: : I really really don't want to get into this but I have to snicker at this sentence. In England for most of the middle ages, this situation didn't exist. The lowest classes were the ones most likely to speak English, the clerics and nobles favored French (after c. 1066) or Latin! There were a number of English kings who probably couldn't speak a word of English. But this points out the problem: very few descriptions of medievality would be accurate! Perhaps Aelmer is just pointing this out.

: Yes, I was, along with spotless castles and neat & clean nobles.
: Let's face facts. When most people hear the word "medieval", the only references they have are numerous motion pictures and televison programs. These have seldom,if ever, portrayed life as it was in the middle ages, or any other age for that matter. So people are left with the eight common perceptions that I listed, however inaccurate they may be.

LOL. I loved your concise list of what most people think of when they hear the word "medieval". And that's pretty much what I had in mind. And I had wanted to mention the use of French in the English court (and not to long ago German!) and how most people would be totally lost, not understanding either the French or the English in usage at the time. Of course we Americans still have trouble understanding our British cousins on occaission. As was once said, We're two people divided by a common language. I only wish more people would watch The Lion In Winter than Camelot. And despite the innaccuracies in The Lion In Winter, it at least seemed a more realistic view of medieval English court life. At least I don't owe my entire outlook on medieval life to Monty Python ("It's just a flesh wound!"), just most of it. :)

And to number eight on the list I would add "perfect 'Shakespearean' English".