Our Legal Heritage: King AEthelbert - King George III, 600 A.D. - 1776Reilly, S. A.
History
Our Legal Heritage: King AEthelbert - King George III, 600 A.D. - 1776
Reilly, S. A.
Law -- England -- History
The Norman man was clean shaven on his face and around his ears
and at the nape of the neck. His hair was short. He wore a long-
sleeved under-tunic of linen or wool that reached to his ankles. Over
this the Norman noble wore a tunic without sleeves, open at the sides,
and fastened with a belt. Over one shoulder was his cloak, which was
fastened on the opposite shoulder by being drawn through a ring brooch
and knotted. He wore tight thick cloth stockings to protect him from
the mud and leather shoes. Common men wore durable, but drab, wool
tunics to the knee so as not to impede them in their work. They could
roll up their stockings when working in the fields. A lady wore a
high-necked, long- sleeved linen or wool tunic fitted at the waist and
laced at the side, but full in the skirt, which reached to her toes.
She wore a jeweled belt, passed twice around her waist and knotted in
front. Her hair was often in two long braids, and her head and ears
covered with a white round cloth held in place by a metal circlet like
a small crown. Its ends were wound around her neck. In winter, she wore
over her tunic a cloak edged or lined with fur and fastened at the
front with a cord. Clothes of both men and ladies were brightly colored
by dyes or embroidery. The Norman knight wore an over-tunic of leather
or heavy linen on which were sewn flat rings of iron and a conical iron
helmet with nose cover. He wore a sword at his waist and a metal shield
on his back, or he wore his sword and his accompanying retainers
carried spear and shield.
Norman customs were adopted by the nation. As a whole,
Anglo-Saxon men shaved their beards and whiskers from their faces, but
they kept their custom of long hair flowing from their heads. But a few
kept their whiskers and beards in protest of the Normans. Everyone had
a permanent surname indicating parentage, place of birth, or residence,
such as Field, Pitt, Lane, Bridge, Ford, Stone, Burn, Church, Hill,
Brook, Green. Other names came from occupations such as Shepherd,
Carter, Parker, Fowler, Hunter, Forester, Smith. Still other came from
personal characteristics such as Black, Brown, and White, Short, Round,
and Long. Some took their names from animals such as Wolf, Fox, Lamb,
Bull, Hogg, Sparrow, Crow, and Swan. Others were called after the men
they served, such as King, Bishop, Abbot, Prior, Knight. A man's
surname was passed on to his son.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account