Children's Books in the Middle Ages

• Children's literature history is a captivating journey reflecting the values and beliefs of different eras.
• Early children's literature was intertwined with religious instruction, moral guidance, and practical skills.

Children’s Books in the Middle Ages (500-1500 AD)

• The Middle Ages were a period with the fall of the Roman Empire and new kingdoms.
• Life was difficult, money was scarce, and most people were illiterate.
• Children worked alongside adults, and playtime was limited.
• The Church was very important, teaching moral lessons through stories.
• Stories often came from the Bible or told about saints, teaching lessons about goodness and faith.
• Printed books were rare and expensive, owned only by the wealthy.
• Books for children focused on being good or learning to read, often in Latin.
• People believed children were born sinful and needed saving, which influenced children’s books.
• Most books aimed to teach children to be good and follow religious rules.
• Some fun stories existed, like those about King Arthur, though less common.
• As early as 1430, some English books taught manners and proper behavior.
• Children’s books in the Middle Ages mainly focused on teaching goodness and religious rules.
• Storytelling was the main way children learned, contrasting with today's abundance of books.

The Medieval Period (14th-15th Centuries): A Foundation in Morality

• Early children’s literature focused on instilling moral values and proper behavior.
• William Caxton’s Boke of Curtayse (circa 1477) and The Babies Boke offered guidance on etiquette and chivalry.
• The Babies Boke provided rules of conduct for young boys training to become knights.
• These texts represent the initial steps towards a genre aimed at a younger audience.

The 16th Century: Printing and the Rise of Educational Tools

• The printing press revolutionized book production and sharing.
• The 16th century saw the emergence of ABC books, also known as primers.
• Primers served as religious instruction, especially within the Anglican Church.
• King Henry VIII ordered the printing of both Catholic and Protestant primers.
• "Primer" became the common name for early school books designed for children.
• 16th-17th century Cyrillic publications included manuals on the Church Slavonic language.
• These manuals were divided into educational books and scientific works.
• Educational books were used for teaching reading, like ABC books and primers.
• Pupils practiced reading exercises from the Book of Hours and the Psalter.
• The Book of Hours contained the order of daily services.
• The Book of Psalms included prayers for Christian worship and rituals for the dead.
• Hornbooks appeared towards the end of the 16th century.
• Hornbooks were small, handheld learning aids, about 3 inches by 4 ½ inches, for children to use themselves.
• Capital letters, vowels, consonant combinations, and the Lord’s Prayer were printed on a sheet of paper covered with transparent horn.
• Hornbooks were practical tools for teaching the alphabet and reinforcing religious instruction.
• They represented a shift towards making learning more accessible and engaging for children.
• A hornbook consists of a piece of parchment or paper lesson pasted onto a paddle-shaped piece of wood
• The name derives from the leaf of horn attached to the board by a brass border
• Hornbooks generally presented the alphabet above arabic numerals and the Lord's Prayer
• St. Cecilia is depicted holding a hornbook in the Nuremberg Chronicle, published in 1493.
• By the nineteenth century, the prevalence of printed and bound books made hornbooks less popular

Chapbooks and the Spread of Stories (16th-17th Centuries)

• A chapbook is a small book or pamphlet containing poems, ballads, stories, or religious tracts.
• Chapbooks were small, cheaply produced books sold without a cover.
• Pamphlets concerned matters of the day, while chapbooks were timeless tales.
• Chapbooks were sold by peddlers known as chapmen.
• Chapmen traveled through England selling books.
• Chapbooks followed broadsides as early print products for people of lesser means and learning than the wealthy.
• Broadsides represented print for the semi-literate; two of the main forms were ballads and pictures
• Text was not static; works moved back and forth between oral and print forms.
• The story of Guy of Warwick originated in the Middle Ages and was printed in chapbooks.
• Books became cheaper to print as they aged, allowing texts to pass from expensive editions to chapbooks.
• Chapbooks saw an increasing audience between 1500 and 1700, because more people were learning to read as the literacy rate rose.
• More schoolteachers were employed in the early 1600s than before.
• Even members of even the poorest social classes were able to read, including laborers and women
• As printing became more affordable, broadsides gained popularity.
• Chapbooks played a role in disseminating stories and ballads to a wider audience, including children.
• Charles Perrault’s Comtes de Ma Mere L’ Oye (Tales of My Mother Goose) in 1697, marked a step towards narrative-focused children’s literature.
• These tales captured the imagination of young readers and laid the groundwork for future storytelling traditions.

Summary and Conclusion

• The early history of children’s literature reveals a gradual evolution.
• Printing technology played a pivotal role in making books more accessible and affordable.
• The focus shifted from religious instruction and moral guidance towards storytelling and entertainment.
• These early forms of children’s literature laid the groundwork for the rich and diverse genre.