Knights Journal Part 3
3rd page
You MUST have a TITLE for the Journal entry.
Your Knight has been on the journey and has now arrived at a
monastery. Your job is to describe their overnight stay at the
monastery. You MUST have at least FIVE historical references
in this entry.
Additional items that MUST be in the entry:
o Describe what the monastery looks like.
o Describe at least 1 room in the monastery and its
purpose. Explain why your knight would be in that room.
o Give details of a conversation between yourself and a
monk/nun. The following should be included in the
conversation detail.
*A description of at least one weapon a knight would
carry
*An outline of the training a knight goes through
*The purpose of a monk / nun
*The daily life in a monastery
This entry should include the name of the Lord that has
requested your service and the year.
Write a rough draft of the entry and have a classmate read
it before writing it in your Journal.
Have at least one drawing/picture.
The different parts of a Benedictine
Monastery
Whether large or small, the architectural structure
of all the Benedictine monasteries reflects the
monastic conduct indicated in the Regula,
providing space for places of the soul.
The Church: the dominant element of the
monastery, with its domes and towers, it occupies
a central position in the complex of buildings that
make up the abbey, reflecting the nature of the
activity carried out there. This is often where
benefactors of the community are buried and the
remains of saints are preserved.
Interior of the Abbey of Montecassino
The Chapterhouse: this is the seat for official
assemblies in monastic life, as well as the setting
for readings from the Regula. Even though the
passage that is read does not necessarily
correspond to a chapter, this name still indicates
the room in which the monks increased their
knowledge of their code.
The Cloisters: at the centre of these open spaces
are flowerbeds and the traditional well. The
cloisters unite the different buildings together,
becoming like a framework for the monastery,
and are used by the monks for walking under
cover. The Rule of silence is strictly observed in
the cloister.
The library: has always been of great importance
in the monastery, as reading and study play an
integral part in Benedictine monastic life. The
libraries house rare books and manuscripts
collected by the monks over the years.
The dormitory: from a common place for sleep,
as prescribed by St. Benedict, this has since been
replaced over the years by the single cells that
came into general use in the XV century.
The refectory: is the place for eating together,
during which, in order to raise the smallest
actions carried out during the day to the status of
profoundly religious acts, the food is blessed and Pharmacy in the Carthusian Monastery of Trisulti
accompanied by a reading from the Holy
Scriptures, as laid down in the Regula: “There
must always be a reading in the dining hall of the
brothers”.
The guest rooms: the monasteries were often
located along busy roads and were equipped to
offer hospitality to simple travellers, or kings,
princes and bishops.
The infirmary and the pharmacy: entrusted to
the care of a doctor-monk, the infirmary was
equipped to take care of ill or weak monks or
other guests who needed help. The pharmacy was
linked to the infirmary.
The garden of the “semplici” or herbs: this was
the name of the vegetable garden set aside for the
cultivation of medicinal herbs, used by the monks
to prepare medicines.
The farm: the land belonging to the abbey was
cultivated directly by the monks, or entrusted to
local farmers, to produce foodstuffs, which gave
the monks an opportunity to work and also
provided the abbey with a way of supporting
itself and producing its food independently.
Connected to this activity are the Stores and the
Larders where food was stored under the
supervision of one of the monks.
The cemetery: On their death, the monks were
buried in the monastery’s own cemetery. Thus the
deceased monks were able to remain in the
monastery and those still alive were able to
maintain their memories of their brothers.
Cloister in the Abbey of Casamari