Black Meringue

Medieval Weddings

If you're looking for somewhere with history, space, drama and atmosphere, then perhaps a castle might be for you...

Choosing a location is one of the first and biggest considerations when getting married. Traditionally, of course, a church is the place to be. But it should have become clear by now that we’re not traditional. And who would want to be, when changes in religious attitudes and new licensing laws have made it possible to hold wedding ceremonies in all sorts of imaginative places? How about on a Navy frigate, in a Victorian railway station, at a zoo or underwater? All have been done in recent years, and there’s even a couple who are planning for a wedding in Earth-orbit. Many hotels are licensed to marry and it’s possible (through application to the local authorities) to get all manner of public buildings and sites licensed. But if you’re looking for somewhere with history, space, drama and atmosphere, then perhaps a castle might be for you.

Castles are ideal as an alternative wedding venue. Most of them have chapels and large grounds, and they’re often set amid beautiful scenery making for a hugely memorable wedding. There’s also no end of choice, which is not surprising really as they’ve been evolving and developing in Britain ever since William the Conqueror laid claim to the throne of England in 1066. As a result you have the choice of ancient Norman castles like Pembroke in Wales, castles that have stood the test of time like Warwick, Scottish baronial castles, weathered stone keeps like Castle Rising in Norfolk, or those grand houses that have become castles in their own right. The choice is vast in Britain alone, but you don’t have to stop there. What about the magnificent fairytale castles of the Black Forest in Germany, or the geometric Renaissance citadels of Italy, or the baroque creations of Eastern Europe? The challenge facing any would-be castle-fancier, then, is deciding which of the great pantheon available is the right one.

Perhaps the first thing to do is to learn a little of the history behind our castles. We’d best start with Will, who began building castles like it was going out of fashion practically the day after he won the Battle of Hastings. The first were either constructed within existing Roman fortresses (like Pevensey Castle in East Sussex) or were simple wooden motte-and-bailey affairs. Most of these no longer exist in their original form, because the majority were developed and extended into the stone medieval castles we recognise today. The rest have either been destroyed or, to paraphrase an appropriate Steve Parkhouse quote, “human history has passed over them.”
William and his Normans were not altogether welcomed by the locals, and England was soon ravaged by a civil war known as the Anarchy. The timber motte-and-bailey structures were extremely vulnerable to attack, and as a result they were hastily replaced by stone keeps. These have weathered the ravages of time rather more dauntlessly than their predecessors; indeed, The White Tower at the Tower of London is the first ever stone keep, built in 1097.

Hedingham Castle in Essex welcomes wedding couples and is regarded as one of the best examples of a Norman stone keep, built by one of the most important medieval families, the De Veres. No strangers to the history books, the De Veres were Crusaders who fought with Richard the Lionheart, were present at the signing of the Magna Carta, and fought at Crecy, Agincourt and Bosworth. Hedingham Castle has been visited by a host of royals including Henry VII, Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, so if it’s history you’re after, this one’s a peach.

Kenilworth Castle is the largest castle ruin in Britain. Set in beautiful grounds in the heart of Warwickshire, it overlooks acres of wonderful English countryside. Built in the 13th century, it has hosted royalty through the ages including Edward II, Henry III and Henry V, who moved in fresh from victory over the French at the Battle of Agincourt. But it is most strongly associated with Queen Elizabeth I, who stayed there in 1575 when she was famously romanced by the dashing Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. With spectacular pageantry, plays, music and dancing, Dudley lavishly wooed the Virgin Queen within the walls and extensive grounds of Kenilworth Castle, but as we all know, marriage was tragically never to be. Five centuries on, though, the Gatehouse he built as a grand entrance for his Queen has been newly restored by English Heritage and is now available for modern-day lovers to hire for weddings and receptions.

The stone keep, then, provides great opportunities for wedding planners. A large proportion of keeps are smaller and simpler than the castles from later periods, meaning budgets can be kept in check. Be aware that they may not be able to cater for large parties, however, and indeed may be ruins. This obviously will require a little creativity in planning the ceremony and reception.

The 100 Years War (which actually ran for 116 years, but who’s counting?) brought ever greater demand for heavily fortified castles, and this was when the concentric castle came in. The hallmark of Edward I and his master-builder, James of St George, these formidable constructions gave us perhaps the classic image of castles as we know them today. A fortress with a symmetrical exterior, consisting of identical or nearly identical curtain walls and towers and fronted by a giant lead portcullis, is invariably a concentric castle. The design of these castles, however, wasn’t for aesthetic purposes – rather, it was devoted to protecting the people inside, and making the building easily defensible by the smallest possible number of men. Keeps were surrounded by lofty walls and soaring towers above, and deep moats or giant ditches filled with rotting animals below.

You might be pleased to hear they’ve done away with this last part if you’re planning a wedding at one today, and you could do worse than sample these grandiose and often enormous castles. Beaumaris Castle in North Wales is considered the finest example of this kind, or you might want to try nearby Caerphilly Castle which spans 1.2 hectares. It’s true that a wedding on the scale provided by one of these spectacular venues isn’t for the more modest budget, but if the drama and chivalry of the Middle Ages has suitably enticed you, then with a concentric castle the full experience of this long-gone time can be yours.

