Medieval Misconceptions: Inns, accommodation, and taverns

What were inns and accommodation really like in the medieval period?

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[schlawa]

In rural Germany, Inns had additional tasks, for example they would keep records of the people that stayed there and had to report these to the local Lord. If it was a remote village, the innkeeper would also often serve as a kind of local authority, and decide minor quarrels of the village if the next court-day when the Lord visited would only be in a long time. In these cases, the Inn would often be the place where court would be held.

[FuriouslySleepingIde]

Staying with people also partially explains the penchant for scaring and maiming as punishment. If thieves get their ears cut off or a T branded on their faces, it effectively bars them from finding accommodations. This is another role playing possibility. What if the fighter gets a facial scar and suddenly everyone thinks he's a criminal. Or what if the thief gets caught and the local lord threatens to brand him unless the party does a quest.

[rikremmerswaal]

Fun fact, quite a few cities tried to fend off their travelling king. Charles the 5th subjects in Flanders once spread a rumour the plague was in town to make sure he would not visit, because the cities could not bear the coasts of the king staying over for a prolonged period of time.

[clefsan]

Shad really knows the Inns and outs of medieval hospitality :-)

[wesleyjudson]

In certain areas of Russia, inns were basically a particularly large house "owned" by a family, who sold the dining room of their home to be slept in. And if people wanted to pay extra, they they could sleep in the beds and bedrooms of one of the family members, who would sleep in the dining room instead.

Their was also things called slop houses in certain port villages, where a tavern would buy/build out a few sheds nearby for people to walk to after drinking to sleep in, and these sheds were often split up and had multiple large beds as well.

All in all, people got pretty creative when it came to providing accommodation for travelers, and loved to reward patrons for telling stories. This idea of telling stories in return for accommodation was likely where the idea of the travel bard came in, and there were even lots of norse myths focused around the telling of these stories, which is part of the reason why there are so many records of their heroes and their glory in combat.

[williansnobre]

I experienced the monastery thing in the modern days.
We were travelling across the country by car, around 3000 km, and we reached a city up north at a very unfortunate time, there was a local event going on and there was no room on any hotel, we walked around and a local guy pointed us to the local convent and surely enough, the nuns took us in, let us sleep on a nice room with beds for everyone and even offered us breakfast. My dad gave them a donation because he felt guilty receiving all that hospitality for free.
We paid for worst places before.
10/10

[WarhorseStudios]

1:43 yes.. yes... we are game developers, so this video is for us! <3

[BBrinckmann]

I remember an anecdote of a traveler in Norway in somewhere in 18th century who planned only to stay one night at a remote farm before wanting to cross a glacier, quite late in the year. But then the weather turned and he had to decide to stay there the entire winter. So he just stayed with that family for 6 months and nobody seemed to make a big deal out of it. It's really interesting how welcoming strangers in your home was such an essential part of society and culture in the olden days.

[zacharyjohnson]

I remember one time playing DnD our party entered a small village to wait for a few who fell behind. as to avoid getting split up any longer we were going to stay at the local inn to wait. When we asked the DM where the inn was he just went
"There is no inn or tavern."
This was followed by baffled silence to which he answered
"They're broke I dunno what to tell you."

[Hendricus]

I feel like Shad's neighbours wouldn't be surprised if he erected siege artillery in his garden at one point. Or fought a small battle with others using real swords, shields and armour

[sixoffcenter]

I think Inns as we see them in D&D are a direct result of the existence of Adventurers as we see them in D&D. Adventures are largely a class separate from peasants, merchants, or nobles. Adventures have gold to burn, but are such a pain in the ass to deal with that no one wants them in their house.

[DamonNomad]

In my fantasy story, written over 10 years ago, the protagonist undertakes a long journey and his lodgings are varied. His budget is limited, so he sometimes stays with farmers, sometimes in monasteries, and occasionally has to shelter beside the road under a bush. Many of his lodgings, however, are arranged by the fact that his grandfather had been a well-connected military officer and wrote letters to his old war buddies who lived along his grandson's planned route. The protagonist would, on arriving in a town or village, ask the locals about the addressee of the letter, who would sometimes be there to give him lodging, but sometimes would have died or moved elsewhere.

[archeofutura_]

Interestingly, in Gaelic Ireland there was a tradition where the local lords would have to provision and maintain at least one inn (Bruighen) in their territory, usually at some sort of crossroads. It was free to stay at and was a reflection of the hospitality of the local lord

[matthewlentz]

Side note: The Knights Hospitaller originally operated a hospital in Jerusalem for pilgrims to stay at, hence the name.

[authorkellylclark]

Canonically, the Prancing Pony actually has separate buildings for the inn and eatery/alehouse. They’re just owned by a single person and treated as one business. Plus each “room” has enough room for many travelers. Paying for privacy (like many of the Rangers, Gandalf, Frodo and his friends, and other richer travelers) was also an important feature of his business appeal.

[michaelfowler]

Hallways are another modern invention. Four poster beds were intended to give your privacy in your own bed as servants walked through your bedroom when moving through the palace

[inventor]

Shad: An entire room for a single bed? For a single patron? What a waste! You could fit up to 10 people in there!

AIRLINES: " WRITE THAT DOWN WRITE THAT DOWN!"

[deadend]

0:01 Skit
1:37 Sponsor (Campfire Blaze) [Check it out. Legit.]
4:00 Introduction
6:32 Notions of Accommodation
7:08 Hospitality to Strangers, Class Relationships, & Refusing accommodations
12:13 Hospitals & the "Unwanted"
13:59 Monasteries
17:43 Inns (context of beds, cost, & use)
24:21 Misconceptions (Taverns)
27:38 Inns & Additional functions & Closing

[professoroat]

Bedfellows is the word for the people you'd share a bed with. That's where the saying "war makes strange bedfellows" comes from

[thomascain]

The difference between an “inn” and a “pub” or tavern was explicit on British Maps of my youth….and may still be. An Inn to be called such had to offer accommodation to travellers and could continue to serve beer etc to “guests” AFTER legal “closing times” had closed pubs and taverns for the night. The Inn had to have at least 1 guest room but could, at closing time, just lock the outer door. In fact these we called lock ins.Of course.A grey area of the law appreciated by one and all.