 starter activity
To get round the enforced silence at mealtimes
some monks developed an extremely complex
sign language to communicate what they
wanted. What do you think the following signs
meant?
Waving the hand sideways
 Rubbing the nose with your right hand
 Drawing a circle in the air with the thumb and 2
fingers

Answers
Waving the hand sideways meant fish
 Rubbing the nose with your right hand
meant mustard
 Drawing a circle in the air with the thumb
and 2 fingers meant bread

What was life like in a
medieval monastery?
 Aims
To identify the different sections of a
monastery
To describe a typical day in the life of a
monk
What did monks do?




A monk at work on an
illuminated manuscript
Obeyed Rule of St
Benedict
Prayed, worked, ate &
slept together
Vows of poverty &
chastity
4 types or orders:
Benedictines, Cluniacs,
Cistercians &
Carthusians (silent)
What were the vows that monks
made?






Spend his life in the service of God
Give away his property to others
Obey the abbot at all times
Wear a habit and sandals and have a tonsure
Stay in the monastery throughout his life
Remain celibate
Who worked in a monastery?




Glastonbury Abbey

Abbot – Christ’s
representative
Monks – services,
prayers
Novices - trainees
Lay brothers – estate
workers
Obedientaries - servants
What did a monk do during the day?





Daily round of prayers &
services
Special festivals, e.g.
Christmas, Easter Day &
Saints Days
Prayers for souls of
wealthy patrons
Reading & illuminating
Daily meetings in chapter
house
Fountains Abbey
Where did they work & live?
Click image for bigger
version
 Your task
Write the diary entry for a medieval monk. It is a very busy day.
Try to include as many references to the different things a monk
would have done in a single day as you can and explain why they
are important to life in a medieval monastery.
Limited range of
references, e.g. to
abbot, prayers
& sign language
Broad range of
references to
individuals, places,
responsibilities, but
entries lack detail and
don’t really explain why
they are important.
Broad range of
references as well as
detailed information on
different types of
prayers, different
locations within
monasteries, different
types of monks, and
explain why these
things are important to
the life of the
monastery.
 Your task
Channel 4 have decided to produce a medieval
reality game show based on life in a monastery.
Use the ‘Big Brother’ format to create a short
role play showing what a typical day in the life
of a monastery must have been like. You may
wish to include diary room entries, ‘Big Brother’
style tasks and even an interview with ‘Divina’!
Prayers & services
Service
Time
Night office / Matins
12am
Prime
Dawn
Terce
Mid-morning
Sext
12pm
None
Mid-afternoon
Vespers
Late afternoon
Compline
Dusk
Obedientaries






These were men who were responsible for the day to
day running of the monastery, and who ensured the
Rule was followed to the letter. They included:
the cellarer (responsible for provisions),
the fraterer (crockery, linen & lavatorium)
the chamberlain (beds, clothing)
the almoner (charitable gifts to the poor)
the precentor (organisation of church services)
the sacrist (church furnishings)