine, 207

  woodland, 25–26

  wool, 21, 71, 93, 94, 118, 132, 162, 164, 173, 199, 234. See also cloth; fleeces

  Worcester, 11, 252, 296

  bishop of, 45

  Cathedral, 270

  ordinances of, 230–33

  Severn Bridge, 232

  Worcestershire, 36, 240

  wormwood, 212

  Wressle Castle, 303