Church manners and intimate life of the Middle Ages

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

We are publishing a translation of a fascinating article by Canadian blogger, writer and teacher David Morton on various aspects of sexuality during the European Middle Ages …

The capacious word "fornication"

If it were not for the Christian Church of the Middle Ages, Sigmund Freud, perhaps, would have been left without work: we adopted many of the basic ideas about sex and morality from those dark times, when the vast majority of types of sex were characterized by the short but succinct word "fornication".

Fornication and fornication were sometimes punishable by death, excommunication and other anathemas. At the same time, the Church often condoned prostitution, realizing that it was evil, but in the conditions of life of people in such a rigid moral system, it is a necessary evil …

At the same time, as it usually happens, the most curious about the intimate side of life were the judges and punishers themselves - priests, monks and theologians. Although at the beginning of the Middle Ages, clergymen received the right to marry and have children, those of them who lived in monasteries did not feel any better.

Driven by curiosity and having the opportunity to observe social life from the outside, theologians left a lot of descriptions and testimonies, thanks to which we have a good idea of what sex was like in the Middle Ages.

Courtly love: you can look, but don't you dare touch

The Church forbade openly displaying sexual interest, but admitted that love and admiration might have something to do with sex.

Courtly love is usually understood as the relationship between a knight and a beautiful lady, and it is very desirable for a knight to be brave, and the object of his worship - inaccessible and / or innocent.

It was allowed to be married to someone else and be loyal, the main thing is not to show reciprocal feelings towards your knight in any case.

This idea made it possible to sublimate erotic impulses, turning stern warriors into quivering youths, writing poetry and songs about love for their Beautiful Lady in the respite between glorious campaigns. And when fighting, one should certainly devote feats and conquests to the Lady. There was no question of any sex, but … who hadn't thought about it?

Adultery: keep your pants buttoned up, sir

For those who were serious about the dictates of Christian morality, sex did not exist at all. Sexual intercourse was only permissible in marriage. Premarital or extramarital affairs were punished very cruelly, up to the death penalty, and the Church also often acted as a court and executioner.

But it was not only about Christian laws. Marital fidelity was the only sure way for men of noble birth to be sure that their children were really theirs.

There is a known case when the French king Philip, having caught his own daughters in connections with some of his vassals, sent two of them to the monastery, and killed the third. As for the guilty courtiers, they were executed by a brutal public execution.

In the villages, the situation was not so acute: sexual promiscuity was present everywhere. The church fought this by trying to force sinners to enter into legal marriages, and if people did so, granted forgiveness.

Sex positions: no variety

The church also dictated exactly how people should have sex. All positions except the "missionary" position were considered a sin and were prohibited.

Oral and anal sex and masturbation also fell under the strictest prohibition - these types of contacts did not lead to the birth of children, which, according to the purists, was the only reason for making love. Violators were punished severely: three years of repentance and service to the church for sex in any of the "deviant" positions.

However, some theologians of that time suggested evaluating sexual intercourse more gently, for example, to arrange the permissible postures in the following order (as the sinfulness increases): 1) missionary, 2) on the side, 3) sitting, 4) standing, 5) behind.

Only the first position was recognized as God-pleasing, the others were proposed to be considered “morally dubious,” but not sinful. Apparently, the reason for this mildness was that representatives of the nobility, often obese, were unable to have sex in the most sinless position, and the Church could not help but meet the sufferers halfway.

Homosexuality: Death Penalty Only

The Church's position on homosexuality was firm: under no pretext! Sodomy was characterized as "unnatural" and "godless" occupation and was punished in only one way: the death penalty.

In defining homosexuality, Peter Damian in his work "Gomorrah" listed the following ways to have sex: single masturbation, mutual masturbation, intercourse between the thighs and anal sex (the latter, by the way, was considered so unacceptable that many authors tried not to even mention it in their books) …

St. Thomas Aquinas expanded the list so that it included any form and type of sex except vaginal. He also classified lesbianism as sodomy.

In the 12-13th centuries it was customary for sodomites to be burned at the stake, hung, starved to death and tortured, of course, in order to "drive out the demon" and "atone for sin." However, there is evidence that some members of high society did practice homosexuality.

For example, about the English king Richard I, nicknamed "The Lionheart" for exceptional bravery and military skill, it was said that at the time of meeting his future wife he was in a sexual relationship with his brother.

Also, the king was caught in the fact that during his visits to France "ate from the same plate" with the French king Philip II, and at night "slept in the same bed and had passionate love with him."

Accusations of homosexuality also figured in one of the most notorious trials in Medieval Europe. We are talking, of course, about the famous trial of the Templars. The powerful order was destroyed by the French king Philip IV the Fair in just a few years 1307-1314.

