Medieval Historian Glossary
Medieval Historian Glossary
27 terms
A medieval historian can do many things related to history. He can work in archives to look at old manuscripts or teach classes. The medieval historian can use this glossary to remember and look up the meaning and definition of certain words used in his field of study.
- affinity
- The following of a lord.
- baron
- Vassals who held land directly from the crown and served as a member of the King’s great council.
- bascinet
- A light helmet, generally without a visor; so called from its resemblance to a basin.
- borough
- Town with the right of self-government granted by royal charter.
- canon
- A law or body of laws of a church. Member of a clerical group living according to a canon or rule.
- chivalry
- A knight's code of conduct.
- commoner
- Lowest class of people, just above slaves.
- dame
- Dame is an honorific title given to women who have been admitted to certain orders of chivalry. It is the female equivalent of Sir, the title used by knights.
- destrier
- Warhorse; so called because it would be led using the right hand.
- donjon
- The keep. Prisoners were usually kept at the tallest tower - the word "dungeon" comes from "donjon".
- excommunication
- Exclusion from the membership of the church or from communion with faithful Christians.
- fair
- Market held at regular intervals, usually once to twice a year. Fairs tended to offer a wider range of goods than normal markets.
- feudalism
- System of govern that ruled most of the Middle Ages.
- fief
- Land held by a vassal of a lord in return for his services, mainly military.
- hall
- The main room of a medieval house, used for eating.
- jester
- A jester, also known as joker, court jester, or fool, was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch kept to entertain guests during at the royal court.
- joust
- Tournament or combat of two mounted knights, tilting using lances.
- knight
- The warrior who owed military service to his lord in exchange for fief. Knights also aspired to the ideals of loyalty, generosity, and courtesy, known as Chivalry.
- lady
- A woman who exercised power, whether over a manor, over vassals, or even over a realm.
- livery
- Badges and clothes provided by a lord for their followers.
- mark
- Money, worth thirteen shillings and four pence.
- moat
- A deep trench filled with water dug around a castle to impede an enemy's advance.
- nobleman
- A wealthy man who often lived in castles and were sometimes educated.
- oubliette
- Concealed dungeon having a trap door in its ceiling as its only opening, where prisoners were often left to starve to death.
- steward
- Man, responsible for running the day-to-day affairs of the manor or castle in absence of the lord.
- tankard
- A large drinking vessel that has one handle and a lid at the top. Tankards were often used to drink alcoholic beverages.
- vassal
- A free man who held a lord's land and to whom he paid homage and swore loyalty.