Mary of Lorraine

Mary of Guise, also called Mary of Lorraine, was Queen of Scotland from 1538 until 1542, as the second wife of King James V. She was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France.

Essential tool pouches on belts

Peasant men wore belts with pouches to carry essential tools, such as sharpening stones or sewing implements.

Keeping garments clean while working

When performing dirty work, peasant women tucked their long cotes into the waistbands of their aprons to keep the hems clean.

Chapel choir life and rewards

The Duke's chapel choristers at Saint-Georges received an annual salary of 96 francs, a well-paid position at the time. On Saint Cecilia's Day, children of the choir were treated with distributions of small pastries.

Musicians and their earnings

Court musicians known as tabourins often played the flute and drum simultaneously, using one hand for each instrument. The Duke's favorite rebec player, Guillaume Baudet, earned enough to purchase a house in Nancy in 1514.

Daily travel distance for pack animals

In level country, merchant trains using pack animals could cover fifteen to twenty-five miles per day.

Public access to royal postal horses

By the early sixteenth century, King Francis I allowed the public to travel by the royal postal service, which used horses at a gallop between relay stations, though this service was very expensive.

Cooking over an open fire

Families cooked pottage or porridge all day in iron or brass kettles over a central fire on a stone hearth. To keep the smoke from filling the room, some homes used a conical hood or funnel to vent the fire toward the roof.

Home lighting and water collection

Common dwellings featured floors of beaten earth covered with straw, and interiors were lighted by doors or small, unglazed windows. Water was a heavy burden to collect, with women often carrying it in jugs from distant sources for household use.

Daily Bread, Porridge, and Soup

Ordinary Lorrainers typically ate one to two pounds of bread daily, often supplementing it with soup, porridge made from grain cooked in lard, and cheese. Vegetables like legumes were dietary staples, while meat was primarily consumed as boiled soup meat.

Drinks and Fasting Days

Common people often drank water or a low-quality fermented drink called picotte, while taverns were important social spaces. During the frequent religious fast days, which numbered up to 150 per year, they relied on river fish or dried sea fish instead of meat.

Cost of a stained-glass window in 1516

In 1516, a stained-glass window featuring the coat of arms of Renée of Bourbon was commissioned from the glazier Nicolas Graxien for a payment of 2 francs.

Glazier's annual wages in 1511

In 1511, Nicolas Graxien, a glazier for the ducal household in Nancy, received an annual wage of 8 francs and 8 measures of grain.

Common jobs in rural Lorraine

Most people in the Duchy of Lorraine were peasants who worked in agriculture, mainly focusing on cereal crops like grains. Additional industries like glass manufacturing, salt mining, and paper production were also important rural occupations.

Female roles at the Nancy Mint

At the Nancy Mint, female workers known as tailleresses were specifically employed to trim excess metal from coin blanks to ensure they reached the correct weight. This task was frequently performed by the wives or daughters of the male minters.

Letters carried by travelers and merchants

Ordinary people often relied on traveling merchants, pilgrims, or occasional passersby to carry their letters, as formal postal services were largely restricted to royal or elite use. Urgent messages could require a dedicated rider, but even these could take weeks to deliver depending on luck, weather, and road conditions.

Reliance on oral communication and messengers

Because most people could not read or write, they relied on face-to-face communication or messengers who memorized oral messages. Written letters were rare, expensive, and often read aloud by a third party even to those who could read.