Festivals And Holidays

From Medieval Wiki

By Maddie Howden and Fiona Twiford

Festivals and Holidays in the Medieval Times

This is an image of a saint meeting the dead during All Hallows Eve. By Fiona

In Medieval times they had many weird holidays with weird names. Some holidays that not everyone celebrated were:Candlemas(February 2), Hoketide(end of the Easter week) and Midsummer(June 24), but they also celebrated holidays that we celebrate today. Kings back then had very big feasts to celebrate Christmas and other holidays.Food and Drink The king would put on games and tournaments for the 14 days. Christmas was not the time for fun. Instead it was for prayer and reflection. The kings would have really big parties in their castles.Castles Easter was also celebrated in Medieval Times. Like today people would sometimes give colored eggs as presents and had parties, however they did not have easter bunnies. All Hallows Eve was more of a religious holiday than Halloween is today. There were so many holidays that everyone could look forward to. Holidays also represented to passing of a season.

This is an image of a feast that Kings would through for Medieval Holidays

Definitions

1)Chivaree-the music that was played during Valentines Day and Weddings.

2)SOL-MONATH-cake-mouth.

3)Falconry - The art of hunting using trained birds.

4)Jousting- A medieval European sport in which mounted knights charged at each other bearing lances.

Medieval Festivals

During Medievl festivals music and dance was popular. During weddings and Valentines Day they played love music. This type of music was called "chivaree." On Mayday dancers would come and dance to really high-pitched music. Also they ate to sound of music. The music during the era of the Middle Ages was very important for celebrations,holidays and even meals! Even today some of the festivals back then are celebrated today( Mayday,Midsummer's Night).

As well as music, sports and games were big during Medieval festivals'. Some sports they played during medieval festivals were Jousting, archery, falconry, sword fighting, and arming the Knights.

This is an image of jousting during a Medieval Festival.
Festivals in Medieval times were also' markets like today. These markets had things such as swords, bows and arrows, clothes, furniture, plates, soaps, food, and beer. Each booth had a tent to keep the stuff they were selling.

Candlemas

By: Maddie

Forty days after Christmas, on February 2nd, is Candlemas. Candlemas was one of the three major Church blessings. Candlemas falls between the shortest day and spring equinox, and it was a time for looking days ahead. Candlemas was traditionally the day when cattle were taken out of the hey fields and the fields were ploughed, ready for the growing season a ahead. A snowdrop flower was known as a "Candlemas Bell" and it was believed to be unlucky to bring snowdrops into the house before Candlemas. Candlemas is the celebration of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple and the name is a shortened version of Candle Mass Something weird about February is the Anglo Saxons called February SOL-MONATH because cake was offered to the gods during that month. People called Candlemas, Candlemas because it was a Festival Day or "mass" of a Candles. Candles were very important back then because there were not electric lights. The Romans believed that by lighting Candles it would scare away the evil sprites in the winter. Children in Scotland would bring candles in and light them on dull days. For most people who still celebrate Candlemas they have pancakes that people cook for family and friends. Part of the tradition is that you have to flip a pancake and have it stick to the celling and have it come down in shreds. Now you are probably wondering why they use a pancake right? They do because a golden disc reminds us of the sun. The tradition of pancakes(or in southern France, round doughnuts). There was even a myth about eating pancakes that how important they are to people who celebrate Candlemas. The myth was that if you ate the pancakes you would have a good harvest in the coming year. The word Candlemas comes from the latin word"festa candelarum " the festivals of candles.

"There is music in the meadows, in the air Autumn is here;Skies are gray, but hearts are mellow,Leaves are crimson, brown, and yellow;Pines are soughing, birches stir,And the Gipsy trail is fresh beneath the fir.There is rhythm in the woods, and in the fields,Nature yields:And the harvest voices crying,Blend with Autumn zephyrs sighing;Tone and color, frost and fire,Wings the nocturne Nature plays upon her lyre."- William Stanley Braithwaite, Lyric of Autumn

“Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!"-Amanda Bradley

Holidays then and now

Just like back then some people celebrate a holiday named Hanukkah. It is very much the same as now but now children get presents for the eight days. Back then it was just about the Menorah. Back in medieval times Christmas was a 12 day festival. In Germany they celebrate Christmas for almost eight weeks. On the 12th day of Christmas they would have fire dances in the fields.

Not a holiday today but some weird ones

August 1st

Lamma's day: they had big parties and fairs for this day you would get to see jugglers, tumblers, leapers, vaulters and other things that that. Lamma's bread was baked from the new harvest.

February 22nd

Shrove Tuesday: there is no fat or meat allowed in Lent so they use all the fat on pancakes.On this day they did fun activities like pancake tossing, rope pulling, and egg racing.

Charity

Charity was a day for remembering and helping the poor. They would first open alm boxes and then give them to the poor. The priests would thank the gods for there fortune.