GAMES
Middle - and upper-class couples of the 15th century favored the game of chess, which had entered Europe via Arabic players in Spain. Originally the game had a vizier and not a queen accompanying the king. During the reign of Isabella I (1451-1504) the queen replaced the vizier. Also, instead of being moved only diagonally as the vizier was, the queen could be moved in any direction. Modern scholars have suggested that the appearance and power of the queen on the European chessboard may have reflected the power of Queen Isabella. By the late 16th century chess was more often played by males as the pace of the game became much faster. Although queens such as Catherine de’ Medici (1519-80) and Elizabeth I (1533-1603) were devoted chess players, women in the domestic environment were subject to numerous interruptions. They either had to tend to children and cooking or supervise servants doing those tasks. The courtly, leisurely game of chess played by women during the Renaissance became too fast paced and professionalized for them to enjoy it.
Many people played card games, and some very beautiful hand-colored cards are extant from this period, probably commissioned by avid players. By the time of the Counter-Reformation, card playing had fallen into disrepute because preachers and priests warned that this pastime encouraged the vice of gambling. Nevertheless soldiers on campaign, sailors at sea, and innumerable couples housebound during the winter continued to play. Other games of chance involved dice, coins, and dominos. Children probably had board games, which were simple to make. There were also musical games, as well as music played to accompany singing.
Handbook to Life in Renaissance Europe
Many outdoor games would qualify as sports since they required active physical participation. Church groups played ball games, community members challenged each other to races, and, on a grander scale, tournaments enacted the chivalric competitions of the Middle Ages. Women and girls usually were spectators at outdoor events unless dancing, as in maypole celebrations, was involved. Renaissance humanists taught the ancient Greek ideal of the benefits of physical exercise for young men, in a balanced regimen of wrestling, running, hunting, swimming, and other activities. Although the classes might mingle in sporting activities, peasants were not expected to best noblemen. Among the upper classes tennis became very popular during the 16th century. Golf was revived in Scotland, its homeland, and a version of soccer was played in England. Animal sports such as bearbaiting drew huge crowds, even though the violent nature of these events was criticized by religious leaders.
Ceremonies, Festivities, and Other Public Events
The premier festivity in most areas of Europe was carnival, with its preceding weeks of indulgence in rich food, alcoholic beverages, sexual activity, and hectic street theater. Although of religious derivation, carnival was celebrated in a very secular manner. Observance of saints’ days, civic processions, weddings, and triumphal entries also drew communities together. Entertainment for such events included pantomimes, public declamations, recitations of poetry, singing, and participatory dancing. Artists made drawings of many royal festivities, and tapestries were sometimes woven to commemorate these events. Visitors to palaces and chateaux were reminded of the festive occasion whenever they viewed these large-scale scenes.
World History
