Inclosure Act
This Act was actually a series of Acts passed by the British Parliament that enabled landowners to enclose open fields and common lands as their own, and decide for themselves what kind of agriculture should be worked on them. The Act eventually led to the Agricultural Revolution which enabled savvy landlords to increase the number of crops that were grown using a seasonal rotation system.
Feudal System
A selection of customs that defined the way a village or small town worked in Medieval England
Pastoral
related to the grazing of sheep
Pagan
Pagan beliefs in this context are the beliefs that were held before the introduction of Christianity
Quill
the feather/quill pen that was used for writing and for drawing out maps in the Middle Ages
Pillories
Device made of wood with a framework erected on a post, designed to trap a person by head and hands. It was often used as a whipping post and would be erected in a public square of gathering point so that the punishment could be seen by everyone.
Stocks
Wooden restraining frame used for public punishment and humiliation in Medieval times
Gleaning
gathering crops
Fairy Cap Mushrooms
Hallucinogenic mushrooms growing on the damp floor or a forest or marshy area
Beldam
Another name for a witch
Idyll
Happy and picturesque
Shepherding
Guiding and guarding sheep when in an agricultural area or common land
Ruffian
Violent person probably involved in crime
Shawl
A piece of fabric worn by a woman over the head and around the shoulders
Manor House
The main residence of the Lord of the Manor. It was the administrative center of each landowner's operations and would also be the venue for entertaining and political posturing.
Razed
Burned down
Attic
The very top floor of a house beneath a pitched roof
Ale
Traditionally, each village would brew its own ale, a beer-like brew with a very high alcohol content.
