Of course, all sorts of other words were used for their periods, such as courses, menstra, termes and women's sickness. But, whatever they called it, women have always had to cope with their menstrual cycles.
Due to lack of nutrition, however, they may not have been monthly. They began around twelve years of age, and were an indication a young lady was ready to start producing children, and therefore could be wed. This is why it wasn't uncommon to see girls of fourteen get married (*shudders*).
Sadly, it was seen as a punishment from God, especially as nuns did not menstruate (allegedly). Again, I point out the lack of nutrition; nuns and very devout ladies would not have eaten much. But, y'know, let's not dwell!
Isabel in my book, Love in the Roses, challenges her husband to have his wicked way with her during her flow, but not to blame her if she then bore a deformed child. Yes, this was a belief! It was also why some children were born with red hair, obviously!?
Menstruating women may curdle the milk, so were kept away from activities such as cheese making.
And, as their excretions were so toxic, they were sometimes encouraged to roam around cornfields with their skirts pulled up, so they could act as an insect repellent! Words fail me.
Despite the common opinion that this bleeding/suffering was served to women from God and they should shut up and put up... there were herbal remedies to aid the pain. Lady's Mantle, parsley, thyme and woodruff were all used - because women help women.
It stands to reason that not every woman wished to become pregnant. Childbirth was incredibly dangerous; over one in three women died in their child bearing years! Plus, prostitutes have existed since the dawn of man, so they probably didn't want to become heavy with child either. And I hear tell some nuns were actually quite naughty - probably a good idea not to get pregnant in their case; the scandal!
But, interfering with the will of God was, of course, sinful.
There was a papal bull against witchcraft which
accused them of having, "slain infants yet in the womb" and "hindering men from performing the sexual act and
women from conceiving". So, we know it happened. And as it was witches who
were targeted, herbs were probably involved.
Infertility
But what if you had the opposite problem? Unusually, infertility was not always regarded as a woman's problem.
Naturally, one would be encouraged to pray. After all, you must have displeased God if he isn't allowing you to procreate. St Anne was patron saint for this. Or, one could make pilgrimage to St. Thomas Cantelupe's shrine in Hereford.
Weight of both parties was taken into consideration, according to the 12th century gynaecological text, The Trotula. If one was overweight, you could try sweating out the fat in a hot bath.
Of course, looking at urine was part of diagnosis too. Mix each person's wee with some wheat bran in a pot, and whoever's was smelliest and/or most ridden with worms after nine days was the one with the issue - eww! If no worms were present, then the couple should be blessed with a child in God's own time.
Onions and parsnips were amongst foods encouraged for the man to help produce his seed.
Talking of seed, the medieval folk believed both men and women produced seed to produce offspring. So, in order to conceive, the lady had to orgasm - hoorah!
I must say, I did cheer hearing that. Until I learned that this was then used against women too - of course it was (*eyeroll, smacks head*)! If a woman was taken against her wishes and became pregnant it was therefore decided she must have enjoyed it so could not be considered rape (*angry screaming*).
Anyway, again, herbs and foods were recommended for altering the temperature of the woman's body so she could conceive.
To help protect against miscarriage, The Trotula suggests:
"Take oil, wax, powder of frankincence, and mastic,
and mix them, and let the woman be annointed front and back two or three times
a week. This very much strengthens the womb and the cotyledons."
Pregnancy
So, how did you know if you were pregnant?
Well, with irregular periods (usually among the poor), it could be quite tricky to tell. A woman may not know until she began to show or felt the "quickening" of the baby's first moves.
And, there was also the possibility of morning sickness.
However, wise women knew the secrets of urine - it is such an important bodily fluid!
Simply pop a needle into your bowl of wee and see if it rusts.
The medical folk also looked at pee. Pale to white in colour with a cloudy surface indicated pregnancy.
Want to know if you're expecting a boy? Place a drop of milk from the mother's breast into water; if it sinks, it's a boy. If it floats, it's a girl.
Cravings
Texts by the Ancient Greek physician, Galen were still referred to. He noted that in the first three months of pregnancy, mothers may suffer from the incredibly bad humor, citta. This caused them to crave sour and bitter things, or even shells and extinguished coals.
