-
Random History
- The Good Wife
- Mycenae, 1400-1100 B.C. | The First Civilizations
- Leo III to Basil I, 717-867 | Byzantium and Islam
- Greek Art | The Greeks
- Authoritarianism in The Soviet Union | Between The World Wars
- Frederick Barbarossa and Henry VI, 1152-1192 | Church and Society in the Medieval West
- Apostles of Violence and Nonviolence | The Industrial Society
- Industry | The Renaissance
- The Slave Trade
- Is There a Grand Design in History?
-
Recent Comments
- Scozyjof-online on Le Grand Monarque
- Agnes on Nobles and Serfs, 1730-1762 | The Enlightenment
- Rolanda on Nobles and Serfs, 1730-1762 | The Enlightenment
- Denali on Twentieth Century Thought and Letters
- LOL on A Second Step: German Rearmament, 1935-1936 | The Second World War
- Bree on France After World War One | The Democracies
- Chumani on Music | The Renaissance
- Finn on Dazzling the Barbarian
- Suki on Conflict in Asia, 1953-1970 | The Second World War
- Marmara on Oliver Cromwell
Tags
Between The World Wars Byzantium and Islam Church and Society in the Medieval West European Exploration and Expansion Judaism and Christianity Modern Empires and Imperialism Romanticism, Reaction, and Revolution The Beginnings of the Secular State The Democracies The Early Middle Ages in Western Europe The Enlightenment The First Civilizations The First World War The French Revolution The Great Powers in Conflict The Greeks The Industrial Society The Late Middle Ages in Eastern Europe The Late Twentieth Century The Modernization of Nations The Non-Western World The Old Regimes The Problem of Divine-Right Monarchy The Protestant Reformation The Renaissance The Rise of the Nation The Romans The Russian Revolution of 1917 The Second World War The Written Record Twentieth-Century Thought and LettersPages
Women of the Gentle Class
Robert of Blois, a thirteenth-century poet, wrote of the correct behavior for women “of the gentle class”.
En route to church or elsewhere, a lady must walk straight and not trot or run, or idle either. She must salute even the poor.
She must let no one touch her on the breast except her husband. For that reason, she must not let anyone put a pin or a brooch on her bosom.
No one should kiss her on the mouth except her husband. If she disobeys this injunction, neither loyalty, faith nor noble birth will avert the consequences.
Women are criticized for the way they look at people, like a sparrowhawk ready to pounce on a swallow. Take care: glances are messengers of love; men are prompt to deceive themselves by them…
A lady does not accept gifts. For gifts which are given you in secret cost dear; one buys them with ones honor. There are, however, honest gifts which it is proper to thank people for.
Above all, a lady does not scold. Anger and high words are enough to distinguish a low woman from a lady. The man who injures you shames himself and not you; if it is a woman who scolds you, you will break her heart by refusing to answer her.
Women must not swear, drink too much or eat too much…
Ladies with pale complexions should dine early. Good wine colors the face. If your breath is bad, hold it in church when you receive the blessing…
Cut your fingernails frequently, down to the quick, for cleanliness’ sake. Cleanliness is better than beauty.