Over the past few weeks we’ve started work on an EPIC Medieval City! Its looking really amazing and we’d like to invite everyone to come and contribute there!

What is a Medieval City!?

Medieval times (or the Middle Ages) is a period of history from the 5th to the 15th Centuries in Europe. It was a time of Kings and Queens, Castles, Knights, Nobles and Peasants.

Medieval Cities and Towns were usually quite small compared to the cities of today, and were usually built around a castle or large manor house (estates). Towns were very dirty places, with no sewage systems or garbage services to collect waste. Many people threw their rubbish into the streets, and rats and other vermin were common.

The Life of the Peasants during Medieval times was very hard. They lived in small, often dark and cold houses and they were basically owned by their masters (the kings and queens, lords and ladies). They were expected to work in farms to plough the fields, harvest food, and take care of animals, or worked in the castles and manors as servants.

 

Find Out More

You can find out more about medieval buildings and culture by checking out the following links

• Castles of the Middle Ages
• Famous People in Medieval Times
• Food and Drink in Medieval England
• Medieval Cathedrals
• Medieval Clothing
• Medieval Farming
• Medieval Foods and Feasts
• Medieval Homes
• Medieval Knights
• Medieval Life . Net
• Medieval Towns
• Middle Ages – Food
• Life in a Medieval Castle
• Life of the Nobility – Kings, Lords, Ladies, Knights 
• The Middle Ages on Wikipedia
• The Peasant Life

 

Check out some of the builds that have been added so far!

Medieval Castles

Castles were built as homes and fortresses for the Kings, Queens and Noble people in medieval times. They were also used as fortresses during times of war and had high walls of stone to protect the inhabitants.

Henzeek the King in the Castle Throne Room.

 

Medieval Churches

Medieval churches provided spiritual guidance and a place were people could get an education. Stained glass windows were used to educate the people and told bible stories or tales about the lives of the saints.

Almost all the churches that were built during the Middle Ages were made of stone and were usually the most grand buildings in medieval towns and villages. They were used as a place for prayer, and were also often used for important meetings as most towns had no town hall.

DrB’s Epic Medieval Church.

 

Medieval Houses

Most peasants homes in medieval times were cold, damp, and dark, and had few windows, as glass was very expensive. Peasant families often worked, ate, slept, and spent time together in very small quarters, rarely more than one or two rooms. They were usually made of wood and contained an open fire for warmth and cooking.

Houses of the rich were sometimes made out of brick. However, brick was very expensive so many chose to make part of their homes out of wood. These are often referred to as Tudor houses. They had two or more floors and the servants slept upstairs.

Land was very expensive within towns and cities, and taxes were paid based on the size of the ground floor. For this reason, houses were often built on very small plots of land, with the upper stories built larger than the ground floor to allow for more space.

Whinne’s Medieval House.

 

The Pillory

A Pillory was a form of punishment usually given to peasants (and Creepers!) and involved locking their arms and head in a wooden frame so they could be held in a public place like the town square, where they were ridiculed and shown as an example to other members of the community. Not a very nice punishment, I think you’ll agree!

Borderman’s Medieval Pillory in the town square.

 

Add Your Own Building!

After you have learnt a little bit more about the Middle Ages, you can join in on our project by teleporting to the Medieval City and adding a house or other building there. The warp is /warp medievalcity. 

 

Medieval City Builder’s Award

Take a picture of your Medieval building and publish it in the Massively Image Galleries with some notes on what you have built and why to earn the Medieval City Builder’s Award!