The Sixteenth Century

1. The Sixteenth Century Romeo and Juliet was written in 1595 Elizabethan Era www.lepg.org/sixteen.htm http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/elizabethan-food.htm

2. The 16th Century • 1/3 and ½ of the people died before the age of 16

3. Misc • 1590’s Europe • poor crops and wars - destroyed transportation and food supplies. • Bread is scarce • Prices of food, fuel, and housing are high, while wages are low. • starved to death • farming. • lifespan 35 years • 1/3 and ½ died before the age of 16 • If you survived to mid-teens you would probably live to your 50s or 60s

4. Economic Status • Nobility • owned huge amounts of land. • Gentry and rich merchants • owned huge amounts of land • usually educated • had a family coat of arms. • never did any manual work. • Yeomen and craftsmen • owned their own land • they could be as wealthy as gentlemen but they worked alongside their men. • often able to read and write. • Tenant farmers • leased their land from the rich. • Wage earners • often illiterate and very poor 50% lived at subsistence level – they had just enough food, clothes, and shelter to survive.

5. Homes • The rich had grand houses • The middle class • sturdy houses with a timber frame. • roofs were usually thatched • some well off people had tiles. • Furniture was very basic – was expected to last for generations. • slept on feather mattresses rather than straw ones. • Chairs were expensive so many had stools and/or benches.

6. Food • rich people - lots of meat, few vegetables • Poor people – little bit of meat, lots of vegetables • On certain days by law people had to eat fish instead of meat. At first this was for religious reasons but later it was to support the fishing industry. • Lower class • ½ lb. bread, 1 pint of beer, 1 pint of porridge, and 1/4 lb of meat • the beer had a very low alcohol content! • Morning - Bread and cheese and onions • Only 1 cooked meal/day • Mixed grain with water and added vegetables and meat (if they could afford it) • They though fresh fruit was bad for you – they did eat it cooked • They liked sweet food but sugar was very expensive so they used honey to sweeten their food

7. Transport • Travelled by horse • Rich people rode in carriages (without springs and roads were very bumpy) • You would be lucky to travel 50-60km/day – the rich deliberately traveled slowly. They felt it was undignified to hurry.

8. Pastimes • The rich enjoyed tournaments – dressed in armor and rode horses – used wooden lances and swords • Hunting • Billiards • Board games – chess and backgammon • Gambling – poor people with dice • Music and dancing • Reading – rich people • Football – much rougher, no rules – broken limbs were common • Watching public executions

9. Education • Boys • nursery school = “petty school” • Grammar school – age 7 • School 6am-11, 1-5pm, 6 days/week • Discipline was savage • 15 or 16 of the brightest boys might go to one of England’s two universities, Oxford and Cambridge. • Many boys did not go to school – might do an apprenticeship and learn a trade. • Some craftsmen could read and write but few laborers could. • Girls • rich – tutor taught them at home • Middle class – mother might teach them • Lower class girls were not educated. • Children who did not go to school were expected to work.

10. Men’s and women’s roles Women • inferior to men. • obey their parents without question. • function in life was to marry and bear children. • obey their husband because they were commanded by God. • husbands were chosen by their fathers or other male relatives. Men • Head of the house • Take care of the family • Passed their trade onto their sons

11. Marriage • Children from rich families – arranged marriages. • If they refused – beaten until they changed their minds. • Children from poorer families could choose whom they married. • Boys married between the ages of 18-21, girls 15 or 16. No legal age for marriage. • Marriages were arranged for • political reasons • Riches • land or status • or to forge bonds between two families. • Marrying for love - bizarre and foolish.

12. Clothes • Made of wool • Men • Breeches • “hose” Layers: • Doublets • jerkin • cloak or cape • Women • Petticoat • Wool dress – bodice/corset and a skirt • Everyone wore hats – by law all men except nobles had to wear a woolen cap on Sundays (to give the wool cap makers plenty of work!) • Buttons were for decoration – clothes were held together with laces or pins • Dyes were expensive – only the rich could afford bright red and black • Poor often wore brown