A Child and childhood in a German town of the XIV-XV centuries

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the characteristic features and typologi- cal regularities of a child’s position and attitude to childhood in the bourgeois environment of German cities of the XIV-XV centuries. Th e methodological basis of the research is based on the principles of historicism and objectivity. Analytical, problem-chronological, comparative, and systemic methods have been used during the research. Th e scientifi c novelty is justifi ed by the comprehensive involvement of sources and historiography that highlight the situation of children and childhood in a German city of the XIV-XV centuries, as well as the need to supp- lement domestic research on this topic. Conclusions. During the late Middle Ages, changes in the perception of a child and childhood took place, particularly in the cities of Germany in the XIV-XV centuries. Such elements of previous centuries as the involvement of children in work before their physical maturity and the opportunity to master the profession of their own parents are still relevant for the German burgher community of the late Middle Ages. At the same time, German cities are beginning to introduce obstetric rules that regulate the acceptance of child- birth and control the process of childbirth. In the second half of the XV century, parents’ attitude towards their off spring changed: children are beginning to be seen as potential guardians of their parents in their old age, as well as helpers in their professional activities. Orphanages begin to appear in Augsburg, Esslingen, Munich, Nuremberg, etc. Conventional traditional division of the stages of childhood, which was widespread in late medieval Germany, in particular in cit- ies, consisted of three periods: the fi rst – from 6 to 7 years, the second – from 7 to 14 years, the third – from 14 years and older. Such terms denoted these stages as “infantia” (“childhood”), “pueritia” (“youth”), and “adolescentia” (“adolescence”), respectively. Illegitimate children had a special status in a late medieval German city: access to craft s was closed to them, as well as the possibility of obtaining a position in the city council. Th e period when a child could already be involved in work depended on general ideas about physical maturation. Usually, children’s capacity for work began at the age of 8, when they could partially engage in the same activities as adults. Th e age at which parents stop caring for their children is directly correlated with their off spring marrying or having their own children.