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Author
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Topic: Early 15th Century Household Organization
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Adhemar
Member
Member # 274
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posted 04-01-2002 11:59 AM
    
I'm looking for references on how a early 15th century nobleman's household would have been organised. What sort of officers, what were their duties, that sort of thing. I've got several books on English households, but I've yet to see anything specific to the French.I'm looking specifically for fairly minor level nobility (around a Baron's level) and in the 1400 time frame, but just about anything would be a help... Thanks! Morgan -------------------- Ta Adhemar Imagination was given to man to
compensate him for what he is not;
a sense of humor to console him
for what he is.
Registered: Jan 2002 | IP: Logged
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Anne-Marie
Member
Member # 8
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posted 04-02-2002 10:18 AM
hello from Anne-Marieon the organization of the 15th century household, check out the following sources... 1. Chiquart. He was the cook for the Duke of Savoy in mid 1400s, and described in great detail the structure of the kitchens, down to the names of all the help and their job titles. 2. le Menagier a Paris. A minor knight in Paris in the late 1300s, he wrote a household management book for his young wife which clearly describes all the staff and what their jobs are to be. 3. Christopher Dyers "Standards of Living in the Later MIddle Ages". talks lots about social structures, pay scales, etc. A great scholarly work, and highly recommended. rather Anglocentric, but thats what you get when its in English  . 4. The Paston letters. Albeit English, a collection of letters encompassing most of the 15th c, you can glean all kinds of tidbits from how servants address their masters, how masters felt about servants, etc etc etc. hope this helps!
--AM -------------------- "Let Good Come of It"
Registered: May 2000 | IP: Logged
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NEIL G
Member
Member # 187
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posted 04-02-2002 11:40 AM
If we're going to talk about english sources, I'd recommend CM Woolgar - The great household in the middle ages.Covers changes 1250-1450, and most matters you'd want to know, but (surprise!) completely anglocentric. (you mean other countries have history, too? Cool!) Neil
Registered: Jun 2001 | IP: Logged
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Adhemar
Member
Member # 274
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posted 04-02-2002 12:37 PM
quote:
Chiquart. He was the cook for the Duke of Savoy in mid 1400s
Hmmmm. That sounds *very* promising. I hadn't heard of him before. Bonus points if there are recipies... :-) Alas, I cannot seem to find a copy available. I'll have to try the library... quote:
le Menagier a Paris. A minor knight in Paris in the late 1300s
That looks good too. I have a copy of that coming, apparently on a *very* slow boat from Australia... quote:
Christopher Dyer "Standards of Living in the Later Middle Ages".
Just ordered a copy of that, actually. It looked a bit anglocentric, as you say, but that's not *inherently* a bad thing... :-) quote:
The Paston letters.
These I've read, yes. They were actually in part responsible for the start of this current search, actually... :-) quote:
hope this helps!
Indeed it does, and thank you very much...! Ta Morgan -------------------- Ta Adhemar Imagination was given to man to
compensate him for what he is not;
a sense of humor to console him
for what he is.
Registered: Jan 2002 | IP: Logged
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Anne-Marie
Member
Member # 8
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posted 04-03-2002 01:16 AM
You can get Terrence Scully's translation of Chiquarts cookbook (ISBN: 0820403520 ) from used booksellers. I believe its out of print.theres a bunch of recipes but the really cool part is the other stuff in there. Menus, shopping lists, kitchen organization, etc. Chiquart was amazingly pendantic, so its not a light read, but its good stuff none the less . bonne chance!
--AM
ps re: Paston letters...go for the unabridged direct translations (mine was a cheap paperback) rather than the chatty versions. Dont let somoen else decide what's important for you! -------------------- "Let Good Come of It"
Registered: May 2000 | IP: Logged
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