Just write me or leave a comment
All the best - The Medieval Bride
Welcome to a blog about weddings and history. I am writing it as I plan my own medieval wedding and here you will find inspirations, do-it-yourself stuff and links from the period 1050-1536 A.D. Enjoy!
Thursday, 14 April 2011
A question to all future and past medieval brides
I would like to hear from anyone getting married like me in medieval times. If you would share pictures and your story with me it could be a great help to anyone who feels stuck in their planning or needs to be inspired. Besides I would love to hear from people with the same interest who might contribute with something new :)
Just write me or leave a comment
All the best - The Medieval Bride
Just write me or leave a comment
All the best - The Medieval Bride
Sunday, 10 April 2011
The rings
The rings are very important to any bride and groom, and if you like the looks of the medieval rings found by archaeologists and amateurs then it's another opportunity to add another very authentic touch to the wedding.
You can never go wrong with the simplest choice of a plain ring of gold or silver. It's a classic no matter the time period and you can always make an inscription on the inside to make it special. This was common in the renaissance like this one:
Early in the middle ages gold rings were ONLY for the top of the elite.
A very common ring in the Medieval was the stirrup ring - named so because it looked like the stirrups used when riding. They're simple and elegant and with a single or no stone. Found from 1200 and throughout the rest of the Middle Ages.
There's also rings with floral print (12-1400) like this:
The last type of rings I shall mention are the Gothic Tard Mold rings (12 and 1300)- a precious stone is placed on a plate on the ring as such:
I had to show you these last two, which are rare, but I think they are very romantic and beautiful:
I hope you find fantastic rings yourself, but remember: You will be wearing them all your life, so choose with your heart and not on the basis of your theme!
You can never go wrong with the simplest choice of a plain ring of gold or silver. It's a classic no matter the time period and you can always make an inscription on the inside to make it special. This was common in the renaissance like this one:
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| 17th Century, gold poetry ring Reads: A loving wife prolongeth life Link |
A very common ring in the Medieval was the stirrup ring - named so because it looked like the stirrups used when riding. They're simple and elegant and with a single or no stone. Found from 1200 and throughout the rest of the Middle Ages.
There's also rings with floral print (12-1400) like this:
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| Link |
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| Link |
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| 17th Century |
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| 11th Century - presumably |
Medieval contemporary wedding art 1300
I thought you might like to see a couple of pictures from the middle ages featuring a wedding. This can be helpful to get an idea of the clothing, and just how weddings were protrayed at the time. :)
This is a beautiful and festive illustration from a medieval manuscript. There are musicians, and maybe the bride's father/ a priest. The groom is placing a golden ring on her finger and the ladies and men have gathered to celebrate the couple. Notice the very strong colors of the clothes, the bridal crown and the bride's dress. Although it isn't a white dress, she still stands out.
I've got more of these but they are from a later century, so you will get those in another entry :)
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| By: Nicolo da Bologna 'The Marriage' 1350's |
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| Here a detail from the manuscript, a small picture named "The Kiss". |
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From Italiy or France in 1320, From a manuskript comissioned by Kardinal Jacopo Stefaneschi. The blessing of the couple's union. |
Crazy wedding bouquet throw
Of course I read a lot of blogs about non-medieval-weddings too :) And one of the really great ones is GreenWeddingShoes. While looking through some of the real weddings I came across Katie and Cameron's Camp Wedding. They were very inventive but the thing that caught my eye was the way the bride through the wedding bouquet. All the singles got a little flag that they were to plant where they thought the bouquet would land on the grass. Then the couple put the bouquet in a big medieval trebuchet and sent it off flying!
I loved the idea so much I had to mention it here, hopefully no one will resent me for showing a picture form their story. (You can read it all on GreenWeddingshoes/Katie+Cameron).
I am hoping that maybe my brother in law will make me a mini version of a trebuchet to use for our wedding, or we could consider paying a little extra to use the huge trebuchets they have made where we are getting married :P
I loved the idea so much I had to mention it here, hopefully no one will resent me for showing a picture form their story. (You can read it all on GreenWeddingshoes/Katie+Cameron).
Saturday, 9 April 2011
Our location - the Medieval Centre on Nykoebing Falster
We are so fortunate to have found a truly perfect location for the party and the ceremony. It is a medieval restaurant that is a part of a reconstructed medieval town in Denmark. The place is a museum during the day where kids and adults can see knight's tournaments or fire the catapults and see how the everyday life was in the 13th century.
The restaurant itself serves only food from the era and they are very attentive to the authentic details. There are no electric lights in the rooms. They are entirely lit up by candlelight. The staff is dressed in historic clothing and all guests will eat with only a spoon and a knife, because forks weren't in use just yet.
The rooms look like a small medieval inn with wooden interior and have some beautiful paintings on the walls. The restaurant is called the Golden Swann and is the home of the local knight sir Henrik Svane.
