The Middle Ages are a recurring theme on the chess board. The king and queen are dressed in clothes inspired by this period, the rook is represented by an impressive castle and fierce knights are the bishops. Why are people so fascinated with the Middle Ages?
A game of chess and the Middle Ages go together well. In this period of time the game was popular amongst the elite. It was even an important part of the education of the children of the aristocracy. It was very suitable for long winter nights by the fire, when there was not much else to do. Chess was also an appropriate game for lovers. It’s a recurring theme in medieval literature, including illustrations in which couples play a game of chess.
Medieval themed chess set
To stand still is to regress
With the start of the early modern times, the Middle Ages (roughly 500 -1500 AD) were classified as a dark and backward period. Famous philosophers such as Erasmus were of the opinion that the Middle Ages were a time of stagnation. Only from the 16th century onwards would the world have started moving again. A lot happened in those early modern days so it wasn’t that strange that they thought this way. The art of printing had been recently invented, which made it possible for new ideas to be distributed quickly and with a bigger range than before. Catholicism lost its monopoly on religion and had to live side by side with Protestantism. More and more people moved to the cities, the production of all sorts of (luxury) goods augmented; recently discovered territories such as America supplied Europe with unknown exotic products and the level of wealth in Europe increased.
All of these developments made the Middle Ages seem a bit simple in comparison to the early modern days, but they were definitely not backward. Medieval literature shows us interesting examples of the turbulent lives of both the aristocracy as well as normal civilians of that time. The original creators of these stories are usually unknown. The oral tradition of storytelling had been the way to diffuse these texts for centuries before they were finally written down. A well-known example is the early medieval legend of tragic lovers Tristan and Isolde (who also happen to play a game of chess in the story). Another example is Elckerlyk (Everyman), in which the main character goes on a pilgrimage before he dies.
The glorifying of the Middle Ages in the 19th century
After ages of contempt, the Middle Ages were started to be appreciated again in the 19th century. The paradigm that is now called Romanticism glorifies this period profusely. Romantic or courtly love, loyalty and courage are considered typically medieval qualities and are attributed in that way to fictional characters. Medieval stories are given a second chance on life, such as the legend of Tristan and Isolde, which Richard Wagner turns into an opera in 1865. The expressive arts represent knights and ladies in a fairytale manner and architects are inspired by the medieval building styles. They design fairytale castles and prestigious structures with romantic towers, crenels on the walls and moats around the outside walls.
A genre of their own
The 19th century is also the era of fairytales. The most famous books are written by the German Grimm brothers and the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen. The Grimm brothers collected century-old folktales that had been passed on by the oral tradition. These stories are full of typically medieval elements such as witchcraft, supernatural powers, elves and demons. The medieval people truly believed in these phenomena, but the Protestant church thought of them as superstitions and it fought them whichever way it could. In the 19th century wizardry and magical figures were no longer a part of daily life. The stories had become fairytales, only without the sweet edge that was given to them in the 20th century. Most of the fairytales had an unhappy ending. Hans Christian Andersen put more contemporary folktales to paper and also wrote some of his own fairy tales. Although fairy tales had existed for ages and had been written down before, they became a very popular genre of their own in the 19th century.
The ongoing popularity of the Middle Ages
The fascination with the Middle Ages, especially the characteristics and styles of the 19th century, has not ceased to exist ever since the Romantic period. Television series and movies, inspired by medieval legends of brave knights and immaculate ladies are still a crowd-pleaser. The story of Robin Hood for example has been made into motion pictures many times over in the past century. It is no surprise that we can also find the Middle Ages on the chess board. At the Chessmen Museum there are several medieval themed chess boards on display. We can admire Robin Hood as well as fairytale-like kings and queens surrounded by a mystical air and strange characters …
Chess set with a design inspired by the Middle Ages
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