The Great Hall
| Eating Habits | Meals | Feasts | Structure and Decoration | Rest and Business |




The most important room in a castle was the great hall. This room housed most of the main ceremonies and feasting in the town. It was where the people who worked and lived in the castle ate. The room and the seating arrangements were in accordance with the medieval feudal structure: the lord and other important members raised up and at the front of the rooms, and the lower members of the fiefdom spread out farther and farther away from the main table. The lord and his guests sat on a dais at one end, from which he could look down upon his lesser subjects. Also, at the far end of the hall, was an open space for entertainers to perform. These entertainers were often wandering minstrels, poets, or an acrobat that could liven up the sometimes dreary atmosphere of the castle..


Eating Habits:

In the Middle Ages, forks did not exist, but everyone used their own knife, spoon, and their own square pewter trencher, along with wooden bowls and a drinking vessel. People generally shared bowls, cups, and plates. In some places, people ate off of hard pieces of brown bread called trenchers. Trenchers were rarely eaten, because of their bad taste. The lord would often have many elaborately decorated bowls and cups adorning his table, displaying his wealth to his subjects. The lord's table would each get their own bowl of food, but the people of lower rank would have to share with up to four other people. These halls often became crowded and quite smelly with all the people gathered together for prolonged periods of time.


Meals:

Eating was one of the main uses of a great hall. Grace was said before every meal as part of the daily prayer ritual. Additionally, servants washed more important people's hands before and after they ate. The first meal of the day was breakfast, occurring after Mass. It was usually composed of bread and wine. It wasn't very large. The main meal of the day was around ten or eleven o'clock. The food consisted of fresh game when it was available, caught by the lord's trappers or by the lord himself. These meats were usually coneys, geese, pigeons, or the occasional deer. There was no means of preserving meat, so it was always fresh. There were also more exotic spices and wines consumed. Of course, they also ate bread made locally. They also had most of the same fruits and vegetables as we do today. There was also generally another smaller meal in the evening. The food was prepared in the kitchen, which was kept separate from the great hall to prevent any sort of fire that might occur in the kitchen from spreading into the great hall quickly. There was, however, a large hallway connecting the two rooms, to make sure that the food arrived promptly and hot for the hungry visitors.


Feasts:

Feasts occurred for special occasions, such as a wedding, a noble's christening, saints' holidays, and Christmas. There was also a large town feast to celebrate the harvest each year. The feast was a major celebration for the town and all around. It usually lasted for up to four hours, and the meal contained four to five courses. The main course would include salted beef; fresh fish; a variety of fowl; and tough, chewy pork. The meats were made to taste more interesting ( and hide the tastes of rotting) with expensive imported spices. Salt was also a favorite spice, and important nobles and guests were always seated nearest the elaborate saltcellars at the tables. Honey was used from the castles' beehives to sweeten the foods. The lord of the castle and his guests drank milk; wine; mead, which was a kind of beer. Water had to be boiled before drinking, so most people preferred wine.


Structure and Decoration:

The great hall was the largest building of the inner ward. It was often half the length of the wall it was built into. The great hall was often nestled back into a corner of the inner ward. In this way two walls of the great hall could actually be parts of the inner ward wall. This saved time and building space. The great hall was usually the tallest structure in the inner ward, except for the massive towers. Its high, pointed roof was supported by a series of parallel wooden arches. These arches were in turn held up by corbels. These were stone outcroppings built into the wall that the wooden arch could sit on. These sides of the hall usually had many stained glass windows to let in light. Also, along the sides there were three or four fireplaces to heat up the room. Tapestries were also hung on the walls to help keep in warmth. There were also two or three doors in the hall, one usually leading to the kitchen.


Rest and Business:

The great hall was also the main sleeping area before approximately 1200. Local knights would often sleep on tables, and servants would sleep on the floor. Sometimes, the tables were made to come apart. If so, they were taken apart and straw mattresses called palliasses were brought in. The people slept on those. The lord usually had his own room with a bed, however. Later, after about 1200, separate servant and guest quarters were built in other buildings.

Business matters were also primarily worked on in the great hall. The lord managed his large lands from here. He heard petitions from people in need. He settled punishments, and meted out fines. He also levied taxes and checked to make sure they were properly paid. He made laws and other decisions from the great hall.





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