To stem that, he recommended the occasional day of fasting - oh, sweet mercy! Or, many small meals preceded by water (because that was healthy!?) followed by wine (can you imagine?). Food should be dry and astringent.
Walks and fragrant but not too sweet white wine were recommended.
Childbirth
Now, if you were poor, you'd work right up to the moment of labour, in all likelihood. So, let us look at the wealthy.
Ah, the
lying in.
Before confining oneself to the bedchamber, a woman would attend church for a special blessing.
Only widows owned property, but some women were still permitted to make their last will & testament before the big event.
So, all household and spiritual matters seen to, the expectant mother would retire to her chamber, four to six weeks before the baby was due. Only women allowed beyond this point!
The midwife, a woman, would enter the chamber. Mayhap, the good mother had female friends or relatives who would also be in attendance.
{ The room was
darkened; the curtains drawn
{ Tapestries with
relaxing scenes depicted were hung
{ Fires were lit - the
warmer the better
{ Herbs were set asmoke
and wafted around
{ Crucifixes and
religious icons would be strewn about
~ in short, the room was set to recreate the dark, warm, quiet womb
The women would then spend time in quiet contemplation and doing everything they could to promote calm. The book of hours would be read frequently and muchly praying would be conducted.
Food would be controlled. Nothing too salty or containing rue or parsley. Small dishes of chicken, blackbird, mutton or partridge were advisable.
Wine should be cut with water or balsam.
Daily hot baths were recommended. The hot water should be steeped with mallows, violets, linseed, fenugreek, chamomile and barley.
The mother's thighs and genitals would be anointed daily with
oil of camomile, chicken fat, foam from the top of butter and unguentum dialthaea (an
ointment made from marsh mallow roots).
Walking was seen as beneficial exercise, perhaps up and down the stairs.
Argh, we reach labour itself!
Warm water which dates had been cooked in was seen as an energy fortifying drink.
Again, with the oil and fat anointing! And/or apply a poultice.
Wearing coral around the neck was supposed to help ease pain. And she could clutch gemstones (such as jasper which would also help afterwards) or a magnet. Eaglestone may be tied to her thigh.
The woman should be encouraged to walk about as labour pains kick in.
And time to pray extra hard!
In lieu of gas & air, the mother could clutch a holy relic or talisman.
A birthing girdle may be placed upon her abdomen; a long, parchment (or hart's skin) scroll with saints such as The Virgin Mary, St Margaret or Julitta & Quiricus depicted.
The birthing stool was a popular aid in childbirth all the way through to around 1800. Funnily enough, men became midwives at that time too (*grumbly noises* Don't know what's best *mumbles*).
Imagine a horseshoe-shaped stool, The woman could squat down upon this and let gravity come to her rescue.
These stools could be treasured family heirlooms!
Another woman could sit behind and cradle the poor mother. Isn't that nice?
The use of birthing stools shortens the birth canal and increases pelvic diameter. Doesn't that sound like a good idea?
If the baby was round the wrong way, the midwife may oil her hands and, y'know, reach in.
Caesareans were a known thing. However, this was a last resort measure as it was highly likely neither mother or baby would survive the procedure. Basically, the mother was either dead or dying before they'd try.
The midwife was permitted to baptize the baby, incidentally. But only if the baby was sickly - a quick blessing before it died was necessary so its soul could still reach heaven. This blog post is terribly morbid; I do apologise.
However, once the baby is out (hopefully without intervention), then the umbilical cord needed to be dealt with. It could be cut and powdered dragon's blood (plant resin) put on. Or, tie it off with twisted wool.
After it has dropped off, the umbilical cord was often thrown onto the fire in the room - this was a way of purifying the sinful origins of conception!
Herbs were lit and wafter under the mother's nose. This would cause her to sneeze, but her nose would be pinched. Therefore, the pressure would be sent downwards so she could expel the afterbirth.
More from The Trotula:
For pain of the vagina after birth, take rue,
mugwort, and camphor, grind them well and, having prepared them with musk oil
or pennyroyal oil and warmed them in a pot, wrap them in a cloth and insert as
a suppository.
