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Some people may have thought that Medieval European clothing wasn’t that exciting and was all boring poofy dresses, but it’s not. It’s so much more than that! But first let me teach you a little bit about the culture. The word medieval comes from the meaning, “of or relating to the Middle Ages.” This is because Medieval European times was in the Middle Ages! Funny how that works. Medieval Europe was in an area that spread all the way from present day Portugal to China. It was huge! This means that they had many bordering bodies of water and countries, including the North Sea to the north, Atlantic Ocean to the west, Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Russia to the east. Also, it was like this for a long time because the Medieval European culture lasted from the 11th century to 15th century, which is a pretty long time. Medieval Europe left us with many legacies, including universities, romantic love, and illustrated books.

Medieval European culture was a very unique culture with many unique things, but I am focusing on one thing: their dress and decoration. Dress and decoration is one of the things that makes the Medieval European culture special. There are many different things in dress and decoration. Men, women, and kids all have different styles. I love their ideas on how different their style was. It is just so different!

Let’s focus on one thing at a time. I think I’ll start with men. A typical outfit for men would be a short tunic with a belt, and visible trousers and leggings. As the years went on, mens clothing also got shorter and shorter. Men also wore long, pointed shoes. The longer the points, the higher the status. Burgundian styles influenced the fashion of men with their tight short clothes and pointed shoes. Mens fashion was very different than it is today.

Alright let’s move on to women. I personally like women’s clothes the best because we all know how women love their clothes. The women would have a very special sense of style that was exotic. The early Medieval period featured a simple, long, wide gown decorated with embroidery at the edges or borders. Women also wore headdresses that were also long and pointed. It was also fashionable to wear the high double horn head dresses. Womens clothes were so interesting.

We aren’t done with the ladies yet though. Ladies also introduced some cleanness and fine clothes to their lords. They chose vivid colors for them, such as blue, green, and violet. All of the colors meant something. Blue was a symbol of fidelity. Green and violet were symbols of happiness and love. Knights forsaken in love would wear red and black to show their sorrows. Ladies also loved furs, such as squirrels, ermine, and sable. They dressed their lords in them too, as well as doublets and robes of priceless special cloth. They obviously loved to dress up their lords.

Now we can move on to children. Children's clothing was basically mini adult clothing. A typical outfit was a smock or undertunic, then a tunic or coat, then possibly a sleeveless surcoat. Their shoes were soft leather turn-shoes worn with hose sewn from fabric. The most common fabric was worsted wool. Linen was worn for undergarments. Two very expensive fabrics were silk and cotton. Childrens clothing wasn’t that different.

Like all of the greats though, Medieval European culture had to die. In 1509, Henry VIII succeeded his father, Henry VII, for the English crown. But you may be wondering, “What ever happened to their dress and decoration?” Well, after the culture, some countries and cities kept their outstanding dress, such as areas where Roman influence remained strong like most of Italy except the North, South-Western France, as far north as Tours, and probably cities like Cologne in Germany. People just loved it. Medieval European culture can teach us many things, like fashion styles for their awesome dress and decoration.

Glossary
 * 1) Burgundian- of or pertaining to burgundy or its people
 * 2) doublets- a close-fitting outer garment
 * 3) embroidery- lacing or designs in clothing or fabric
 * 4) ermine- an old world weasel
 * 5) fidelity- loyalty
 * 6) forsaken- to quit or leave entirely; abandon; desert
 * 7) high double horn headdress-[[image:https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/iMn7C2driYZwz49B-7uvQ76AgfjsVnCfA_PMRjtkdCq90vmaYn071RPLXcwvdtyqWrGVFi4QzpZQURClU1InWzo3tvInwNL13L3P-twCtX4pGiiyVN5xcxOPdrAL7pyFGg]]
 * 8) legacies- anything handed down from the past
 * 9) sable- an old world weasel like mammal
 * 10) succeeded- person who took over after the king/queen was gone
 * 11) surcoat- a garment worn over medieval armor
 * 12) tunic- a gown like outer garment
 * 13) worsted- firmly twisted yarn or thread spun from combed, stapled wool fibers of the same length, forweaving, knitting, etc.

Bibliography "Early Medieval European Dress for Men." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 05 July 2014. Web. 19 May 2014. "Early Medieval European Dress." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 24 May 2014. Web. 30 May 2014. "Medieval Europe Location." Medieval Europe Location. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2014. "Medieval Fashion." Medieval Fashion. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 May 2014. "Medieval Legacy." Medieval Legacy. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 May 2014. "Medieval Meaning." Medieval Meaning. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2014. Miquel, Pierre, and Pierre Probst. Ladies Fashion. London: Dragon, 1984. Print. A, Olivia. "Present Day Culture." Personal interview. 16 May 2014. "What Did Medieval Children Wore in the Middle Ages?" Yahoo! Answers. Yahoo!, n.d. Web. 28 May 2014.

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