The Struggles of Travel in the Middle Ages
Travel in the Middle Ages was anything but easy. From grueling journeys on foot to muddy, impassable roads and slow-moving carts, medieval travelers faced challenges that make modern road trips seem luxurious.
Surviving Winter in the Middle Ages
Winter was the most dangerous time of the medieval calendar year. So, how did medieval people cope?
Medieval Jobs That Disappeared
If you go back to the Middle Ages, you’ll find numerous professions—some requiring skill and learning, others chosen out of desperation—that have since vanished.
The Worst Jobs in the Middle Ages
What did medieval people think were the worst jobs you could have? The answers will surprise you.
New Medieval Books: The Book
What if the world reverted to the Middle Ages—or even earlier? How would you rebuild society from scratch? This book provides a fascinating and entertaining guide to rediscovering medieval skills, from baking bread and operating a loom to mastering the mechanics of a siege tower.
New Medieval Books: The Exile’s Cookbook
This translation of a 13th-century cookbook delves into the rich culinary traditions of Andalusian and North African cuisine. Featuring 480 recipes, it guides you through preparing meat and vegetarian dishes, crafting breads and pastries, and exploring the fascinating world of medieval food.
Medieval Daily Life on Birchbark
When Russian archaeologists uncovered a piece of birchbark in 1951, they stumbled upon a remarkable glimpse into the everyday lives of medieval people.
Inside Medieval Homes: Discovering the Secrets Through Manuscript Art
Curious about what medieval peasant homes really looked like?
Adventures of a Tenth-Century Explorer: Mapping the Medieval World
What was it like to travel the world over a thousand years ago? For one man, it was a journey filled with adventure, hardship, and discovery.
Medieval Life Hacks: Hygiene and Manners from the 12th Century
The Middle Ages are often depicted as a time when people were dirty and uncouth. But did they actually care about their appearance and behaviour?
Medieval Beards and Baldness with Joseph McAlhany
If we need proof of how wonderful both baldness and beards are, we need only to cast our eyes back to the Middle Ages, where people were writing rhetorical arguments, alliterative poetry, and even learned sermons on the virtues of masculine hair. This week, Danièle speaks with Joseph McAlhany about these hilarious medieval texts, why people wrote them, and how seriously we’re supposed to take them.
A Medieval Solution to a Modern Problem: Hair Loss
Discover a fascinating medieval solution to a problem that still plagues many today: hair loss. Explore how the 12th-century abbess Hildegard of Bingen’s unique remedy could hold the key to unlocking a natural cure for baldness.
10 Ancient Beauty Secrets from the Middle Ages: Timeless Tips from The Trotula
Curious about how women in the Middle Ages enhanced their beauty? The Trotula, a 12th-century medieval text from Italy, offers fascinating insights.
Medieval Tightrope Walking
Accounts of death-defying stunts for public entertainment can be found even in the Middle Ages.
22 Intriguing Characters from a Medieval City’s Underworld
Discover 22 intriguing characters from the medieval underworld in Muhammad Ibn Dāniyāl’s play, “The Amazing Preacher and the Stranger.” Explore the lives of medieval street performers, animal trainers, and shady tradesmen.
Obsolete Occupations from the Middle Ages
In medieval times, many unique jobs, such as Ale-wife and Groom of the Stool, were essential but have since vanished. Discover these obsolete occupations and how historical changes led to their disappearance.
Drinking Horns in the Middle Ages
Ten things to know about medieval drinking horns.
New Medieval Books: Beards and Baldness in the Middle Ages
Translations of three medieval texts: In Praise of Baldness, On Bald Men, and A Defense of Beards. It reveals that male grooming was indeed a thing in the Middle Ages.
Medieval guide explains where you should live
Are you looking for your next place to live? A medieval writer offers advice on where your home should be, even which way the windows should face.
Carrying and Moving in the Middle Ages
In a time and place with a serious lack of pockets and built-in shelving, how and where did people carry and store their everyday stuff? This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle takes a look at carrying, packing, and moving in the Middle Ages.
How rich medieval people spent their money
If you were a noble in the Middle Ages, you were most likely very rich. What did you do with your money?
Did people in the Middle Ages take baths?
It was said that the Middle Ages was ‘one thousand years without a bath.’ However, a closer look shows that baths and bathing were actually quite common in the Middle Ages, but in a different way than one might expect.
How did people sleep in the Middle Ages?
A look at the theory that medieval people slept in two periods during the night.
Medieval Insults
If you are looking for ways to hurl insults at your enemies, then the medieval world has some interesting examples for you.
