Medieval Life: Whitsuntide

Life for Medieval peasants wasn't all work and no play.  There were days off, Sundays and religious feasts and holidays.  They also had three full weeks each year where there was no work required of them on the lord's land.  One of those was Whitsuntide, the week following Pentecost.  Pentecost marked the commemoration of Jesus' pouring out the Holy Spirit on his disciples following his death, and was celebrated on the 7th Sunday, or roughly 49-50 days after Easter.  Because of the white vestments worn by the clergy during church services on this day, or the white robes of those getting baptized, it became known as White Sunday, or Whit Sunday or Whit.  The week following the Sunday was known as Whitsuntide, with an entire week off from agricultural work.

And everyone made the most of it.  Royalty and nobility hosted feasts, or elaborate religious pageants and morality plays.  Parishes and towns staged parades known as Whit Walks, sometimes led by young girls dressed in white in honor of the day.  Villages and towns held fairs or also staged plays and pageants.  Food and wine flowed to all who could afford it.  Whit Walks are still performed in some parishes to this day in honor of the Medieval tradition.  This year's Whitsunday would be June 4, 2017.