It can no longer spout the 3% without having to explain its deceptive methods, and it can no longer claim to be essential to women's overall reproductive health.

Yet another massive revision to a year's worth of jobs reports highlights the lies Joe Biden told about all the "success" he was having rebuilding the economy.

Baking sheets can't last forever, but that doesn't mean you can't make them feel a little newer after extensive use. You can do that with a common antiseptic.

from The Charlie Kirk Show: TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/

  The four historians of the Classical Period in the 400s CE, Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, and Ctesias, helped establish what would develop into the modern methodologies of recording and writing history.   The Classical Period Prints of heads of heroes from Homer’s Iliad, Wilhelm Tischbein, 1796. Source: The British Museum, London   The Classical Period is generally held to be the time period in Western history between about the 8th century BC, when Homer wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey, and the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 CE. In the 400s CE, several men, generally of Greek and Persian influence, took on a new perspective in compiling and presenting historical information.    While there were various efforts to record historical matters, including the Old Testament, or Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, few, if any, used the process of researching and gathering stories from various original sources to compile and present them as a whole to an audience.  Government officials may have chronicled various records as they always have, but such information is data, not history.   The First Historian: Herodotus Statue of Herodotus from his likely place of birth in Halicurnassus, Turkey   Herodotus is the first person in Western society known to have put together such a narrative in the 400s BCE.  Herodotus traveled through Greece, Egypt, and the Persian Empire to collect material for his Histories, which chronicled the Greco-Persian Wars of  499 BC-449 BCE. While the accuracy of his Histories is disputable and Herodotus included many fanciful or mythical elements, the way in which he compiled and wrote out his results established how history would be recorded and preserved.   The Athenian General: Thucydides A statue of the Greek historian Thucydides. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Thucydides, an Athenian General who lived in the 400s BCE, refined many of the methods of Herodotus in the History of the Peloponnesian War. Thucydides removed many supernatural elements in his writing, seeking to write his history without seeing any divine intervention or purpose. He sought to find an unbiased methodology, stating:   “I have written my work, not as an essay which is to win the applause of the moment, but as a possession for all time.”   Thucydides’ methodology has come to be known as “scientific history,” where the historian attempts to record and present historical information as complete as practical, seeking to remove bias as much as possible and present the reader with a complete view of what transpired.   Warrior and Philosopher: Xenophon Bust of Xenophon, 120 CE   Xenophon, a mercenary warrior, philosopher, and student of Socrates, continues some of where Thucydides ended in the Peloponnesian War. Writing in the 300s CE, Xenophon covered various topics, including politics, war strategy, and recorded some of the Socratic dialogue, of which only he and Plato have surviving records. Xenophon was well-traveled throughout Greece, being a member of the Ten Thousand, a mercenary force hired by Cyrus the Younger in his struggles against Artaxerxes II over the Persian throne. He fought in the critical Battle of Cunaxa, where Cyrus was defeated, recording it in his Anabasis.   Doctor and Historian: Ctesias Retreat of the Ten Thousand at the Battle of Cunaxa, by Jean Adrien Guignet, 19th century. Source: Wikipedia   Ctesias of Cnidus was a doctor and historian from the 400s BCE who was on the opposite side of Xenophon in the conflict between Cyrus the Younger and Artaxerxes II.  Ctesias was also at the Battle of Cunaxa in 401 BCE, serving as a physician on the side of the victorious Artaxerxes II. His Persica is a history of the Persian Empire beginning under Cyrus the Great, but has various conflicts with the information presented by Herodotus and other sources, making Ctesias the most unreliable of the Classical historians. Ctesias also wrote the Indica, which is a description of India taken mainly from travelers, and contains information so fantastical that much of it is blatant fiction.

  In an era of collapsing empires and shifting alliances, the Mediterranean in the 6th century CE was a “battleground of ambition.” The Eastern Roman Empire, based in Constantinople, was growing stronger and more powerful. Successive emperors dreamed of fully restoring the Roman Empire and its former glory. The recovery of lost territories was not merely a matter of prestige; it would also represent an ideological victory. North Africa came to represent a valuable target in that ambition. The first step toward restoring this territory to the Empire would occur near Carthage, at the battlefield of Ad Decimum.   Why Was Byzantium Fighting in North Africa? Emperor Justinian and members of his court, early 20th-century mosaic reproduction of a 6th-century original. Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art   By the beginning of the 4th century CE, the once-powerful Roman Empire had split into an Eastern and a Western part. The Western Roman Empire fell under the pressure of barbarian invasions, while the Byzantine Empire grew stronger and wealthier. At this time, North Africa was no longer Roman. The Germanic tribe of the Vandals had conquered Carthage in 439 CE, the crown jewel of the Roman African provinces. Carthage became their capital, from which they built their new kingdom.   Justinian I, who came to power in Byzantium in 527 CE, had the ambition to restore the Roman Empire, not only in glory but also in territory. By the time he took power, the Vandal kingdom was weakening, making North Africa an ideal starting point for Justinian’s conquests. Justinian also had the support of the local population in North Africa, who had traditionally been part of the Roman Catholic Church, while the invading Vandals were Arian Christians. The difference wasn’t just theological, as Vandal rulers often exiled and persecuted Catholic priests.   The Vandal king Hilderic had been unusually tolerant of Catholics, but in 530 CE, he was overthrown by his cousin Gelimer, who was an extremist and aimed to completely abolish the Catholic Church. Justinian saw in this the perfect opportunity, presenting himself as the protector of Christians and the savior who would restore the rightful king to the throne.   The Road to Ad Decimum Belisarius Begging for Alms, by Jacques-Louis David, 1781. Source: Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille   Justinian entrusted the execution of the invasion to his loyal general, Flavius Belisarius, who had previously led a successful campaign against the Persians in the East. And so, in 533 CE, Belisarius set sail for North Africa with over 15,000 soldiers, dozens of transport ships, and siege machines.   The first destination on Belisarius’s journey was Caput Vada, today’s Ras Kaboudia in Tunisia, where they anchored without resistance. Despite this initial success, Belisarius continued the march slowly and cautiously. He maintained strict discipline among his men and forbade them from looting or disturbing the local population. All of this was aimed at preserving good relations with the North African civilians, many of whom secretly hoped for the restoration of the Roman Empire.   The Vandals were caught off guard by the invasion; they hadn’t expected it and were unable to regroup in time. Gelimer’s first move was to prepare an ambush south of Carthage, at a place called Ad Decimum (Latin for “Tenth Milestone”). Ad Decimum was flat and open terrain that followed the coastal road, but it featured several narrow bottlenecks well-suited for an ambush. The Vandal king chose this location because he could strike in segments, from the south, west, and north.   Despite being surprised by the invasion, Gelimer’s plan was bold. He intended to launch a multi-pronged attack in hopes of breaking the Byzantines before they could even reach the Vandal capital.   Gelimer’s Trap: A Brilliant Plan That Fell Apart Battle of Ad Decimum, the Initial Vandal Plan. Source: Wikimedia Commons   As the time for battle approached, King Gelimer sent his brother Ammatas to guard the northern section of the road toward Ad Decimum and hold off the Byzantine troops until the rest of the Vandal army arrived. At the same time, Gelimer dispatched his cousin Gibamund to launch a cavalry attack from the west. Gelimer himself would lead the main force and strike from the south. The plan was solid, but things quickly went wrong.   Ammatas arrived too early and with too few soldiers. The rest of the Vandal army was nowhere near, and his detachment could not withstand the attack of the much larger Byzantine force, which quickly crushed it. Ammatas himself was killed in the battle.   Gibamund, who was supposed to strike the Byzantines from the west, also suffered a devastating defeat. His unit was spotted by an experienced Hunnic cavalry hired by the Byzantines to assist in the invasion. In a sudden and fierce assault, the Huns smashed Gibamund’s troops before they could even reach the main road, and Gibamund was killed in the attack.   These losses were significant because King Gelimer was now isolated and unaware that the other two wings had been destroyed.   The Battle Itself: Chaos, Courage, and Collapse King Gelimer and Belisarius, by Alexander Contardi, c. 1750-1920. Source: Perkins School for the Blind, Samuel P. Hayes Research Library   When Gelimer arrived at the battlefield, he expected to find his brother Ammatas and his cousin Gibamund, but instead, he was met with a surprise. Gelimer’s plan had collapsed, and he had no choice but to face the Byzantine army in open combat. The sight of his slain brother deeply affected him, and he was unable to gather himself to lead the battle with clear judgment. His soldiers sensed this, and their morale quickly dropped.   Meanwhile, the Byzantine army was arriving in staggered formations. The first to arrive were the Byzantine advance units, which included Huns and Heruli, who immediately launched an attack. At first, the Vandals managed to resist with some success, as they outnumbered these early Byzantine forces. However, General Belisarius soon arrived with the rest of the army. The Vandals were unable to form a strong defense, and the fighting quickly descended into chaos and disorganization.   When Gelimer realized there was no hope for victory, he ordered a full retreat. He fled west into the villages of Numidia, leaving Carthage in the hands of the Byzantines. It was a humiliating defeat for the Vandals; they had lost on terrain of their own choosing and left their capital city completely undefended while their king ran away.   How Carthage Welcomed the Byzantines The Decline of the Carthaginian Empire, by J.M.W. Turner, c. 1817. Source: Tate Museum   Belisarius entered Carthage peacefully and ordered his troops not to loot or cause disorder. The goal was to present the Byzantines as liberators, not conquerors. The historian Procopius, who accompanied Belisarius on his campaigns, recorded the Byzantine army’s entry into Carthage. According to Procopius, the citizens of Carthage lit lamps along the city walls and houses, joyfully welcoming the restoration of the Roman Empire. Belisarius entered the city in full battle gear, not because he expected resistance, but to show who was now in charge.   “For though the Roman soldiers were not accustomed to enter a subject city without confusion… all the soldiers under command of this general showed themselves so orderly that there was not a single act of insolence nor a threat” Procopius, Vandal Wars 21.   Belisarius went straight into the palace and sat on Gelimer’s throne, where one interesting anecdote occurred: the food that had been prepared for Gelimer was now served to the Byzantine conquerors.   “He commanded that lunch be prepared for them, in the very place where Gelimer was accustomed to entertain the leaders of the Vandals… and it happened that the lunch made for Gelimer on the preceding day was in readiness” Procopius, Vandal Wars 21.   In the days that followed, Carthage began to return to normal life, albeit under Roman rule. The local population, cautious but hopeful, began to accept the new authorities.   Gelimer attempted to recapture Carthage together with his brother Tzazon. With a strong army, they attacked Belisarius at the Battle of Tricamarum (December 533 CE), but suffered a devastating defeat. Tzazon was killed, and Gelimer fled into the mountains, where he hid for several months before finally surrendering to the Byzantines. He was neither executed nor imprisoned; instead, he was granted a large estate in Galatia.   Aftermath: The Beginning of the End for the Vandals Vandal War: The Surrender of King Gelimer to General Belisarius, by Peter Johann Nepomuk Geiger. Source: MeisterDrucke   The defeats in North Africa marked the beginning of the end for the Vandals. After the final fall of Gelimer, the Vandal state ceased to exist. Procopius recorded that Gelimer did not mourn his crown, but rather his people and their fate. Byzantium had a plan for the Vandals. Thousands of Vandal soldiers were sent far to the East. Their strength was put to use, but they were kept far enough away to prevent any attempt at a coup in North Africa.   The Vandals who remained in Africa were Romanized. Within just one generation, the Vandal language, culture, and customs disappeared. This Romanized Carthage became the capital of the Praetorian Prefecture of Africa. Arian churches were handed over to Catholic priests, and the Vandal identity was erased forever.   Unfortunately, Belisarius did not have a glorious end. Although he achieved a series of successes for a time after Ad Decimum, conquering Sicily, Naples, and eventually Rome, Justinian I never trusted him. When he was supposed to retire and enjoy his accomplishments, Justinian accused Belisarius of corruption and conspiracy and had him arrested. There is also a legend that Justinian had Belisarius blinded, but the truth of this cannot be confirmed.

  Named after the famous Roman general Julius Caesar, who sponsored and promoted its widespread implementation, the Julian Calendar was introduced in 45 BCE, replacing a lunar calendar that had become highly inaccurate. The adoption of a solar calendar represented a significant astronomical and administrative reform that spread with the expansion of Roman territory. It remained the dominant calendar in the Western world for over 1,600 years, when it was replaced by the Gregorian Calendar due to a minor flaw. However, the legacy of the Julian calendar remains ever-present and is still used in some modern churches.   What Preceded the Julian Calendar? Façade depicting Numa Pompilius, one of the legendary kings of Rome. Source: Louvre   The calendar used across the Roman world before the Julian reform was based upon lunar cycles, rather than solar ones. Whilst this closely mirrored the calendars of some neighboring civilizations, such as the Greeks, other Mediterranean civilizations, including the Egyptians and Carthaginians, used more accurate solar calendars.   In the earliest times, the Romans initially used a 10-month lunar calendar, comprising a total of 304 days, without specific months being linked to any of the seasons. After a reform by the legendary Roman king Numa Pompilius, ostensibly in the 6th century BCE, two additional months were added, after which only minor changes were made to the calendar up until Republican times.   The primary issue with Rome’s lunar calendar was that 12 lunar months reach only 354-355 days, short of the full length of the solar year. Over several years, this causes an increasing misalignment with the natural seasons. Although the Romans attempted to address this by inserting an “intercalary month” called Mercedonius or Intercalaris, towards the end of February, this was not a consistent practice.   Reproduction of the Fasti Antiates Maiores, a painted wall-calendar from the late Roman Republic, c. 84-55 BCE. Source: Wikimedia Commons   In fact, especially during the Late Republic, when civil strife and discord became increasingly prominent, priests and their aristocratic patrons could manipulate the calendar for their own political gain. By extending a year, their time in political office could be increased, or their opponents’ time in office could be decreased.   As a result of this often haphazard and chaotic manipulation, between 66 and 46 BCE, the Roman calendar had drifted away from the solar cycle by around 90 days. It was not by accident that this occurred during the dying days of the Roman Republic, when the state was beset by civil wars and the rise of Julius Caesar to the position of dictator.   Month Order Before Caesar’s Reform (Republican Roman Calendar) After Caesar’s Reform (Julian Calendar) 1 Ianuarius (January) Ianuarius (January) 2 Februarius (February) Februarius (February) 3 Martius (March) Martius (March) 4 Aprilis (April) Aprilis (April) 5 Maius (May) Maius (May) 6 Iunius (June) Iunius (June) 7 Quintilis (Fifth month) Iulius (July) — renamed in 44 BC after Julius Caesar 8 Sextilis (Sixth month) Augustus (August) — renamed in 8 BC after Emperor Augustus 9 September (Seventh month) September 10 October (Eighth month) October 11 November (Ninth month) November 12 December (Tenth month) December — Mercedonius / Intercalaris (intercalary month inserted after February in some years) — (abolished, replaced by leap day in February)   Inspiration for the Julian Calendar The Library of Alexandria, etching by O. Von Corvon, c. 19th century. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Integral to Julius Caesar’s reform of the Roman calendar was the civil war he fought against his political opponent Gnaeus Pompey, and the political consequences of Caesar’s victory. After their decisive showdown at the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BCE, Caesar followed the fleeing Pompey to the shores of Egypt, where Pompey was killed and his head offered to Caesar.   This left Caesar as the most powerful man in the Roman world by some margin. Within two years, he was granted the extraordinary position of dictator perpetuo. This, along with being Rome’s pontifex maximus or chief priest, put Caesar in a perfect position to make reforms. His decision to reform the calendar was inspired by his time in Egypt.   The Egyptians had a much more accurate method of measuring time, which Caesar began to notice while residing in that region from 48 to 46 BCE. In particular, he was influenced by Sosigenes, a Greek astronomer based in Alexandria, to reform the Roman calendar based on Egyptian models.   The Calendar Reform Statue of Julius Caesar as Lawmaker and dictator, commissioned in 1696 for the Gardens of Versailles. Source: Louvre   Caesar brought Sosigenes back to Rome with him so that the latter could help correct the chaotic calendar the Roman state had been using. The astronomer calculated the solar year to be approximately 365.25 days, a remarkably accurate estimate for the time.   He also developed the concept of a leap year, adding an extra day every four years to February, thereby helping the calendar stay closely aligned with the seasons. This was accompanied by the standardization of each month to 30 or 31 days, with the exception of February, and the decision to start the year on  January 1st, which had previously started on March 1st. These reforms set the calendar in stone and undermined the ability of magistrates and priests to manipulate the calendar.   Finally, to emphasize that this was truly the “Julian” calendar, instigated by Julius Caesar himself, the seventh month, previously called Quintilis, was renamed July in his honor. July was previously called Quintilis, or the fifth month, because the year was considered to start in March. This old system of numbering is still evident in modern month names, including September, October, November, and December.   Cultural and Religious Impact Saturnalia, by Antoine-Francois Callet, 1783. Source: Wikimedia Commons   The implementation of the Julian Calendar extended far beyond mere administrative reform. It became a powerful instrument of cultural unification across the Roman world. As Roman authority expanded, local timekeeping systems gradually yielded to Caesar’s calendar, creating a standardized temporal framework that helped reinforce imperial cohesion.   As such, religious practice throughout the empire underwent significant transformation, as festivals became permanently anchored to specific dates. No longer did priests need to announce observances; instead, the calendar itself functioned as a sacred text guiding religious life.   Major celebrations like Saturnalia (17th-23rd December) and Lupercalia (15th February) gained enhanced significance through their predictable annual recurrence, fundamentally altering how Romans conceptualized their relationship with the divine.   Julius Caesar by Italian Andrea di Pietro di Marco Ferrucci, 1512-14, via The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York   The calendar’s predictability also revolutionized agricultural planning, allowing farmers to schedule planting and harvesting according to relatively fixed dates rather than variable lunar cycles. Scholars have shown how this reliability improved crop yields and food security throughout Roman territories.   In a similar vein, civic administration benefited from the standardized system, with markets, elections, and legal proceedings now operating on a dependable schedule that enhanced economic efficiency.   The calendar thus became more than a method of tracking days. It evolved into a fundamental institution, synchronizing Roman society across religious, agricultural, administrative, and personal domains.   The Calendar’s Subsequent History Bust of the Emperor Constantine, Roman, c. 4th century CE. Source: Capitoline Museum, Rome   Throughout the imperial period, the calendar became thoroughly embedded in Roman civic and religious life. Provincial governors used it to schedule tax collections, while ordinary citizens planned their lives around its structure. By the 4th century CE, the Emperor Constantine‘s adoption of Christianity initiated the process of overlaying Christian observances onto this established framework, laying the groundwork for its medieval transformation.   When the Western Roman Empire collapsed in the 5th century CE, the Julian Calendar demonstrated remarkable resilience. Unlike many Roman institutions that vanished with imperial authority, this practical system of timekeeping persisted across former territories.   The Christian Church became the calendar’s most important custodian during the medieval period. Monasteries emerged as centres of timekeeping expertise, with monks calculating dates for Easter and other movable feasts through complex tables known as “computus.”   An Early Modern Computus, likely modelled on Medieval precursors, Italy, 1647. Source: Wikimedia Commons   The calendar thus transformed into a more religious framework, with each day acquiring commemorations of saints that created a “sanctoral cycle” overlaying the solar year. By the 9th century, Charlemagne‘s educational reforms had institutionalized knowledge of the Julian Calendar as standard clerical education.   However, despite widespread adoption, regional variations flourished within the calendar’s consistent structure. Different areas adopted various New Year conventions: England preferred the Annunciation style (March 25th), Germany used Christmas (December 25th), while Venice began its year on March 1st. Local saints’ days and harvest festivals further customized the calendar to regional needs while maintaining cross-regional compatibility.   When Pope Gregory XIII introduced his calendar reform in 1582, Eastern Orthodox churches notably rejected the change. The Byzantine Empire meticulously maintained Julian traditions, deeply integrating them into Orthodox liturgical practices. This calendar schism persists to some extent today, with Orthodox Christmas falling on January 7th, rather than December 25th, as used in the Gregorian Calendar.   Why Was the Julian Calendar Reformed? Pope Gregory XIII, by Bartolomeo Passarotti, 1586. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Pope Gregory XIII’s calendar reform of 1582 emerged primarily from astronomical necessity rather than political ambition. By the 16th century, the Julian Calendar’s slight miscalculation, overestimating the solar year by approximately eleven minutes, had accumulated into a ten-day discrepancy between the calendar date and the actual solar position, disrupting the ecclesiastical calendar’s alignment with seasonal phenomena.   The timing of Easter, calculated based on the spring equinox, had drifted significantly from its intended position, creating theological concerns about proper observance of Christianity’s most sacred feast. Gregory assembled a commission of mathematicians, astronomers, and clerics, led by physician Aloysius Lilius and mathematician Christopher Clavius, to address this growing temporal misalignment.   One of the earliest versions of the Gregorian Calendar printed in 1582. Source: Vatican Library   Their solution proved remarkably elegant: removing ten days from October 1582, with October 4th immediately followed by October 15th, while implementing a refined leap year system that omitted century years not divisible by 400. This modification reduced the calendar’s error to approximately one day per 3,300 years, a dramatic improvement over the Julian system’s drift of one day every 128 years.   Through this calculated intervention, Gregory XIII established a temporal framework that would eventually achieve near-universal adoption, becoming the international standard that continues to regulate global civil and commercial life today.   How Is the Julian Calendar Still Relevant Today? Onion dome towers of the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Alexander Nevsky and St. Nicholas, Tampere, Finland, 1890s. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Despite being replaced by the Gregorian system, the Julian calendar retains significant cultural and religious relevance in the modern world. Eastern Orthodox communities continue to calculate their liturgical calendar using Julian principles, resulting in the distinctive phenomenon of “dual dating” for major feasts, such as Christmas and Easter, across Christian denominations.   The Julian calendar also retains importance in historical scholarship and genealogical research, as records spanning over 16 centuries, from imperial Rome through early modern Europe, employed this system. Historians must regularly convert between Julian and Gregorian dates when studying primary sources, particularly from regions that maintained Julian reckoning into the early 20th century, such as Russia before its 1917 calendar reform.   Sirius (bottom) and the constellation Orion (right)   Astronomers still use the Julian Day number system, a continuous count of days since January 1, 4713 BCE, for precise astronomical calculations and dating celestial events across vast time scales. This specialized application demonstrates how Julian principles continue to serve scientific needs even as civil timekeeping has moved to more accurate systems.   The Berber people of North Africa and Ethiopian Orthodox communities likewise maintain calendrical practices derived from Julian traditions, illustrating how Caesar’s temporal framework transcended its Roman origins to become embedded in diverse cultural contexts worldwide. This remarkable persistence across millennia testifies to the Julian calendar’s practical utility and cultural adaptability despite its mathematical imperfections.

