Health and hygiene in a castle

How did people stay clean and healthy during the time of medieval castles?

In this article you can find out:

What people's health was like during medieval times
What toilets and bathrooms were like in castles
What people's teeth were like in medieval times
What the plague was and how people tried to cure it

This resource is suitable for Castles topics for P2, P3, P4, P5, P6 and P7 (First and Second Level Curriculum for Excellence).

What was health like in medieval times?

Medieval handbook of health showing people picking garlic for medicinal uses — Image caption,
This medieval handbook of health from the 1300s shows people picking garlic to treat illnesses. (PRISMA ARCHIVO / Alamy Stock Photo)

Skeletons found in the ground from times can tell us a little bit about health in and around castle.
In the 1200s and 1300s, most people would not expect to live to an old age and many died young. However, kings and queens usually lived a bit longer.

Why?

Medieval doctors didn't have the same medicine as modern doctors have today.
Plants, like aloe and garlic, were used to treat common illnesses.

What was hygiene like in a castle?

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Image caption,
Toilets
Toilets in a castle were just a hole in a wooden or stone bench like this one at St Andrews castle in Fife. The waste would fall down a chute and into the moat or a cess pit. (JOHN BRACEGIRDLE / Alamy Stock Photo)
Image caption,
Hand washing
Some castles had stone basins built into the walls called lavabos, slop basins, or lavers. People used them as a sink to wash their hands before and after eating. This photo shows the slop basin in the tower house kitchen at Lochleven Castle. (SCRAN)

What about their teeth?

Archaeologists can look at skulls to find out what people's teeth were like during the time of castles.

It might be a surprise for you to learn that many people living in and around Medieval castles would have had clean teeth!

This is because they didn't eat much sugar – it was too expensive. The richer a person was the more sugar they could afford and the more their teeth decayed. Queen Elizabeth (1533–1603) was famous for her rotten teeth and she even brushed her teeth with honey.

And they didn't have sweeties and fizzy drinks like we do now. They ate lots of grains and vegetables which are very good for your teeth.

What was the Plague?

The plague (also known as the Black Death) was a that spread across Europe during the Middle ages.

spread through fleas on rats
first arrived in Scotland in 1349
caused painful swellings, made it difficult to breathe and infected blood
killed about half of all the people in Europe

Doctors tried many unusual things to cure the plague:

rubbing onions, herbs and even chopped up snakes on the boils
drinking vinegar
sitting close to a fire or in a sewer to drive out the fever

Test your knowledge

Research the history of the toilet

Toilets in castles were usually just a hole in a wooden or stone bench. The waste would fall down a chute and into the or a . Yuck!

Can you find out when the flush toilet was invented?

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