Medieval agreements and arguments — Student printable (Age 13)

Instructions — Read. Look. Answer. No excuses. For each source below: inspect the image and transcript, then answer the questions. After you finish, compare your answers with the model responses. Aim for the exemplary standard.

Source 1 — Ravenser Odd (court case, 1291)

1. Describe the shape of the document. Does it look familiar? Why might it be this shape?
2. Find the names involved. Who is taking whom to court?
3. Why did Grimsby sue Ravenser Odd? What did they want?
4. What did Grimsby accuse Ravenser Odd of doing? How did Ravenser Odd defend itself?
5. How did the court decide? Would Grimsby be satisfied? Explain.

Model answers

Exemplary (high standard):

1. The document is a narrow long roll (plea roll), written in columns — it looks like official court records because many cases were written on long rolls for the king’s court. 2. Names appear in the text (look for town or personal names) — Grimsby people complain about Ravenser Odd; the court entry names both places. 3. Grimsby sued because Ravenser Odd’s boats were taking merchants and trade away, forcing merchants to land at Ravenser Odd so Grimsby lost taxes and business. They wanted the court to stop Ravenser Odd’s actions and restore Grimsby’s trade. 4. Grimsby accused Ravenser Odd of arresting merchants and compelling them to trade at the island; Ravenser Odd said merchants preferred their market because of better prices and accused Grimsby of cheating. 5. The court dismissed Grimsby’s claim and fined them for a false complaint — the court found no breach of the king’s peace. Grimsby would be unhappy because their trade problem wasn’t solved.

Proficient (sound answer):

1. The roll is long and narrow, like other court records. 2. The record names Grimsby and Ravenser Odd. 3. Grimsby wanted the court to stop Ravenser Odd taking their merchants. 4. Grimsby said Ravenser Odd forced merchants to trade there; Ravenser Odd argued merchants chose them. 5. The court favoured Ravenser Odd and fined Grimsby; Grimsby likely upset.

---

Source 2 — Matilda Passelewe (charter, 1267)

1. Can you find Matilda’s name? Where is it written?
2. What rights does the charter grant Matilda?
3. What is a ‘free warren’ (liberam warrenam)?
4. Why did the king keep a roll copy of charters?

Model answers

Exemplary:

1. Matilda’s name is in the margin or rubric — look for an Anglo-Norman Latinised form (Matild(a) Passelewe). 2. The charter permits her to hold a weekly market and an annual fair at her manor of Barewe and grants hunting rights (free warren) on her lands. 3. Free warren (liberam warrenam) is the right to hunt small game (hares, rabbits, pheasants) on the granted land — a valuable economic and status right that excluded large game reserved to the king. 4. The king kept a roll copy as an official ‘office copy’ to record grants, prevent disputes, and produce proof if the original was lost or contested.

Proficient:

1. Matilda’s name is in the margin. 2. She receives the right to a weekly market and yearly fair and hunting rights. 3. Free warren means hunting small game on her land. 4. The roll preserved an official record so the king could prove what he had granted.

---

Source 3 — Middelburg (petition by English merchants, 1426)

1. What language is the petition in? How does that differ from Sources 1 and 2?
2. Can you read any words? What is a medieval petition compared to a modern one?
3. What happened to the merchants and what do they ask the king to do?
4. What might happen next and how could historians check?

Model answers

Exemplary:

1. The petition is in English (late Middle English). Sources 1 and 2 are mainly in Latin — courts and royal offices used Latin for legal records. 2. You may spot names, ‘safe conduct’ or terms like ‘letters’ and merchants’ names; medieval petitions are handwritten complaints asking the king for redress, often shorter and less formal than modern petitions with signatures. 3. Merchants report being arrested and robbed despite having letters of safe conduct; they ask the king to send letters to Middelburg officials to recover goods and punish offenders. 4. Next, the king might send diplomatic letters or order a court case; historians could search chancery records, royal letters, or subsequent petitions to trace the outcome.

Proficient:

1. The petition is written in English, unlike the Latin documents. 2. You can spot words about merchants and safe conduct; medieval petitions are formal complaints. 3. The merchants were arrested and had goods taken; they ask for the king’s help to recover them. 4. The king could write to Middelburg; historians would look for follow-up records in archives.

---

Source 4 — Ermengarda (receipt, Exchequer)

1. What is a receipt used for today and does this document do the same?
2. How much money did Ermengarda take from the treasury?
3. Can you find her name? (Clue: look for ‘ego’ = ‘I’.)
4. Describe the seal. Why might she have chosen that image?

Model answers

Exemplary:

1. A receipt today proves payment. This medieval receipt similarly records money paid or received at the Exchequer and provides proof for accounts. 2. The amount is given in marks or pounds — the document records one sterling mark (or the specific sum shown on the transcript); read the numbers or words carefully. 3. Ermengarda’s name appears after ‘ego’ (I), proving her acknowledgement of the payment. 4. Her red oval seal shows her portrait in widow’s clothing (veiled). She likely chose this to show her identity and status — perhaps to show she acted alone after her husband’s death and to authenticate the transaction.

Proficient:

1. It functions like a modern receipt — proof of money exchanged with the treasury. 2. It records the sum (e.g., one mark). 3. Her name is after ‘ego’. 4. The seal shows a veiled woman — a personal identifier and legal signature replacement.

---

Source 5 — Abbot of St Mary’s, York (map, 1407)

1. Find river, streams, paths, churches, houses. Why is the map colourful?
2. What shape is the map and why are directions written in different directions?
3. What languages appear? Which English words can you read?
4. What agreements could a map record? Compare with a modern map of Thorne/Goole Moor — what stayed the same and what changed?