What to do

To make your medieval wedding truly authentic you’re going to have to dance. Yes, really. A lack of documentation means the proper medieval steps have to be interpreted from pictures and stories, but fear not, there’s a wealth of dances to learn: The Washerwoman’s Branle, The Rufty Tufty and The Honeysuckle Almain are but a few. Lyre music is, of course, the perfect accompaniment.

There’s also an endless range of other entertainments that can be arranged to bring the Middle Ages to your marriage celebration. Remember, Marco Polo brought fireworks to Europe in the 13th century, so a dramatic pyrotechnic finale over the castle walls would be well in keeping with the times. Then there’s jesters, falconry, juggling, acrobats, fire-eaters, magic…and if you’re truly ambitious and feeling flush, how about jousting?
Have a look at www.themiddleages.net/life/steps.html for a breakdown of medieval dance-steps, and the following sites are packed with useful ideas:
www.castles.me.uk/medieval-entertainment.htm
www.medieval-period.com/medievalentertainment.html
www.medieval-entertainers.co.uk/

What to eat

In a few days of Christmas feasting, William the Conqueror and his house consumed 6,000 chickens, 1,000 rabbits, 90 boar, 50 peacocks, 200 geese, 10,000 eels, thousands of eggs and loaves of bread, and hundreds of casks of wine and cider. We can perhaps deduce from this that the medieval feast didn’t cater for size zeros.

When it comes to food nowadays, a good number of castles are keeping the traditions of this bygone age alive by catering for large banquets with staff properly attired. The most immediate benefit of this is that you can finally call “wench” on your waitress and get away with it, but the range of medieval foods available in this form of dining is quite enough in and of itself to take one’s interest. An evening’s repast might include roast quail, turtledoves and partridge, goose, venison, roasted boar (sanglier), gilded and silvered calves’ heads, roasted peacock, oysters steamed in almond milk and ale-flavoured bread. Dieters will be heartened to know that medieval folks did have salad as well, and there are varieties you can try featuring chives, scallions, boiled carrots, radish roots, young lettuce and turnips. Top it off with some herbs, nuts, olives, vinegar and oil, and maybe, if you’re a wealthy noble, a spoonful of sugar.

There are six courses, and you’re obliged to eat until it’s all gone. The fork wasn’t unknown to medieval diners, but if you’d rather be like Charles Laughton hurling that chicken over his shoulder, so much the better. Wash it all down with spicy mulled wine, mead, ale or cider, but go easy. There’s the dancing to be done afterwards.

A good number of castles provide medieval banqueting as part of their package. For a taster, check out the following:
Old Colehurst Manor: www.colehurst.co.uk
Comlongon: www.comlongon.com
Caldicot Castle: www.castle4banquets.co.uk
Some other links: www.partyoffers.co.uk/caterers/medieval_banquets/

What to wear

So you’ve booked your castle, and now you’re thinking of adding a touch of the theatrical to your wedding? Good for you. It goes without saying that costume is great fun, and will make for some great memories and photographs. If your religious orientation leads you in a certain direction you may want to delve into the intricacies of neo-pagan nuptial ceremonies, but the themed medieval wedding also offers great scope for couples with a bit of imagination. Many of our modern matrimonial customs and laws were established in medieval times, so you can have an authentic castle wedding without straying too far from the rulebook.

Just how historically accurate you decide to make your themed wedding is of course a matter for your own discretion, but choosing period costume appropriate for the era your castle belongs to can only add a pleasing authenticity to the proceedings. There’s no shortage of dress-designers and costume-makers who’ll happily advise on how best to fit the finery to the fortress, but here are a few general tips to get you started.

Firstly, forget white weddings. Blue was considered the colour of purity and it would be worn by both bride and groom – indeed, it’s from the blue ribbons that adorned couples in those days that brides now wear “something blue.” For the congregation, go with brightly coloured gowns and robes studded with gems and embroidered with gold and silver thread, offset by fur and lots of jewellery. If you can find a willing serf, make a dandy wig from their hair.

Women were heavily made-up and it was the fashion to pluck the hairline to create a larger forehead, although you’d have to be really keen to go quite as far as that in creating the true Middle Ages look. And get some flowers in that hair, loosely woven or as a floral crown.

The garter played an important role in medieval weddings, as it was thought to bring good luck to the wedding guest who could take it from the bride. (It would be more realistic to expect a swift slap round the chops as the reward for your troubles these days.) If it’s a little intimidating for brides-to-be to imagine a crowd of eager males trying to get their clutching hands on your intimate accessories, just remember that in the days before the garter, guests would try to get hold of absolutely anything the bride was wearing…

But most important of all, if you really want a heady sense of authenticity, don’t bathe for a couple of weeks. In the early Middle Ages public baths were very popular (one of the perks of having been invaded by the Romans), but as woodland was depleted to fuel the heated baths it became prohibitively expensive for all but the richest of nobles to freshen up. So don’t be afraid to be medieval all the way, because you can always cover up the stench with gallons of spiced perfume like our ancestors did.

So, whether it’s chivalric romance or fabliau that tickles the fancy of you medievally-minded ones out there, there’ll be someone who can clothe you for your big event. The internet is obviously the best place to start, and here are a couple of sites:
www.lindsayfleming.com – hand-made Celtic gowns from Scotland
www.rivendellbridal.com – beautiful hand-made dresses and accessories
www.virtue.to/articles – a huge resource of medieval clothing
www.medieval-banquet.co.uk – well-established costume makers
www.medievaldesign.com/indexengl.html – a large selection of 12th-15th century clothing and furniture

BM