98
votes
Accepted
What drugs were used in England during the High Middle Ages?
English meadows and forests are and were full of psychoactive substances.
They were used.
Quite creatively.
Partially isolated, on their own. But also in what psychiatrists call polytoxicomania. In ...
- 80.8k
96
votes
Accepted
How much smaller were medieval farm animals in England than today?
I think both sources copied Early European History by Hutton Webster, published about a century ago. The underlying claim is true: Medieval animals were much smaller than today's. However, it is ...
- 97.6k
80
votes
Accepted
Was England called England in the days of King Arthur?
No, England would not have been called "England" in the early post-Roman period.
The name "England" derives from the Old English name Englaland, which means "Land of the Angles". The earliest ...
- 77.2k
75
votes
How did the general population of England convert so smoothly to Protestantism?
Well, it wasn't smooth.
First of all, there was already a minority of "reform" viewpoint in England before Henry VIII. It was centered in the intelligentsia and gentry.
So when Henry VIII decided ...
- 8,172
63
votes
What was the point of horse armour?
I would contend that we tend to overestimate the effectiveness of bows vs armour, and that the armour would likely prevent at least some percentage of the damage to the mount.
If we look at the wiki ...
- 41.4k
48
votes
Accepted
What did people in 13th century England know about Greek mythology?
Quite a bit, actually. Graeco-Roman mythology was a significant part of the education curriculum. Much of the educated elite would have been broadly familiar with ancient Greek mythologies through its ...
- 97.6k
47
votes
Accepted
Why did life expectancy decline sharply in 16th century England?
This was primarily due to the 1557 influenza pandemic, which returned in 1558 and perhaps lingered for another year or two. This was a global pandemic and other areas of Europe were also severely hit. ...
- 108k
46
votes
How much would 300 pounds (money value) weigh in Medieval England?
In that era, 300 pounds weighed 300 pounds, but it's a different pound.
Your example of Robin Hood fixes the time period during the reign of King Richard about 1175, though we must remember this is a ...
- 56k
45
votes
Accepted
‘Avoid sleeping on your back’ & ‘breathe in toilet smells’ were seen as precautions against the Black Death. Why did doctors think these would work?
This cannot be answered comprehensively here. But a few key points might be revealed. The precautions mentioned in the question are by far not the only ones that were given, just mere examples.
At ...
- 80.8k
45
votes
Accepted
Why did early attempts to transport milk to London by rail meet with 'much criticism'?
The Agrarian History of England and Wales
E. J. T. Collins, Joan Thirsk
Cambridge University Press, 2000
page 993:
Retailers complained that railway milk was not as fresh as town milk,
and a ...
- 446
43
votes
Accepted
Why is Lady Jane Grey called Lady instead of Queen?
The claim that she was queen was based on the assertion that Mary and Elizabeth were disinherited, and in particular (from Edward's will) that
the said ladie Mary and ladie Elizabeth, beinge ...
- 2,089
41
votes
How did the general population of England convert so smoothly to Protestantism?
Not only was it not totally smooth, but it also wasn't much of a change. At least not on personal human timeframes.
You have to realize that the break in England didn't happen because anybody had any ...
- 122k
40
votes
Accepted
What is the silver object on the desk and what is 'Elizabeth I' doing with it?
It's a pounce pot, being used to dry the wet ink without having to blot it.
As noted here, the pounce itself could be made from any of powdered gum sandarac; crushed pumice (origin of pounce I ...
- 72.5k
39
votes
What were sandbags used for in medieval duels?
The sandbag is from a quintain, a "jousting dummy" if you will:
On Offham green there stands a Quintain, a thing now rarely to be met with, being a machine much used in former times by youth, as ...
- 72.5k
33
votes
Was England called England in the days of King Arthur?
As Wikipedia notes, "King Arthur is a legendary British leader who, according to medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the late 5th and early 6th ...
- 3,177
31
votes
Accepted
Does a year 1900 meeting in a Masonic Hall imply that it was a meeting of Freemasons?
No, there's no reason to infer (from the information given) that the meeting was Masonic. In fact, from the phrasing "a large an [sic] influential meeting", I would infer the opposite.
The ...
- 72.5k
30
votes
What did people in 13th century England know about Greek mythology?
The Nun's Priest's Tale from Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales:
Lo heere Andromacha, Ectores wyf,
That day that Ector sholde lese his lyf,
She dremed on the same nyght biforn […]
He wente for to ...
- 525
29
votes
Accepted
What is a "staved" town, like in "Staverton"?
Folk etymology is of little use here. And one Staverton is not necessarily of the same origin of another Staverton. So 'a staved town' is not really 'a staved town'. One Staverton may share its ...
- 80.8k
29
votes
Why didn't pre-Norman English kings build stone town walls?
They did.
The Anglo-Saxons still used fortified areas and cities or towns, re-used old ones and build them anew.
It just takes a bit of time, effort and money to develop those walls and fortifications,...
- 80.8k
28
votes
Has it been common for Lords to only address the House twice in their entire career?
It is fairly standard for a Lord to address their House infrequently. Lords are often appointed based on a narrow specialization, or as a reward, and as such a full one eighth of their number rarely ...
- 14.1k
27
votes
What (else) happened July 1st 1858 in London?
The first place that I would search is the British Newspaper Archive. Note that this site requires a subscription to actually view the newspapers, although it is free to search.
If you have a ...
- 77.2k
26
votes
Are there any medieval manuals relating to castle building?
You might be interested in Guedelon Castle, which is a project to rebuild a 13th Century castle from scratch using original methods. It's not exactly a manual, but it's probably as close as you are ...
- 1,447
25
votes
How much smaller were medieval farm animals in England than today?
There is some research on the medieval cattle topic here which lists many cattle sizes throughout the history of cattle usage. This shows the following figures for medieval times (numbers are the ...
- 41.4k
25
votes
How did succession in Anglo Saxon England work?
There is a lot that we do not fully understand about the details of the succession in Anglo Saxon England. Indeed, it seems quite likely that the role of the council ('witena ġemōt', or 'Witan', if ...
- 77.2k
25
votes
Was the name 'Valerie' used during the Regency Era (1811-1836)?
The names Valeria and Valerie were not in common use in Britain during the Georgian era, but they were certainly known by some via Saint Valerie of Limoges and also because Valerie (in particular) was ...
- 108k
24
votes
Accepted
Hiring professionals to transcribe historical documents
The short answer is yes.
The detail will depend on where in the world you are based. In the UK, for example, we have the Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives. Their website ...
- 77.2k
23
votes
Was Mary Stuart's execution not accompanied by attainder?
Three points:
Mary was not the subject of a Bill of Attainder. She was convicted of treason by a jury of English noblemen.
The rules about succession rules were still vague in 1600. Succession was ...
- 8,172
22
votes
Accepted
What is a "Johnsonian world of clubs and coffee houses" in the context of 18th century England?
Yes it's Samuel Johnson. There is an idealized view that 18th century London coffee-houses were full of great men exchanging dazzling repartee on the popular matters of the day. These meetings led to ...
- 871
21
votes
What was the point of horse armour?
Knights didn't just face longbows. There were also swords, pikes, maces etc. on the battlefield and good plate armor also protected against firearms. Two knights fighting on the battlefield - they're ...
- 400
21
votes
Accepted
What is the "impious service" of the Anglican church?
The reference is to the Book of Common Prayer, the standard Anglican liturgical book. It was a locus of many doctrinal squabbles over church teachings and practices. The edition in use in Macaulay's ...
- 1,978
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible