download

614 MEDIEVAL ENGLAND
3. London Games
William HtzStephen writing in the twelfth century ends his
well-known description ofthe city of London, which he prefixed
to his life of Thomas Becket, with an account of the
sports and amusements ofthe citizens. 1 London he tells us *instead
of theatrical shows and stage plays has more holy plays,
representations of miracles, and the sufferings of martyrs*. In
deed miracle and liturgical plays were everywhere the essence
ofthe medieval drama, a subject too involved to develop in the
space ofa brief chapter. FitzStephen then proceeds to speak of
boys* games, for, he says, *we were all boys once'. On a carnival
day they bring fighting/cocks to school, and all the morning is
given up to the sport of watching their cocks doing battle; after
lunch they go to the fields for a game of ball; the scholars ofeach
school have their own ball, and most ofthe tradesmen too. The
city fathers and rich men ride out to watch the sport ofthe young
men, and by so doing revive their own youth. Every Sunday in
Lent the youths would ride out with lance and shield and en
gage in jousting in the meadows, while during the Easter holi
days they would occupy themselves with aquatic sports on the
river
(tilting
at a quintain, PL 1 3 3 a),
the bridge and the houses
on the banks being thronged with spectators who came to
laugh at the fun ofseeing boys tumbling into the water and be
ing hauled out by their companions in boats alongside. On
feast days in the summer they exercised themselves with archery
or in running, jumping, wrestling, putting the stone, or in
practising with javelins and shields; and while the boys were
engaged in these vigorous and manly pursuits the girls ofcourse
danced. 'Cytherea', writes our author imitating Horace, 'leads
the dance of maidens, the bright moon overhead, and the earth
is struck with free foot/ On winter mornings boars are set to
fight each other and bulls and bears are baited by dogs. When
the great marsh north ofthe city (Moorfields) was frozen over the
young men would disport themselves on the ice, sliding, tobog-
1 It is printed in Materials for the History of Thomas Becket, ed. J. C. Robertson
(Rolls Scries), iii, pp. 2-13.