Burials and Funeral Ceremonies in the Middle Ages

A chapter in Military and Religious Life in the Middle Ages and at the Period of the Renaissance| BOOKS

Burial practices have evolved significantly throughout history, reflecting societal views on death, the afterlife, and human dignity. From the earliest epochs, the deceased were treated with respect, sometimes even worshipped, indicating a natural human sentiment to pay tribute to those for whom affection, esteem, or fear was once held. This fundamental principle underpins the various modes of burial that have been successively observed.

Historical Evolution of Burial Practices

Ancient civilisations, notably the Egyptians, engaged in embalming to preserve the human body indefinitely, demonstrating remarkable artistry in this process. Greeks typically practised incineration, collecting the ashes in urns, a custom also common among wealthy Romans. However, Christianity introduced and dogmatically enjoined interment of the dead, a practice previously confined to slaves, suicides, and the poor in Roman society.

Christians adopted the ancient Jewish custom of swathing the dead body in a winding-sheet, using long bands soaked in resinous and perfumed oil, similar to Egyptian methods. Divine legislation also prescribed and authorised embalming, as evidenced by references in Genesis and the Gospel of Mark. Bas-reliefs from the fifth and sixth centuries depict bodies prepared for burial as regular mummies, a method of wrapping that persisted until the late eighth century. Subsequently, the dead were sometimes sewn into shrouds made from leather, specifically stag or ox hides, with the cervicorium, or stag-hide, being particularly noted for warriors in war ballads. For ecclesiastical persons, precious tissues were used for winding-sheets, while the lower classes were buried in common material shrouds. Regardless of the material, the hands were consistently folded across the breast, a custom prevalent in the East throughout the Middle Ages and considered a significant Christian law by doctors of the Greek Church.

The direction of burial was also specifically prescribed: bodies were generally laid upon their back with the head to the west and feet towards the east. This posture was believed to signify prayer and readiness to rise with the first rays of the sun at resurrection. Notably, this orientation was also observed in pagan burials during the second and third centuries, predating its specific adoption by Christians in Italy. Exceptions to this standard existed; some bodies were placed on their side or even face downwards, as was the case with Pepin the Short and Hugh Capet, whose adens burial (upon the teeth) was intended to cleanse their sins. In the sixth and seventh centuries, placing bodies in a sitting position, with legs and body upright, was also an exceptional mode of interment, notably adopted for Charlemagne, who was interred in his imperial robes, holding a New Testament, sceptre, and shield.

Funeral Furniture and Offerings

Pagan funeral rites often included placing the deceased's professional insignia, cherished objects, and vases of food and drink (a viaticum) in the tomb. In contrast, early Christian coffins contained minimal funeral furniture: typically a phial of perfume and one to three vases of wood, glass, or clay filled with holy water. While perfume phials disappeared by the Merovingian period, the custom of placing other vases persisted in some regions until the eighteenth century. These vases were believed by some liturgists, such as William Durand, to have contained incense for burning during the funeral service, a theory supported by fourteenth-century miniatures depicting pots with tapers and smoke.

Another Christian practice from the eleventh to the thirteenth century in France and England involved placing an absolution cross on the deceased's breast. These crosses, made of wood, lead, or sometimes silver, often had the formula of absolution and the deceased's name engraved upon them. An interesting peculiarity related to penance rules from the eighth to the eleventh centuries involved bodies found bound in chains or loaded with iron and brass fetters. While pagans placed a coin (obolus) in the coffin, this custom was perpetuated by Christians throughout the Middle Ages, with a coin always placed on the bier, a practice still observed in parts of Poitou and Alsace.

Barbarian burials, even after conversion to Christianity, maintained distinctive features, interring individuals in their finest clothes, with weapons, and occasionally with their war-horse. Women and children were buried with jewels, necklaces, rings, fibulae, and girdles, often still bearing remnants of their splendid costumes. Merovingian and Germanic funeral customs included placing pottery and small vases, possibly for food, in coffins, sometimes accompanied by wooden jars found to have contained fermented beer. Later, kings were buried in their royal robes with sceptre and crown, though these regalia were often made of brass or tin from the thirteenth to fourteenth centuries to deter thieves. Similarly, bishops and abbots were interred in their pontifical vestments, along with a wooden crozier, chalice, and tin paten. After the tenth century, monks were buried in all their clothing.

Coffins and Funeral Monuments

A clear distinction exists between a coffin, the receptacle for the dead, and a tomb, the monument marking the burial spot. Christians primarily used stone coffins until the thirteenth century, when lead coffins became more common. Stone sarcophagi were reserved for persons of rank, while soldiers, townsmen, and rural populations were buried in wooden coffins, referred to as off or noff by the Franks. Historical records indicate that during periods of high mortality, such as the plague in Clermont in 571, the scarcity of coffins necessitated burying multiple bodies in a single grave.

Ancient stone sarcophagi are identifiable by their large dimensions, thickness, and regular, rectangular trough-like shape, often topped with a massive, undecorated, sloping stone lid. In the sixth and seventh centuries, sarcophagi became smaller and narrower at the foot, with the eighth century introducing a small cell cut into the stone for the corpse's head. As the Middle Ages progressed, lids became ornamented with rough sculptures, crosses, and tracery, resembling Roman sarcophagi. By the early fourteenth century, lead-lined stone coffins were used for persons of rank, and by the time of Charles V, wood and lead replaced stone even for the wealthy. Small square stone troughs were also used to hold bones disinterred from older burial places or church vaults during repairs.

