»Peasantry
»Knights
»Merchants
»Clergy
»Nobility
«Home
Clothing of the Peasantry:
» Men wore stockings or tunics
» Women wore long gowns with sleeveless tunics.
» Women covered their hair with wimples.
- Wimples are veils of silk that reached under the chin.
» Men and Women wore sheepskin cloaks, woolen hats, and woolen mittens to protect them from the cold Medieval winters.
» Men and Women wore leather boots with patens to keep their feet dry.
» Peasants rarely washed their outer clothes.
» However, they often washed their linen underwear.
» Peasants used the smell of wood smoke as a kind of deodorant.
» Peasant women made their own clothing with a spinning wheel.
Clothing of the Knight:
» Knights wore very simple clothing.
» Also had Armor for battles
- Chainmail, formed from linked metal
- Leather, which was made strong enough to protect against bladed weapons through the process of boiling in water and drying.
- Plate Armor, formed of steel plates and tended to be very bulky and heavy.
- Scalemail, consisted of small metal peices sewn together, like a fish's scales.
- Gauntlet, made from many kinds of materials worn over both hands to protect them.
- Other pieces made from metal and leather were worn around the arms and legs to give equal protection.
Clothing of the Merchants:
» Merchants wore gowns of fine wool that was pleated and belted; These gowns hung in neat folds just above the ankle. Their gowns were trimmed with ermine.
- The Ermine is a carnivorous weasel of the class Mammalia. It has a short tail and is an excellent hunter of mice.
» Merchants also wore open-toed sandals.
Clothing of the Clergy:
» Members of the clergy wore long woolen habits, which derived from Roman clothing.
» The order that the clergy members belonged to could be determined by their clothing;
- Benedictines wore black robes.
- Cistercians wore wool that was not dyed, or white.
Clothing of the Nobility:
» Nobles wore fur within the lining of their clothing.
» Sometimes, nobles wore clothing trimmed with silver.
» The clothing of the nobility tended to be more elaborate than the clothing of the peasantry.
» Noblemen wore hose and a jacket with pleating or skirting, or a tunic with a ‘Surcoat’ towards the end of the Middle Ages.
- Surcoat, consisted of cloth, worn around armor to protect from rust.
» Noblewomen wore elaborate gowns with elaborate headdresses that were shaped like hearts and butterflies.