  It is a common misconception that life in the Middle Ages was extremely harsh and depressing. This couldn’t be further from the truth! While it is true that, at times, war and disease spread across the land, not all was doom and gloom. People (including peasants) had plenty of free time to enjoy life, and there were many ways to enjoy it. Discover some of the forms of entertainment popular in the Medieval period.   1. Board Games Detail from Children’s Games, by Pieter Brueghel the Elder, depicting a game of Knucklebones. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Board games have a long history, with evidence that they were a favored pastime as far back as ancient Egypt. They were also particularly popular among the Vikings. They continued to be a popular form of entertainment in the Middle Ages, challenging the mind and creating a friendly, competitive environment. Many Medieval games are still popular today, such as Chess and Checkers.   Modern Backgammon is a direct descendant of a game called “Irish,” played throughout Britain, and was, in turn, a direct descendant of a game called “Tables,” with various versions of the game going back to Greco-Roman times. Other board games, such as Nine Men’s Morris and Fox & Geese, were also extremely popular.   Reenactors as peasants enjoying a game of Nine Men’s Morris. Source: Iron Shepherds Living History   Games involving dice, bones, and other paraphernalia were also played. “Knucklebones” was especially popular among children. The object was to throw a knucklebone (or a substitute) into the air and manipulate other knucklebones on the ground before the thrown object landed.   Mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, “Hazard” was a dice game that was popular as well as complicated. Naturally, many of these games involved a fair amount of gambling!   2. Eating! A scene of a royal feast. Source: British Library   Contrary to popular belief, the Middle Ages were not a time of poor nutrition. While the amount and quality of food available varied by social class and location, access to food was generally good. While occasional food shortages and famines were a part of life, the wealthy could afford to eat extravagantly, and many did so with great enthusiasm.   Feasts and banquets were an excellent way to enjoy life and display wealth, impressing guests by procuring the fanciest foods with the most exotic herbs and spices. These dinners were large affairs, requiring a tremendous amount of preparation, with teams of cooks working many hours and even days to get things ready.   A medieval feast, France, 1290-1300, from Add MS 28162, f. 10v. Source: British Library   The main difference between feasts and banquets is that feasts were generally large dinners for any occasion, often accompanying religious ceremonies. In contrast, banquets were feasts held to honor a special guest or guests. Whether a banquet or just a regular feast, the dinners were often accompanied by entertainment, such as jugglers and jesters, who would amuse the guests with their antics.   An interesting note about medieval dinners is that there was no separation between the courses. Everything was brought out at the same time, which required many more servers than was necessary. The idea of separating dinner into courses originated in Spain with a Persian man named Ziryab, who insisted his food be brought out in separate stages, but the modern three-course service originated in Russia in the 19th century and was known as service à la russe.   3. Hunting and Hawking Illustration from the Codex Manesse, 14th century. Source: Public Domain   For the peasantry permitted to hunt, the activity was a way of sustaining oneself and one’s family. For the nobility, it was a sport that involved a great deal of socializing.   Horses and hounds were used to find and chase down prey, and the art of hunting was closely associated with military training. Hunting required skillful horseback riding, an essential part of being a nobleman during the Middle Ages. Large tracts of land were set aside for the nobility to hunt, and it was outlawed for peasants to hunt these areas. These forests were kept populated with game and tended to by gamekeepers.   Hunting in this fashion remained prevalent among the English nobility until recently, some of whom controversially practiced fox hunting. This led to a massive backlash from the public and a widespread campaign in the early 2000s that saw the sport banned. Despite this ban, there is little enforcement of the law, and foxes are still being chased and killed by terriers, hounds, horses, and human beings.   Detail of a bas-de-page scene of a mounted king, hawking, and a stag feeding, c. 1300-1340, Royal MS 10 E IV, f. 254r. Source: British Library   The use of birds of prey in hunting was also popular in medieval Europe and was a widespread pastime among the nobility. Admired for their agility and speed, falcons were the most popular bird used. Small prey such as squirrels, rabbits, and birds constituted the quarry for this form of entertainment.   Hawking or falconry is still a popular sport today, although, along with traditional horseback hunting, it has received a lot of negative attention and is regarded by many as a bloodsport, as well as being inhumane to keep falcons and other raptors caged.   4. Minstrels, Music, Mummers & Medieval Plays Marginal image from the Goreston Psalter. Source: British Library   Music, dance, and song were extremely important parts of medieval culture. Group singing was especially prevalent, and traditional songs would be learned and sung by families and groups of people on all occasions.   