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Surprising as it might seem, "cleanliness is next to godliness" was a common idea in the middle ages, so people in towns and cities tended to bathe frequently. Physicians of the time connected bad smells with disease, clergy believed a clean body was an indicator of a good soul.
People bathed in public baths in the towns and cities, and this was a bit problematical at the time, since it meant a certain amount of public nudity, which was not thought good. The public baths were equipped with wooded tubs or were in the ground. Hot springs provided hot water, where it was available. Where there were no springs, people could heat water and put it in the tub in winter, or they could bathe in the cold.
Later, as the Renaissance set in, people had more access to perfume and clean clothes, and tended to clean only those parts of the body that showed, unless they got very dirty somehow.
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What is the modern myth about bathing in the middle ages?
There is a widespread belief that people did not bathe in the Middle Ages. This myth arises because bathing went out of practice during the Renaissance, when people worried that it was unhealthy and rich people could afford perfume. Since we have a tendency to regard the Renaissance as a period of improvement, we often ascribe anything about it that was unpleasant to the Middle Ages. During most of the Middle Ages, however, people regarded cleanliness as next to godliness, and kept themselves very clean. There is a link below.
What kind of work were most people involved in during the middle ages?
During the Middle Ages, most people were farmers.
What is the difference between the Renaissance and middle ages?
the difference between the renaissance and the middle ages is that the middle ages was a time of survival and religious belives. During the middle ages people still believed in god. Also, there were many raids, and travel was not safe. People focused on getting enough food and survivng in the harsh way of life. The middle ages is known as the dark ages because of how harsh people lived. On the other hand the renaissance was of time of rebith, invention, and bring back the classic ways of the Greek and Roman ideas. People lived in luxury and enjoyed life unlike the people of the medival era, otherwise known as the middle ages.
What were people called in the middle ages who were not civilized?
They were called the barbarians.
What was a Frobisher in the middle ages?
people who bathed flabby sheep
