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from
https://www.medievalists.net/2023/06/banquets-middle-ages/

Banquets in the Middle Ages
By Danièle Cybulskie

When we think about medieval people eating together, it seems we
invariably conjure up an image of a great hall, filled with people
sitting at long tables. While we do need to keep in mind that this is an
image of people eating in a castle, not a cottage or a city, it is an
image worth taking a look at, since many of these formal eating
traditions still have echoes today.

Our English word “lord” comes from the Old English word hlaford, which
literally translates to “loaf ward” (halfweard), or someone who is a
food guardian or protector. This speaks to the major responsibilities a
lord owed his peasants: that is, to make sure they were fed and
protected in return for their work. Because of this, a castle full of
people would be fed together, although not every day would have been a
banquet day.

British Library MS Royal 10 E IV fol. 236r
If the medieval meal you’re imagining looks a little bit like a modern
wedding, you’re not too far off. The tables used would have been trestle
tables: long boards set on top of supports which resembled modern
sawhorses. Having tables which could be set up and taken down relatively
quickly meant that the hall in which people ate could be used for other
purposes throughout the day.

The most important people would have been seated at one end of the hall
on a raised platform, or dais. Because of this, we still often call the
most important table at a banquet “the high table”. The VIPs at the high
table would be seated next to each other, facing the hall, not across
from each other. The lord would have seated himself at the middle of the
high table, and the rest of the people at the table would have been
seated in order of importance – just like at a modern wedding.

Seating arrangements were a tricky business, and where you were seated
told the story of both your relationship to your lord, and your place in
society. Because salt was an expensive commodity at the time, the most
important people would have been seated where they could reach the salt
cellar, or “above the salt”, while everyone else would have been seated
“below the salt”. Seating arrangements were also important because
people shared dishes of food; it would not have been appropriate for one
of high birth to share dishes with one of low birth.

If you were a very important person, seated at the high table, it’s
possible you might be given a chair; however, most people would have
been seated on benches. In fact, our word “banquet” is derived from the
Old French word for “bench”.

British Library MS Harley 4431 fol. 122v
At the table, you would have seen goblets or cups and pitchers; bowls,
if there was a soup or stew; spoons for soup or stew; and trenchers (the
equivalent of plates) made of either stale bread, wood, or metal,
depending on the wealth of the household. Dishes like cups, pitchers,
and bowls would have been made of horn, wood, leather, metal, or
possibly glass, again, depending on the wealth of the household. Serving
dishes would be placed on the table (by servants) from which people got
(or were served) their portions. Cups and trenchers were shared, and
people ate with their fingers, or with the eating knives they carried on
their belts.

While Hollywood often makes medieval eating seem raucous and
ill-mannered, it is important to remember that our ancestors were
actually quite concerned with etiquette. John of Garland in Morale
Scholarium (written in the 13th century) advises that students hold
their goblets by the stem to avoid leaving fingerprints, and to make
sure clean towels are at the ready. Other advice, such as that from Les
Contenances de Table, includes keeping your elbows off the table, and
wiping your mouth before you take a drink from the shared cup. Picking
your teeth or scratching yourself at the table was likewise frowned
upon. Polite behaviour would have included making sure your dining
partner got the choicest pieces of food, and not drinking all the wine.

British Library MS Royal 6 E VI fol. 259v
Next time you find yourself at a wedding or formal function, you may
want to spend five minutes considering the medieval origins of our
formal eating traditions. Or, even better, sharing your knowledge of
medieval dining, even if you no longer have to share your dishes.

If you want to know more about being on your best behaviour during the
Middle Ages, check out my upcoming book Chivalry and Courtesy: Medieval
Manners for Modern Life.

Danièle Cybulskie is the lead columnist of Medievalists.net and the host
of The Medieval Podcast. She studied Cultural Studies and English at
Trent University, earning her MA at the University of Toronto, where she
specialized in medieval literature and Renaissance drama. You can follow
her on Twitter @5MinMedievalist or visit her website, danielecybulskie.com.

Click here to read more from Danièle Cybulskie
Top Image: British Library MS Harley 4979 fol. 17v

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TAGSDAILY LIFE IN THE MIDDLE AGES • DANIÈLE CYBULSKIE • MEDIEVAL FOOD
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