The Peasant Wedding Dance, by Pieter van der Heyden after Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art   Traveling minstrels were popular and would journey to villages and towns, taking their music with them and putting on performances for the locals. Troupes of theatrical actors also took their shows on tour. Different types of plays were presented for various occasions. There were religious plays, often produced by the church, to teach the Bible to the masses. There were pantomimes performed by mummers, morality plays, mystery plays, and a host of other styles of theater, enrapturing audiences from all over.   The first work of theater criticism in English, the Treatise of Miraclis Pleyinge. Source: British Library   Plays were written down and disseminated; many were available for different troupes to perform. Of course, playwrights and their skills were in high regard during the Middle Ages, as were the services of writers and poets. While many plays were written anonymously, in the Late Middle Ages, specific playwrights started to become popular. Geoffrey Chaucer was popular in the 14th century, and William Shakespeare dominated in the late 16th and early 17th centuries; his acting company performed in front of Queen Elizabeth I several times. But storytelling was an essential part of medieval life and need not have been done by trained actors. Family members entertained one another by telling tales, made-up or memorized!   5. Fairs and Festivals Village Fair by Gillis Mostaert, 1590. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Medieval fairs were huge socio-cultural events that served to break the monotony of everyday life and to provide a way for merchants to sell their wares. Popular since Roman times, fairs were held by French royalty during the early Middle Ages, and by the 7th century, they had become a regular event, being held in churchyards and usually on the feast days of certain saints.   The heyday of Medieval fairs was the 12th and 13th centuries. Traveling merchants made good use of these fairs, which served to introduce and spread exotic items from far and wide. As such, fairs attracted people from all classes, from peasants looking to buy a pig to the middle classes interested in procuring wool or linen to nobles fawning over expensive jewelry.   Children’s Games by Pieter Brueghel the Elder, 1560. Source: Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna   Of course, fairs weren’t just about buying and selling. They were also a way for people to socialize and experience life outside their often insular state of existence. Fairs attracted entertainments, with minstrels busking and troupes of actors putting on productions to catch the people’s attention.   Festivals were regularly held and celebrated in the name of famous religious figures or events. Every month, there was a festival with a different theme, such as spring harvest or veneration of the dead. Many forms of entertainment were included in these festivals, which were held across much of medieval Europe.   In June, the Midsummer Eve festival included much fire and celebrated the tale of Saint George and the Dragon in England. A big pyre was lit, and bones were thrown on the fire. This practice resulted in the term “bonfire.”   6. Medieval Sports Two men on horseback, wearing lavish armor, facing each other at a jousting tournament by Th. and C. Senefelder, 1817, after H. Östendorfer, 1541. Source: Wellcome Collection   Various sports were played throughout Europe during the Middle Ages. While children played made-up games as well as ones with established rules, much like today, adults played sports that were associated with their status in society.   The noble classes engaged in sports that required a great deal of preparation and equipment that the lower classes could ill afford. Martial games such as jousting and armored combat required armor that cost a fortune and was the preserve of the exceptionally wealthy.   An archery contest, Flemish manuscript (W.439.54R), c. 1480-90. Source: Walters Art Museum   Archery, however, was a sport practiced by all men, especially in England, where it came to be an important part of English culture. These sports served an important function in honing skills that would be used in warfare. Archers could mean the difference between life and death, and the kingdom’s safety. Apart from martial sports, the forerunner of tennis was popular. This medieval version is known as “real tennis” and was played with a glove instead of a racquet.   For the less wealthy folk, simpler games involving balls and skittles were popular. Many of the sports played by the lower classes were particularly violent. Games similar to rugby or soccer were played. These games had few rules and could involve entire villages, utilizing vast tracts of land as the playing field.   Boxing and wrestling were also very popular and were practiced in various forms throughout the medieval world.   Medieval Entertainments Were Social Events The Laughing Fool, by Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen, c. 1500. Source: Wikimedia Commons   Unlike today, where we can entertain ourselves in front of the television or computer screen, the people of medieval Europe had a generally more social outlook on entertainment.   It helped create and maintain the bonds of family and friendship while also providing happiness and meaning to life. In a world that could often be brutal, entertainment in the Middle Ages was a great source of love and laughter.