From the looks of it, a medieval king spent more time with his subjects that a typical US congressman spends with his constituents -- rather, they tend to spend more time at dinner parties with lobbyists and donors. In fact, the only time I here from my congressional rep is when I get texts asking for more money.
The daily life of a medieval king
91–100 of 175 posts
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
Addendum: food security was assured, food choice was very restricted by modern standards. Remember the medieval period is pre-Colombian exchange, so no potatoes, no tomatoes, no peppers. Some spices, but a different range to what modern palates are used to. No refrigeration either, so you're limited to seasonal availability. In the winter that means you're eating a lot of root vegetables and bread, even if as king yo…
> No refrigeration either, so you're limited to seasonal availability. Well, except for food preserved via pickling, salting, drying, smoking, fermenting, sugaring, and confit. Which makes for quite a long list. Plus, various foods like grains, root vegetables, onions, and even apples could be stored for months using proper techniques. They didn't have the luxury we have of not paying much attention to how we store t…
Exactly. People today seem to forget why fermentation was discovered in the first place.
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#93Not specifically about kings but — I recommend The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer, for a very thorough look at daily life in this era.
More specifically about kings, ACoUP has a great writeup [0] on royal legitimacy and the various purposes of the king's court in the context of my favorite medieval shenanigans simulator, Crusader Kings III.
[0] https://acoup.blog/2022/02/18/miscellanea-thoughts-on-ckiii-...
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#94So he only did four hours of actual work per day.
much like members of the original affluent societies, hunter-gatherers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Original_affluent_society#The_... here is also a link to a video interview of Jeff Bezos explaining that he prioritizes sleep, because at his level, quality of decisions is more important than quantity of decisions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze0op3sJr2A
Read the critisim section. There is no reason to think hunter-gathers worked only 4 hours per week, unless you define work so narrowly that the majority of what they did doesn't count even though anyone who has done those tasks knows how much work they are.
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#95Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's nothing intolerable about pickled vegetables. I eat them all the time
Properly picked, as in preserved and can be stored ambient for extended periods, or "pickled" as sold in a supermarket where the small print says "keep refrigerated after opening"? I have been told there is a huge difference between the two.
Qualify it as three types.
There are the fermented pickles
There are the pickles that get mixed with prefermented preservative (usually vinegar/salt) and pressure-canned
And then there are the pickles that get flash cooked or not cooked, mixed with preservative, and refrigerated for a limited time
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#96So he only did four hours of actual work per day.
This was in the middle of the Hundred Years War, too.
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#97From the looks of it, a medieval king spent more time with his subjects that a typical US congressman spends with his constituents -- rather, they tend to spend more time at dinner parties with lobbyists and donors. In fact, the only time I here from my congressional rep is when I get texts asking for more money.
Medieval kings were a lot closer to mafia dons, in scope of government, role in government, and strength of position than any kind of politician we have in the western world today.
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#98The supplicants brings to mind the opening scene of The Godfather. I’m endlessly perplexed how a human with the same number of hours as me, can rule a kingdom, or run a modern country, or be CEO of a major company, meanwhile I’m working long hours every day and still get nothing accomplished.
How many secretaries, go-to people, etc. do you have?
75 years ago someone in my position would have had a secretary - she (sexism intended) would have covered about 4 others. My boss would have had a personal secretary. Today Outlook (or similar programs) do the majority of what she would have done and they do it better. I can book an airline ticket myself in the time it would take to explain what I really want to the secretary.
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#99So he only did four hours of actual work per day.
What is work? Those religious services were mandatory to set the image of him as a king. The discussion around the jewels was also mandatory - again setting an image. While he had the ability to skip any of those things, not doing them sets him up as an image of a bad king and soon he will be removed.
Re: The daily life of a medieval king
#100> His meal was not long, for he did not favour elaborate food, saying that such food bothered his stomach and disturbed his memory. He drank clear and simple wine, light in colour, well cut, and not much quantity nor great variety. Like David, to rejoice his spirits, he listened willingly at the end of his meal to stringed instruments playing the sweetest possible music. For me, the most curious thing here would be t…
I've made it a hobby to compare my current standards of living to "When would this be kingly?" We've traded down so much on quality of products (and sometimes: quality of life) but making a conscious decision to "live like a king" in a lot of cases isn't that hard.
Simplest example? Indoor plumbing: Boom, 15th century king.
Silly example? I got my wife seven silk pillow cases one year as a Christmas gift. A bit spendy, but instantly "living like a king".
We don't have "the royal kitchens", but do have Door-Dash. We took a tour of a castle somewhere in Canada (probably Craigdarroch) and they had a bunch of sitting rooms and reading nooks with extra lights and stuff... Steal Those Ideas! You too can live like a king, you just have to rewind a century or two, and be strategic about the luxuries you pick.