I hope to find similar places all over the world and recommend them to you. :)
In the end I just wanted to show you some pictures from their website: http://middelaldercentret.dk/Engelsk/welcome.html
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| The high table at the end of the room in the Golden Swann |
The restaurant itself serves only food from the era and they are very attentive to the authentic details. There are no electric lights in the rooms. They are entirely lit up by candlelight. The staff is dressed in historic clothing and all guests will eat with only a spoon and a knife, because forks weren't in use just yet.
The rooms look like a small medieval inn with wooden interior and have some beautiful paintings on the walls. The restaurant is called the Golden Swann and is the home of the local knight sir Henrik Svane.
I hope to find similar places all over the world and recommend them to you. :)
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| The tournament field |
Thursday, 7 April 2011
Future entries
This is mostly a brain storm to myself but also to you, so you can see what I will be taking on in the next couple of months. I wanted to make a list of possible themes for the entries and decided to share them with you. Hopefully you are full of ideas as well and you are most welcome to make a comment if there is something you would like me to write about.
1. Clothing: The men, the women, the children, the wedding gown, shoes, Characters (knight, hunter, peasent, king,) the groom, every day clothing, purses, fabric, headdresses, capes,
2. Jewelery: The wedding rings, the bridal jewelery, the belt, crowns,
3. Weapons: Swords, armor, shield,
4. Decorations: Flowers, tables, tableware, chanderliers, banners, other nifty tricks, Making a totelly modern location into a medieval dream.
5. Food: A menu, wedding cake, beverages, dessert, table manners, Coloured glases,
6. Music: Instruments, what kind of band would fit well, dancing in the middle ages.
7. The Ceremony: The words, handfasting, jumping the broom,
8. Invitation and so on: Guestbook,
9. Reviews of: stores, bands, locations, entertainment.
10. Real Brides: hopefully a lot of stories from people who have tried this themselves.
11. DIY guides to all that is medieval.
2. Jewelery: The wedding rings, the bridal jewelery, the belt, crowns,
3. Weapons: Swords, armor, shield,
4. Decorations: Flowers, tables, tableware, chanderliers, banners, other nifty tricks, Making a totelly modern location into a medieval dream.
5. Food: A menu, wedding cake, beverages, dessert, table manners, Coloured glases,
6. Music: Instruments, what kind of band would fit well, dancing in the middle ages.
7. The Ceremony: The words, handfasting, jumping the broom,
8. Invitation and so on: Guestbook,
9. Reviews of: stores, bands, locations, entertainment.
10. Real Brides: hopefully a lot of stories from people who have tried this themselves.
11. DIY guides to all that is medieval.
The medieval bride
A lot of today's traditions regarding the bride can be traced back to medieval times, and even further.
The dress wasn't necessarily made for the occasion. Often the less rich girls just wore their finest garments. White was not the usual color for the gown, instead the fabric was bright and colorful. Red and blue were amongst the finer colors and later black also became a sign of wealth. Some dresses were made of silk, while others were less refined.
On her wedding day the bride was allowed to let down her hair and flowers were braided into it. If your family was rich you would also wear the bridal crown. After the ceremony the bride should cover her hair with a hat or fabric because it was considered to be indecent for a married woman to have loose hair.
Many brides were younger than their husbands - so my boyfriend and I will fit right in :) - Women of noble birth were often the only ones to turn 20 before their wedding.
The bride herself was normally considered to be a part of a bargain and marriage was a way to establish your social position. The tradition of the father giving away the bride was a very literal thing in the middle ages. He decided who he wanted to give her to, and it was the father who paid for the wedding. At the ceremony he also had to answer on her behalf.
When she received her new title as a wife her new husband would give her, the key to the house and the chests, along with a knife as a sign of her status.
The dress wasn't necessarily made for the occasion. Often the less rich girls just wore their finest garments. White was not the usual color for the gown, instead the fabric was bright and colorful. Red and blue were amongst the finer colors and later black also became a sign of wealth. Some dresses were made of silk, while others were less refined.
On her wedding day the bride was allowed to let down her hair and flowers were braided into it. If your family was rich you would also wear the bridal crown. After the ceremony the bride should cover her hair with a hat or fabric because it was considered to be indecent for a married woman to have loose hair.
Many brides were younger than their husbands - so my boyfriend and I will fit right in :) - Women of noble birth were often the only ones to turn 20 before their wedding.
The bride herself was normally considered to be a part of a bargain and marriage was a way to establish your social position. The tradition of the father giving away the bride was a very literal thing in the middle ages. He decided who he wanted to give her to, and it was the father who paid for the wedding. At the ceremony he also had to answer on her behalf.
When she received her new title as a wife her new husband would give her, the key to the house and the chests, along with a knife as a sign of her status.
The garter was already a part of the equipment and if any of the unmarried men got a hold of it they would give it to their own sweet hearts as a sign of fidelity.
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