Medieval Europe: Overview

Knights in armor weighed so much that they had to be lifted onto their horses. Medieval barbers doubled as dentists. Robin Hood stole from the rich to give to the poor. You may have heard these common sayings or beliefs before. But are they really true? Can they be proven through research? Let's investigate seventeen statements about the Middle Ages and find out which ones are right, which ones are wrong, and which ones stump even the experts! Find out whether King Arthur really ruled England during the Middle Ages! Discover whether a terrible plague killed millions of people! See if you can tell the difference between fact and fiction with Is That a Fact?

Meet the people of the Middle Ages--from the lowly peasant to the royal court. This fascinating book reveals Medieval society and the realities of everyday life according to social class, including lifestyles and sources of entertainment. Famous people in religion, peasant rebellions, and politics are featured, along with events such as the signing of the Magna Carta.

Medieval England was a time of great change and uncertainty. In this engaging book, readers will learn about various aspects of the Middle Ages in England including the feudal system, Hundred Years War, War of the Roses, and the bubonic plague. With detailed images, captivating facts and sidebars, and easy-to-read text, readers will enjoy an engaging reading experience that introduces them to such rulers as Henry II, Thomas Beckett, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Richard the Lion Hearted. This book also includes text features such as a table of contents, glossary, and index, as well as an in-class writing activity to further students' understanding of the Magna Carta.

"The Middle Ages were marked by economic and territorial expansion, demographic and urban growth, the emergence of national identity, and the restructuring of secular and ecclesiastical institutions. Readers will learn about the great achievements of the ninth through twelfth centuries, a time when people were often categorized into three orders: those who fight, those who pray, and those who labor. Other notable events and phenomena examined in this authoritative history include the Carolingian renaissance, the Crusades, Gothic art and architecture, the papal monarchy, the birth of the university, and the recovery of ancient Greek thought."

In his new history of food, acclaimed historian Massimo Montanari traces the development of medieval tastes-both culinary and cultural-from raw materials to market and captures their reflections in today's food trends. Tying the ingredients of our diet evolution to the growth of human civilization, he immerses readers in the passionate debates and bold inventions that transformed food from a simple staple to a potent factor in health and a symbol of social and ideological standing. Montanari returns to the prestigious Salerno school of medicine, the "mother of all medical schools," to plot the theory of food that took shape in the twelfth century. He reviews the influence of the Near Eastern spice routes, which introduced new flavors and cooking techniques to European kitchens, and reads Europe's earliest cookbooks, which took cues from old Roman practices that valued artifice and mixed flavors. Dishes were largely low-fat, and meats and fish were seasoned with vinegar, citrus juices, and wine. He highlights other dishes, habits, and battles that mirror contemporary culinary identity, including the refinement of pasta, polenta, bread, and other flour-based foods; the transition to more advanced cooking tools and formal dining implements; the controversy over cooking with oil, lard, or butter; dietary regimens; and the consumption and cultural meaning of water and wine. As people became more cognizant of their physicality, individuality, and place in the cosmos, Montanari shows, they adopted a new attitude toward food, investing as much in its pleasure and possibilities as in its acquisition.