The language used back then was English but it was different in many ways. The language spoken has been referred to as Idiomatic Idiosyncrasies. For example: “How are you?” was said, “How art thou?” Thee, thy, and thou were part of the everyday language along with many others. Wherefore meant why and stay meant to wait. They often used apostrophes in words to shorten them. When they said corn they were referring to barley or whatever the main crop was. They spoke if living in a street instead of on it. Many American cities have a Main Street, back then it was the High Street or Fore Street. Instead of saying Wow they would say Fie me or marry. Thank you was gramercy or I thank thee and the bathroom was called privy or jakes.
The men were called sir, master, or lord depending on their status. Every woman that was married to a knight or higher was called my lady. Your grace was only to royal blood. Children called their parents sir or madam or my lord and my lady.
The official religion was the Church of England. There was a fine for not being part of an established religion. It was illegal to be a Catholic priest and even worse to be a Jesuit. Everyone had to attend an Anglican service once a month.
The money used was all silver and gold coins, there was no paper money. There was no copper money although it is thought there was. The denominations were pounds, shillings, and pence; 12 pence makes a shilling and 20 shillings makes a pound. The abbreviations for these were d, s, and £. The sovereign was a coin worth 1 pound; it was gold and discontinued after 1583. The angel was one of the most common and it was worth 10 shillings, this was also gold. The crown was made in silver and gold and it was the most common coin; it was worth 5 shillings. Money bought a lot more back then, pennies were used to buy food and drinks.
The food was sweeter than today. The meat was often cooked with fruit. Tomatoes were considered almost poisonous. Chocolate was not yet to England, it was used for medical purposes only along with coffee and tea. Almond, cinnamon and clove were the most popular flavoring for sweet things. They didn’t have all the foods available that we do today but they did have some that we don’t have. The vegetables available included: garlic, eggplant, asparagus, peas, cabbage, lettuce, parsnip, leeks, endive, lentils, and celery along with a few others. The fruits and nuts included: apples, currants, plums, lemons, sesame, grapes, olives, pomegranates, mulberries, strawberries, sloes, and war dons as well as a few others. The meat they ate included the same we eat today and rabbit, goat, swan, peacock, badger, and hedgehogs. Fish and birds were very popular meats.
When a man wants to propose to a girl they go to a betrothal where the two hold hands, he gives her a ring that is worn on the right hand until the wedding, and they end it with a kiss. It was said that you were luckiest if you had the wedding before noon. The bridesmaids did the floral arrangements and made little bouquets for the guests. With parental permission the boys were able to marry when they were 14 and the girls at 12. It was regarded as foolish to marry for love even though it did occur. They all wanted and expected to have children and the women depended on the men in her life for all of her life. Divorces were harder to get. Widows were able to own property and run their own businesses.
The children gave their parents respect like a servant does for their master since the children were their parent’s property. The boys wore skirts until they were about 6 then they get their first pair of breeches. There was a party thrown for this event. The infants were wrapped unhealthily in cloth until they were up to 1, this didn’t give them free use of their limbs. The boys usually only went to school, the girls learned what they needed at home. School began at 7:00 in the morning in the winter and 6:00 in the morning in the summer, they had two hours for dinner and the day ends at about 5:00-5:30.
The occupations were much of the same but were done privately and not in big business like it is today. They included: booksellers, mercers, haters, tailors, fletchers, blacksmiths, and lawyers just to name a few. A draper dealt with cloth, a nurse took care of infants and young children, a wet nurse breast fed the babies for up to two years, and a tutor educated your children.
When they got bored they did things like we do. They played tennis, hunted, went to the theatre, and gossiped. They also had many “games” they participated it including: drinking, which was done in taverns and alehouses, playing with dice and cards, and going to whore houses. They also did more normal things like reading, writing letters or poetry, and studying.
The time was different and most of the events were different but some were the same. I think that it would have been somewhat fun to live in that time period except for the women were treated badly. It is very interesting how times have changed.