A needle and thread could have come in handy too. Oh, this is all making me wince without any anaesthetic! But, there is more medical advice:
For rupture of the lower parts after birth, take
root of comfrey, dry it and then pulverise it well, and put with fine powder of
cumin and also cinnamon in the vagina, and it will be solidified.
And if that sneeze didn't expel the afterbirth...
For birth of the womb and for bringing out the
afterbirth. Take root of parsley, leaves of leek, and borage, and extract the
juice, and mix in a little oil, and give to the patient to drink, and put
vinegar into the vagina, and she will be freed.
Pennyroyal was also a good herb for such expulsions.
That coral amulet hung about the mother's neck during childbirth? A similar one could now be placed upon the infant for protection. Either that or amber.
Mother and baby would be bathed. Injuries seen to. The baby encouraged to urinate by squeezing on its bladder.
Then the baby needed to be swaddled. Their bones were seen as weak and not fully formed, so swaddling helped keep them in shape until the grew stronger. This would be done at least until the child could sit up on its own or it reached the age of one.
The mother may have been given some caudle. This is a dish of egg yolks, ale/wine, sugar and saffron (recipes vary). A basic dish accessible to all and seen as a restorative.
And hopefully, both were healthy and would be able to have a bit of a sleep. I think they'd earned it!
But this was not the end. Oh no. Mother and baby would be kept in confinement for another four to six weeks, whilst both gained their strength and healed.
Breast Feeding
The mother could put a bit of honey on her breast to encourage the baby to suckle - aww. Baby should be fed three times per day. And the mother would learn when to unswaddle so her child could relieve itself. She'd then wrap it back up, snug as a bug in a rug.
Wet nurses could be used, but it was deemed best for the mother to perform this duty if she could. The Church deemed that if it was good enough for The Virgin Mary, any mother should do so.
Breast feeding was encouraged until around the age of two.
Gnawing on roots of liqorice or gladioli could help when teething pains kicked in.
Baptism was essential for newborns. It could not wait until the mother was out of her confinement. So, the father (or appointed other if he were not present) would take the baby to church, along with the appointed godparents.
At the church door, prayers would be issued, whilst the priest made the sign of the cross three times.
The godparents would then recite Lord’s Prayer, Hail Mary and Creed, in Latin.
Then, the baby was taken inside to the font. Holy oil was added to the water therein, and more prayers were recited. The godparents renounced Satan and pledged their faith.
The baby was anointed with holy oil and then baptised with three immersions in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
The baby's forehead was then anointed with sacred chrism
(holy oil) and a white chrisom cloth was bound round it as a symbol of the
cleansing of its sins, and was kept in place for the following week. Finally, the child was dressed in a white
chrisom robe, which, if the child died within a month, was used as a
shroud. The child was given a blessed,
lighted candle, which therefore had the power when lit, to banish the Devil.
Churching
This chrisom cloth was then given to the mother for her Churching.
Yes, at the end of her confinement, the mum would go to church for her blessing.
Again, she was met at the church door by the priest who carried holy water and candles.
The mother would have worn a veil and may have held a burning candle. She would issue forth said chrisom and any other offerings.
The priest said a prayer of thanksgiving and asked
for eternal life for the mother. Two Psalms were then read. And then the mother may have been sprinkled with holy water before being led into the church with a prayer of access.
A special Mass would then be conducted, with the mother offering thanks for the safe delivery of her child. She would also receive Communion.
She was then able to resume daily activities, cleansed of all that sin of conception!
At the end of all that, one presumably continued to pray that your child continued strong and healthy.
Around 30% of children died before the age of five. Yikes!
But if they survived until the age of twenty, they were likely to be OK until around fifty. Hoorah!
At the age of seven, presumably when parents relaxed a little bit, boys may be sent of for training, either ecclesiastical/scholar or as a knight. Girls may well have been sent to another household to learn the ways of management of such.
And then they'd be married off. And the cycle begins anew!
OK, that'll do. This is a really long post but I wanted to cover all these aspects in one go.
Always in love and light,
TL
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
