Mary Arden's House and Tudor Farm.

Monday 21st and Tuesday 22nd July, 2014 at Wilmcote.
We spent all day Monday at Mary Arden's House and its working Tudor Farm - and then, because we enjoyed it so much, we went back and spent all day Tuesday there as well.

The site is run by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and includes the house where Mary Arden, Shakespeare's mother, was born and raised - the youngest of eight sisters.

The house has been extensively rebuilt and extended but, in the interior, one can still see parts of the original timber-framed house. Next to her house is their neighbour's house, belonging to the Palmer family, and it is in this house that many of the domestic activities take place.

The two houses are surrounded by a large farm that is run entirely on Tudor lines, to the extent permitted by the 'elf and the EU (Boo!) 
During the morning, the ladies of the house prepare "dinner" for the household and for those day-workers working on the farm. They use their own produce from the farm and gardens and cook it on an open wood fire. To our great disappointment, this means that the 'elf won't let us taste it (Another Boo!). In the photo below, the ladies were making blackcurrant fool.

At one o'clock, the dinner bell is rung and everyone assembles in the Palmer house, watched by forty or fifty visitors! The first thing that they do is wash their hands - as with everything else, this is done in strict order of social importance - starting with the Master and Mistress, then any guests, then permanent staff and finally the day labourers.

They sit at the "board" in their social order with the "salt" separating the family from the staff. The first "remove" (course), is always "pottage" with bread and butter, washed down with "ale" (very weak ale made without hops). This was designed to fill everyone up before they started on the other (more expensive) dishes. Everyone was served by the Mistress to ensure fair helpings for all.

Ale was the safest thing to drink as the water used in its preparation was boiled (killing all the bugs) - so everyone drank ale, including children. Day labourers received eight pints of ale a day as part of their wages, along with this midday dinner plus sixpence per day for men and fourpence for women (a maximum fixed by law due to the scarcity of labourers after the Black Death).
As wages were fixed, the best way to attract good day labourers, and to ensure they came back, was to feed them well and give them good sweet ale.

Of course, after the meal came the washing up. This involved only the dishes because each person carried their own personal spoon, knife and picket (just a sharp pointed implement).

In the afternoon, there was a display of sword-fighting, illustrated by an analysis of the sword fight in Act 1 of Romeo and Juliet. They explained that the groundlings would have been very familiar with sword fighting - so the fight in the play had to be realistic. Mercutio was the good guy and so he fought with an English "Back Sword" designed to cut (Hooray!), while Tybalt was the baddie who fought with a foreign, Italian, "Rapier" designed to pierce (Booo!). Each would have taken a different stance, Mercutio's sword held high, ready to slash down, while Tybalt's sword would have pointed at his opponent.

There would have been much posturing initially, followed by a short sharp action. Mercutio had the advantage and was about to deal the final blow when Romeo intervened to stop him and Tybalt thrust under Romeo's arm to stab Mercutio in the guts (Booo!). Not at all as portrayed by "Master Hollywood"! Fascinating; it is the things that the Tudors would have taken for granted that we miss.
Afterwards, we watched the goats being milked (in modern dress as they were youths doing work experience)...

Then the milk was fed to the pigs, (who were waiting impatiently and very noisily) and very much reminded us of the pigs in Shaun the Sheep in the way they were looking over the fence and grunting.

The Mistress made butter for the table, with a little help from M. M now knows how to make butter!

There was also a falconry display with Millie the barn owl...

And a very large golden eagle, who is in training and they hope to be able to fly her in displays by the end of the year.

R even tried his hand with a longbow. Only one bull out of twelve shots - so Robin Hood need not worry. (comment from M: he should have been wearing his green tights, then he would have fared better!).

All in all, it was an incredible two days and we were so impressed by all the staff and "Tudors", who made it such fun. R thinks that M wants to go back as a Tudor volunteer - what a great idea! Actually, it was so beautifully done that it all felt "real"; we really thought we had both slipped back 450 years in time and that we were part of life on that farm in Shakespeare's day. M, in particular, is convinced that she was born four centuries later than she should have been.  Contrary to popular belief, life on a yeoman farmer's estate would have been simple, honest, healthy and pleasant, even if hard work.