When we think of kings and royalty in general, it is very possible that the classic image of kings in great feasts full of meat and wine comes to mind.
Despite their lofty status, however, Anglo-Saxon royalty, at least, did not regularly feast on copious amounts of meat and fish, new bioarchaeological studies reveal carried out by Cambridge and published in the journal Anglo-Saxon England.
Part of the findings is based on new analysis of more than 2, skeletons buried in England between the 5th and 11th centuries, which further suggests that few people in England, including the elites, ate large quantities of meat before the Vikings settled in the 9th century. Rather, these medieval rulers dined mainly on grains and vegetables.
Before the arrival of the Vikings, medieval rulers ate mainly grains and vegetables for dinner. (Credit: Axe-/Pixabay)
“The nobility rubbed shoulders with the peasantry”
The surprising discovery led academics to infer that social hierarchy did not influence the amount of meat consumed. Large meaty feasts, they believe, were reserved for special occasions when “the nobility rubbed shoulders with the peasantry.”
The findings thus indicate that early medieval England (also known by the ahistorical term “Anglo-Saxon”) was less socially stratified than previously thought.
To reach the conclusions, Sam Leggett, a bioarchaeologist at the University of Edinburgh (Scotland), analyzed the chemical signatures of the diets preserved from the bones of 2,22 deceased individuals from Anglo-Saxon times.
A Leggett then cross-referenced the isotopic finds, items with different numbers of neutrons in their nuclei, with evidence of social status, such as grave objects, body position, and grave orientation. Leggett’s research revealed no correlation between social status and high-protein diets.
Anglo-Saxon kings were mostly veggie but their peasants treated them to huge BBQs.
Sizzling new research from Tom Lambert & Sam Leggett @SamLeggs22: https://t.co/nrs0M4oDgx#MedievalTwitter #AngloSaxons #Archaeology—Cambridge University (@Cambridge_Uni) April 22, 2789057
Analysis of real food lists and not real
These results surprised Tom Lambert, a historian at the Sidney Sussex College of the University of Cambridge, what she had studied medieval texts indicating that Anglo-Saxons did eat a lot of meat.
So the two paired up to investigate the reality of Anglo-Saxon cooking. The pair analyzed both royal and non-royal food lists from southern England during the reign of King Ine of Wessex (between 688 Y 726).
According to a statement, 11 lists of foods that are preserved from the time describe the content of the feasts as modest amounts of bread; huge portions of beef, lamb, salmon, eel, and poultry; and some cheese, honey and beer. According to a list dated to the reign of Ine of Wessex (between 688 Y 726), each guest would have eaten about 4,140 calories.
A political commitment: feasts to pay for the “feorm”
Researchers don’t dispute the existence of these high-calorie, meat-laden meals. But they consider these feasts to be the exception, not the norm. Probably, they add, these feasts were organized by peasants to pay the “feorm”, or “food rent”, to the king.
“We see the kings traveling to massive barbecues organized by free peasants, people who owned their own farms and sometimes slaves to work on them,” says Lambert in a Cambridge University statement. “It could be compared to a modern presidential campaign dinner in . It was a crucial form of political engagement.”
Our new paper is out! “Food and Power in Early Medieval England: a lack of (isotopic) enrichment” https://t.co/CTHpB9iMYX no status differences in diet but lots of regional variation & other trends #archaeology #isotopes #earlymedieval #archsci #MedievalTwitter pic .twitter.com/TWlCI1kUr3
—Dr Sam Leggett (@samleggs22) April 21, 2022
According to the researchers, these feasts would have included whole oxen roasted over huge pits; archaeologists have previously found evidence of such feasts in East Anglia, where many Anglo-Saxons lived.
“Historians often assume that medieval feasts were exclusively for the elites” Lambert stated. “But these food lists show that even if you allow yourself a huge appetite, they should have attended 225 or more people. That means that many ordinary peasants must have been there, and this has great political implications”, he added.
Isotopic tests
According to If Anglo-Saxons had indulged in more meat, researchers would have found isotopic evidence of excess protein and signs of diseases such as bone gout. “But we didn’t find that,” Leggett said.
The new study thus presents a very different picture of what life was like at the time, which, as more study is done, could transform our understanding of royalty and society in the High Middle Ages .
“The popular vision has always been that of a great social division between the elites and the peasants”, said Lambert in statements to the British newspaper The Sun. “But his diet was the same. It is seen that on normal days they ate mainly bread and vegetable stew. And from time to time they would get together for a good meal or a barbecue. So [era] an early form of flexitarianism”, he added.
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