Description: Children in the Middle Ages portrays medieval childhood at all levels of European medieval society, from the peasant girl who longed to read, to the apprentice scribe doodling pictures on the margins of the manuscript he copied, to the future duke of Berry whose bedroom was redecorated twice a year, changing at Easter from red to green, the color of spring. The authors consider children's roles in the family and social institutions, their emotional and educational environment, and their symbolism in Christianity. They demonstrate that despite often difficult living conditions, the great majority of children were surrounded by family affection. They also demonstrate the misery of orphaned and abandoned children, the ravages of disease and war, and the exploitation of children as slaves and beggars. Children in the Middle Ages is a vivid history of how medieval children lived and died.

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