Life in the Middle Ages - as it was and as it was n’t

The Catholic Herald has a good article, by Tom Colsy, triggered by his viewing of the new BBC series King and Conqueror on the Norman Conquest, about attitudes to and perceptions about life in the medieval centuries. Last month I linked to a video from the Welsh Viking which did a very good demolition job  on King and Conqueror in How not to represent the Norman Conquest

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Colsy’s article can be read at King and Conqueror is proof that the BBC doesn’t get the Middle Ages

I have written before about how so called ‘historical dramas’ convey a very prejudiced view of life in the medieval period where virtually everything is dank and dirty, with people trudging ankle-deep through mud whilst wearing clothes of the same colour, and where squalor and near starvation is the order of the day.

There is the rather splendid irony that Kingdom Come Deliverance, which is a very popular video game I discovered the other month, is so much more accurate in its depiction of medieval life.  In its particular case it is Bohemia in 1403. The first part of KCD came out several years ago. This has now been followed by KCD II, with much enhanced imaging, and even more possibilities for gamers. Now I am not a gamer myself, but the many links on the Internet give a very good idea of the narrative and feel of the game. I understand the pursuit of historical accuracy included having academics on the set for filming, and even went so far as to recreate the night sky as it was over Bohemia in the time. It does not shy away from the fact that this was a society in which religion was a central factor, and even if it slips occasionally is far better than many costume dramas in this respect. If the Czech creators of a video game can bring to life Bohemia on the eve of the Hussite revolution and wars with accuracy, humour and genuine appeal to the non-specialist audience, why cannot so-called “serious” television and film companies do the same?

And before you ask, I have studied and taught the Hussite period, never mind the Norman Conquest…