Model answers

Exemplary:

1. The map shows rivers and banks, paths, cottages, churches and place-names in colour to make boundaries and important features clear for negotiation. Colour helps participants see claims quickly. 2. The map is rectangular and was meant to lie on a table; compass directions are rotated so viewers sitting around the table could read different sides. 3. The map contains Latin and Middle English; English words like place-names, ‘Stone cros’ and boundary notes appear so local people could understand. 4. Maps record rights: who can cut peat, where sheep may graze, and boundary markers. Comparing with modern maps, many town names survive but land use changed (drainage, different ownership); physical features like rivers may remain similar but moorland use and roads have changed.

Proficient:

1. You can see rivers, paths and buildings; colour highlights boundaries. 2. It was made to lie on a table, so directions face different ways. 3. Latin and English appear; some names are readable. 4. The map records rights to peat and grazing. Modern maps show many same place names but different land use.

---

Teacher section — ACARA v9 mapping + 100-word teacher comment (per task) in Amy Chua cadence + extended rubric

ACARA v9 mapping (Years 7–8 — Medieval Britain focus)

• History: Develop historical knowledge and understanding — medieval society, economy and culture (feudalism, trade, towns, role of monarch and institutions).
• Historical skills: Ask historically significant questions; locate, analyse and corroborate primary sources; interpret evidence to make historical claims; communicate findings.
• Inquiry and skills emphasised: Source analysis (authenticity, purpose, audience), continuity and change, cause and effect, interpreting material culture (seals, maps).

Task 1 — Teacher comment (approx. 100 words, Amy Chua cadence)

Look at the record with discipline. Notice shape, language and outcome. Expect precise answers. Demand evidence from the text — underline names and phrases that show who complained, what they claimed, and the verdict. Push students to explain why the court dismissed Grimsby: quote the line showing the king’s court judgment or the fine. Do not accept vague answers. If a student guesses, insist they re-check the transcript. Challenge: ask what this case tells us about royal authority over local trade. Expect clear, concise reasoning tied to the source.

Rubric — Task 1

Criteria: Identification of document type, named parties, cause of dispute, source evidence, judged outcome.

• Exemplary: Correct identification; quotes evidence; explains court reasoning and consequence; links to wider context (royal court limits).
• Proficient: Correct identification; paraphrases evidence; explains verdict and likely reaction with some context.

Task 2 — Teacher comment (approx. 100 words, Amy Chua cadence)

Do not treat charters as dusty. Force students to find Matilda’s name in the margin; insist on exact phrases like ‘liberam warrenam’. Make them explain what a market and fair meant economically and socially. Expect them to explain why the Crown kept rolls — bureaucratic proof, legal backup, and record of privileges. Encourage linking: free warren shows royal control over hunting. Insist they write definitions, not guesses. Ask: why was a woman able to hold such rights? Demand evidence or plausible historical inference.

Rubric — Task 2

Criteria: Locating names, describing granted rights, explaining free warren, purpose of royal rolls.

• Exemplary: Locates name; quotes Latin; explains economic and legal meaning of rights; connects to royal administration.
• Proficient: Locates name; describes rights in plain terms; explains why the king recorded charters.

Task 3 — Teacher comment (approx. 100 words, Amy Chua cadence)

Demand language awareness: identify the petition’s language and compare to Latin cases. Compel students to explain why merchants used petitions and what safe conduct meant. Make them read the transcript slowly and extract the complaint and requested remedy. Ask for likely next steps and which archives would hold that evidence. Critique answers that lack supporting references. Push students to imagine the merchants’ perspective — fear, financial loss — and to suggest precise archival sources for follow-up (e.g., chancery letters, diplomatic correspondence).

Rubric — Task 3

Criteria: Language identification, comprehension of petition, inference about outcomes, suggested sources.

• Exemplary: Identifies language; quotes complaint; explains safe conduct and proposed remedies; lists plausible follow-up sources.
• Proficient: Identifies language; summarises the complaint and request; suggests one reasonable next step.

Task 4 — Teacher comment (approx. 100 words, Amy Chua cadence)

Teach receipts as evidence of economic life. Make students find the sum and read the Latin cues like ‘ego’. Insist on noting the seal and interpreting it: why a widow’s veil? Ask them to consider legal identity and authentication before signatures. Push for connection: how does a seal replace a written signature, and what does it reveal about gender and status? Require them to back claims with the image or transcript. Do not accept generalities — expect precise description and an argument about why the seal matters.

Rubric — Task 4

Criteria: Understanding receipt purpose, reading amount, locating name, interpreting seal.

• Exemplary: Reads sum correctly; finds ‘ego’ and name; interprets seal’s iconography; links to legal authentication and gender implications.
• Proficient: Identifies the receipt’s purpose; finds the name; describes seal and offers likely meaning.

Task 5 — Teacher comment (approx. 100 words, Amy Chua cadence)

Force map literacy. Make students list visible features, explain why colour and layout matter, and why directions face different ways. Ask them to transcribe any readable place-names and match them to a modern map. Expect analysis: how maps settle boundary disputes and record rights (peat cutting, grazing). Demand reflection on continuity and change: names that persist, changed land use. If answers are weak, require them to revisit the map and annotate it. Excellence requires linking map features to legal outcomes in the dispute.

Rubric — Task 5

Criteria: Feature identification, understanding map use in disputes, language recognition, modern comparison.

• Exemplary: Names and features identified; explains use for rights; reads languages; gives specific modern comparisons.
• Proficient: Identifies main features and purpose; notes some continuity with modern map.

---

Use these model answers and rubrics to mark work. Push students toward the exemplary descriptions: require text evidence, precise language, and clear links to medieval institutions (king’s court, chancery, exchequer, petitions). Be firm: accurate transcription and source-based reasoning are non-negotiable.