Food & drink in the household of english nobility in the 15th and 16th centuries : procurement, preparation, service and consumption

Abstract

In this monograph the procurement, storage, preparation, service and consumption of food in the households of greater and lesser nobility in England in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries are investigated together with household structure and organisation. Both aristocracy and gentry spent significant sums of money on food and drink, which resulted from their desire to make an impression, on the one hand, and from the duty of hospitality, which was an important aspect of noble life, on the other. Hospitality was both a demonstration and an exercise of power and the invitations offered were very often clues to shifting alliances and the flow of power. Household accounts show that guests were regularly accommodated at the estates of the wealthy and dining and feasts were used for the purpose of networking. The history of food has been given much attention, which resulted in a wide-ranging literature dealing with the meaning of food and its impact on people’s lives. We must remember, however, that food history is considered distinct from the more traditional field of culinary history, which focuses on the origin and recreation of specific recipes. Surprisingly, food developed relatively recently as a field of study and is not yet fully recognised as an academic subject. In Great Britain much research on food history has been conducted by just a few academics but most has been undertaken by amateurs. Outside the UK culinary history groups formed mainly in the USA, Canada and Australia. Indeed, the Department of History at The University of Adelaide has established a Research Centre for the History of Food and Drink. The Centre’s activities embrace the history of food and drink in both an Australian and a global context. Additionally, many university departments offer postgraduate studies in the history of food, for instance, the Food Studies Program at the University of Adelaide, a multidisciplinary program for people who want to understand the history and culture of food and drink. A further example is The Food Studies Programme at Chatham University, USA, an interdisciplinary domain that includes agricultural and culinary history as well as sociological, cultural, political, economic, and geographic examinations of food production and consumption.