The Ritual Master Good morrow to you, fair ladies and lords, and Merry Advent !
I am beside myself with excitement for this year’s Advent Calendar here, at The Ritual of Reading, since this will be a completely novel experience for our traditional month of celebrations.
One of my greatest wishes since starting this project, was to share with you my passion for a historical figure that has a special place in my heart : Aliénor of Aquitaine, queen of France, then queen of England, founder of the Plantagenet dynasty together with her second husband, Henry II. Her story is Europe’s story in the XIIth century, made of contrasts and hardships, austere beauty and mighty ideals. My reading on this subject has been extensive, as were my travels, so it was only natural I invited you into a mediaeval wonderland, where Queen Aliénor will guide us with her legendary joie de vivre, towards a Christmas full of surprises.
The Middle Ages have either been exaggerated in their cruelty by our Hollywood culture of the grotesque, or unjustly minimised as a buffer between the fascination of Antiquity and the golden splendour of the Renaissance. Yet this ten centuries period of European history holds many nuances that deserve our attention. From the 5th to the 15th century, the tribes left behind by the dissolution of the Roman Empire saw invasions from every direction, lived through wars and famines, pandemics and crusades, and still managed to invent things like eyeglasses, compasses and clocks, build castles and cathedrals like never before, sing the beauty and bravery of the people during their short yet intense lifespan.
Aliénor of Aquitaine, or Eleanor as she is sometimes called in English, was born in 1124 and died in 1204, which puts her right in the heart of the High Middle Ages, a time of great social and political changes. She was born in the Duchy of Aquitaine, today a region of France, which made her a serious contender for the role of wife to the Crown Prince of France. And through a series of quite unbelievable events that we shall speak of later on, after 14 years of being Queen of the Francs, she divorced, remarried the Duke of Anjou who rapidly became King of England, and she, his Queen, for more than 34 years. These two sides of the same coin are the reason we shall spend our Medieval Advent Calendar between France and England, and get to know these two countries in their early days.
And this all sounds fine and dandy, but what about Christmas ? Especially since we’ve all heard that Christmas as we know it today wasn’t really celebrated until the Victorian era. The Middle Ages were a time of enormous expansion for Christianism, and so, every holiday was essential not only as a social bond, but for preserving the power and order that the Church represented.
Advent was observed during a seven week period in much the same manner as Lent, though with slightly less emphasis on penance, and more on abstaining from gourmet treats, since every household big or small would be preparing the twelve days of Christmas. Then, from the 25th of December, until the 5th of January, the feast would be ongoing. The twelve days of Christmas have maintained a certain fame for the English, whereas in France, although they existed just as well in the Middle Ages, their story has somewhat faded.
No Christmas trees as we know them today would be brought inside, yet the pre-christian tradition of bringing signs of evergreens in the home during the winter months manifested through crowns or wreaths made of ivy (representing the feminine) and holly (representing the masculine). My Advent wreath for this year gathers inspiration from the natural beauty of simple elements, who accomplish the essential : keep the energy of nature alive in our mind as a symbol to admire every day.
Our calendar will take us from history books to historical fiction, abbeys, castles and cathedrals, all accompanied by authentic dishes and delicious drinks, of course. I am so happy you’re joining me for this Christmas adventure in time and space, and I can’t wait to see you back here tomorrow.
Until then, happy Advent !
