The Middle Ages was a period of more than a thousand years in which culture and scientific development were considerably delayed. This includes the “Dark Ages”, an era when superstitions outweighed reason.
Katherine Harvey, author of “A cultural history of sexuality in the Middle Ages” shows us one of the least known facets of the Middle Ages: sex education. In his book, he gives us answers to 5 frequently asked questions at that time (and even today) about sex and love.
They are curious and show us the level of ignorance about sexuality and the human body that abounded at the time.
“I’m in love with someone who doesn’t love me, what can I do?”
In medieval times the safest thing would be to resort to the magic of love. For example, experts advised putting ant eggs in the tub of the person they wanted to fall in love with, or sprinkling their food with the periwinkle plant. They could also wear henbane or crazy grass on top to look incredibly attractive.
Of course, the Church would not have accepted these behaviors, so they had to practice them with secrecy.
In case the man was suffering from lovesickness due to unrequited feelings, he was advised to rest, take a hot bath and eat well. Stomach purges or bleeding would help rebalance the humors. Other methods were to be able to contemplate other women or to convince you that you do not love her.
“My husband and I have 8 children and we cannot pay more, what do we do?”
This was a very common problem in those days. Since children were very important and also very expensive, couples were advised to abstain, something that was not very well seen, since it was considered that in this way they were “denying the marital debt”, a serious sin.
So, to avoid sin, it was advised not to “fertilize the seed” by making the husband withdraw before ejaculating, and then moving so that the seed escapes from the woman’s body, trying to sneeze or jump was highly recommended.
Amulets such as jet or weasel testicles were very popular to prevent conception, as well as attaching the genitals to some oils or herbs. Other recipes to intervene in pregnancy were herbal concoctions, which had to be taken with care and discretion, since preventing pregnancy was also a sin.
“I’m not a virgin and I’m about to get married, how can I prevent my husband from finding out?”
The “bad news” was that there were (at least in belief) many ways to check virginity. It was believed that the urine of a virgin woman is thin and clear, and that virgin women urinated much more delicately and for longer.
But since not all men were doctors, they would expect some blood and pain at the time of penetration, so they were advised to have intercourse on a day of menstruation. Other measures that were taken were to rub the female genitalia with some blackberries, which would contract the area, produce spots and cheat on the husband.
Some Italian women inserted leeches to cause bleeding and cheat on their husbands, something unthinkable that would end the career of the doctor who advised him today.
“I am a priest and I have heard stories of men dying of celibacy, how can I prevent it from happening to me?”
At that time it was thought that dying from celibacy or lack of sexual relations was possible, due to the belief that semen must be expelled regularly. If this did not occur, the semen accumulated and “damaged the heart”, which would cause headaches and weight loss, leading to death.
If it is not expelled, the semen will come out by itself through nocturnal ejaculations, which priests and religious men preferred since they did not consider it a sin. The priests were advised to change the diet, some foods generate more semen than others, such as red meat. They were advised to avoid wine, which warms the stomach and causes lust.
Other methods were those of bloodletting, since the exchange of fluids ensured a celibate body.
“I am impotent and my wife is threatening to leave me, what can I do?”
In medieval times, it was thought that men became impotent because of some jealous ex-lover. In these cases, the priests advised an exorcism or some penance. In case magic wasn’t to blame, some medicines like kidney powder and vulture testicle were advised.
The dietary advice was also regular, eating meat, eggs and increasing alcohol consumption, which increased desire, were very recurrent. It was also advisable to create a suitable space, where there was a lot of heat, so the rooms were always surrounded by fire.
If nothing worked, the wife was entitled to a “marriage annulment” because procreation was a marriage right.
As you can see, the Middle Ages were a period of much ignorance and misinformation in which the top “experts” on each subject knew mostly less than many of us today without much study, and superstitions abounded.
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BBC World