The Holy See also joined the process. Among other things, the templars were accused of sodomy, which allegedly took place during their secret rituals. The rites of the Templars were really secret, and what happened there, we do not know and, most likely, we will never know.

It cannot be ruled out that among the Templars, contrary to numerous vows, they were also homosexuals. If only because the laws, as you know, exist in order to break them. And the powerful of this world often ignore their own decrees, not to mention their close relatives.

Suffice it to say that Edward II, the son of that same Edward I, who banned homosexuality in England, did not disdain sodomy, which was not only known to his entourage.

Fashion: Is this a codpiece or are you just really happy to see me?

One of the most popular men's fashion accessories in the Middle Ages was the codpiece - a flap or pouch that was attached to the front of the trousers to emphasize masculinity, focusing on the genitals.

The codpiece was usually stuffed with sawdust or cloth and fastened with buttons or braid. As a result, the man's crotch area looked very impressive.

The most fashionable footwear was considered to be boots with long and pointed toes, which were also supposed to hint at something no less long in the pants of their owner.

These garments can often be seen in the paintings of Dutch artists of the time. There is a portrait of Henry VIII, one of the main fashionistas of his era, depicted wearing both a codpiece and boots.

Of course, the Church did not recognize this "devilish fashion" and tried in every possible way to prevent its spread. However, its power did not extend to the king of the country and his closest courtiers.

Dildos: the size that matches the sinfulness of desire

There is some evidence that artificial penises were used extensively in the Middle Ages. In particular, the entries in the "books of repentance" - collections of punishments for various sins. These entries were something like this:

Dildos did not have any official name until the Renaissance, so they were named after objects that had an elongated shape. In particular, the word "dildo" comes from the name of an oblong loaf of dill bread: "dilldough".

Virginity and Chastity: Just Repent

The Middle Ages highly valued virginity, drawing a parallel between the chastity of a common woman and the Virgin Mary. Ideally, a girl should have cherished her innocence as the main wealth, but in practice it was rarely possible for anyone: morale was low, and men were rude and persistent (especially in the lower class).

Realizing how difficult it is for a woman to remain chaste in such a society, the Church has made it possible for repentance and forgiveness of sins not only for virginal girls, but even for those who have given birth to children.

Women who chose this path of "purification" were to repent of their sins, and then atone for them, joining the cult of the Mother of God - that is, devoting the rest of their days to life and service to the monastery.

By the way, many believe that in those days girls wore so-called "chastity belts", but in fact, these terrible devices were invented (and tried to be used) only in the 19th century.

Prostitution: Prosperity

Prostitution flourished in the Middle Ages. In large cities, prostitutes offered their services anonymously, without revealing their real names, and this was considered an honest and perfectly acceptable profession. It can be said that at that time the Church tacitly approved of prostitution, at least in no way tried to prevent it.

Oddly enough, commodity-money relations in sexual relations were regarded as a way to prevent adultery (!) And homosexuality, that is, as something that cannot be done without.

Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote: "If we forbid women to sell their bodies, lust will spill out into our cities and destroy society."

The most privileged prostitutes worked in brothels, less - offered their services on city streets, and in the villages there was often one prostitute for the whole village, and her name was well known to the inhabitants. However, there prostitutes were treated with contempt, they could be beaten, disfigured or even thrown into prison, accused of vagrancy and debauchery.

Contraception: do what you want

The church never approved of contraception, as it prevents the birth of children, but most of the efforts of the churchmen were aimed at combating "unnatural" sex and homosexuality, so people were left to their own devices in the matter of contraception. Contraception was viewed as a minor moral offense rather than a serious offense.

In addition to the most common method of protection through interruption of intercourse, people also used condoms from the intestines or bladders and bladders of animals. These condoms have been used many times.

Apparently, their function was not so much to protect against unwanted pregnancy as to prevent sexually transmitted diseases, in particular, syphilis widespread in Europe.

Also, women prepared decoctions and infusions of herbs, which were then placed in the vagina and, with varying degrees of effectiveness, played the role of spermicides.

Sexual dysfunctions

If a man, for some unknown reason, could not have sex, the Church sent "private detectives" to him - wise village women who examined his "household" and assessed his general health, trying to identify the cause of sexual impotence.

If the penis was deformed or there were other pathologies visible to the naked eye, the Church gave permission for divorce due to the husband's inability to procreate.

Many medieval European doctors were worshipers of Islamic medicine. Muslim doctors and pharmacists pioneered the problem of erectile dysfunction and developed drugs, therapy, and even a special diet for these patients.