Any historians? (lazy researcher needs help!)

[SenoraPostrophe]

Can anyone point me to a really good, accurate and fairly succinct article online about life in the late middle ages (both of ordinary people and of kings and queens).

I'm thinking something like a good lesson plan for secondary school pupils or something.

It's for a short story, by the way - and I'm far too impatient to wait for amazon to deliver some books (and even then I have no idea of what to buy). I do have some stuff, but just need a few little details. Also the story is in Spain, so stuff about the Spanish middle ages would be preferable, but I think there are a lot of similarities between Spanish and British life in those times so British info will do (and I'll just add some olives or something )

[marthamoo]

Something like this? SP (I usually get paid for this kind of thing, btw )

[marthamoo]

Or this?

[edam]

are you talking reign of Phillip II or as far back as Ferdinand and Isabella? Didn't do much 'what was life like for Spanish peasants' at my school, sorry, just Kings, Queens and politics.

[SenoraPostrophe]

thanks mm - I did find the first link, but it just has instructions for making tunics and things. The second one is great.

edam - Ferdinnd and Isabella. I have loads on the politics already. I don't know why we translate their names into French though.

[Cam]

Wasn't the whole courtly thing in Europe all in French in those days or am I talking total tosh?

[edam]

oh, I'm no use to you then! Dunno re French either - possibly because it was still the language of the aristocracy and courts in this country?

[sadom]

try searching for "middle ages2 or medieval or whatever terms could be relevant by going to www.google.com

[SenoraPostrophe]

sadom - the problem with Google is that it brings up all sorts of rubbish along with the good stuff. That's why I asked for recommendations.

As far as I know the English Kings and Queens spoke French (as did the whole aristocracy) because they were all of French descent (1066 and all that). If anyone is interested that is the basis for one of the theories as to why English no longer has gender or very much inflection of verbs and adjectives: for hundreds of years only the peasants spoke English and peasants being peasants, none of them cared much about such things. That is also why all of the English words for animals are of germanic origin (cow, pig, sheep) but words for meat are from French (beef, pork, mutton). That is not true of Spanish. I can bore on for hours about this stuff.