Early tombs, until the late ninth century, largely mirrored the shape of coffins but employed choicer materials and decorations. Illustrious individuals, including martyrs, nobles, prelates, and kings, were often placed in stone chests that served as both coffin and funeral monument, visible within churches, sometimes raised on columns rather than being hidden underground. Gaulish Christians, for instance, were interred in sarcophagi adorned with allegorical subjects. While alabaster sarcophagi were rare, it is notable that some Christian coffins depicted scenes from profane history. From the reign of Philip I (1059–1108), sculpture began to appear on tombs, featuring simple circles enclosing busts and foliage, or arcades in bas-relief on solid square tombs.

The monument evolved into a table shape during Louis VIII's reign, often surmounted by a statue of the deceased. Bronze tombs with statues supported by lions became common in the twelfth century, with Suger's restoration of St. Denis providing a prominent example. Funeral sculpture adhered to conventional and traditional rules, representing figures with insignia appropriate to their profession, sometimes even depicting older period costumes. The recumbent figures on tombs, some clothed and others not, are thought to echo ancient Etruscan customs. By the reign of Louis VII, statues were executed in alto relievo. With the advent of Gothic architecture in the mid-twelfth century, tombs were embellished with vaulted arches and bas-reliefs, and figures on tombstones were known as gisants. French funeral architecture and sculpture reached its peak in the fifteenth century, exemplified by the tombs of the dukes of Burgundy at Dijon. From the thirteenth century, symbolic animals such as lions (force) or dogs (fidelity) were often placed at the feet of the gisant. Later, tombs featured secondary figures such as the Virgin, saints, or family members. By the fourteenth century, sculptors adorned tombs with a bed-like structure and a stone canopy, with angels often depicted bearing the soul of the deceased. The use of various materials, from hard limestone to alabaster, bronze, and marble, added to the diversity and richness of these monuments, before French art gave way to Italian influences, which in turn inspired French artists like Pierre Bontemps and Germain Pilon.

Cemeteries and Funeral Ceremonies

With the establishment of Church authority, public burial places known as cemeteries became common, permitting tombs to be above ground. Burial within churches was a privilege for the wealthy, and it aligned with Christian practice of placing saintly relics beneath altars. During early Christianity, worship ceremonies were performed in the crypts and catacombs of Christian cemeteries, serving as hidden refuges during persecution. These catacombs, extensive underground networks, contained narrow galleries with graves arranged in rows, closed by brick or stone slabs. Proximity to saint relics in sanctuaries became a coveted burial privilege, leading to graves extending outside church buildings. The aitre or parvis (or paradisus), a small consecrated space in front of churches, marked the origin of rural cemeteries.

Roman law initially mandated extramural cemeteries, but this practice was altered by Christian tradition. As towns grew, new cemeteries were established, such as the Cemetery of the Innocents in Paris. Philip Augustus enclosed this cemetery with a wall in 1186, adding a covered gallery, the charnel-house, for the bones of the dead, which also became a fashionable resort for trade and social gatherings. These charnel-houses, often surmounted by lofts (galetas) for bones, served as models for other Christian cemeteries. The philosophical allegory of the Danse Macabre was painted on the walls of the Innocents' charnel-house around 1430.

Beyond monuments, cemeteries often featured large stone crosses and lanterns for the dead, narrow towers emitting a faint light, a custom dating back to the eleventh century. Early Carovingian abbeys also had two-storey octagonal chapels with crypts in their cemeteries, resembling ancient baptisteries.

Royal Funerals

Royal funeral ceremonies were elaborate. Upon the death of a king or queen, an impression of their features was taken in wax to create an effigy. The embalmed body was placed in a leaden coffin, adorned with velvet and satin, and positioned in a richly decorated chamber with an altar for mass. A separate, equally lavish chamber housed the effigy, dressed in magnificent royal attire, including a fine linen shirt, scarlet satin doublet, azure satin tunic embroidered with fleurs-de-lis, and a purple velvet royal mantle. The effigy was crowned, held a sceptre, and the hand of justice. Two cushions of red velvet were placed at the head of the bed, one for the crown and regalia. While the effigy lay in state, normal palace services continued, with meals served as if the king were present, and dishes later distributed to the poor.

After the effigy was removed, the embalmed body in its coffin, covered with two palls (one black velvet with white satin crosses, another of cloth of gold), was placed on trestles. The royal crown, sceptre, and hand of justice were positioned on a cushion at the coffin's head. The new sovereign, dressed in a purple mourning mantle, would sprinkle the coffin with holy water. Funeral processions, especially in Paris, were grand affairs involving parliamentary officials, city councillors, and royal officers, all in mourning attire. The "crier of the dead" would announce the monarch's titles in the streets. Initially, special bearers known as hanouars (salt bearers) carried the coffin, though gentlemen later volunteered for this honour. By the sixteenth century, the ceremonial evolved, with the effigy preceding the body in the chariot d’armes, receiving the primary honours. The procession would stop at designated points, such as the Croix du Sien, where monks would receive the body. Upon entering the town of St. Denis, the monks carried the pall. The body would then be placed in a chapelle ardente (catafalque). A solemn ritual of divestiture would occur, where heralds, upon the king-at-arms' command, would remove their coats-of-arms in the vault, before a triple cry of "Pray God for his soul!" and "Long live the king his successor!" concluded the ceremony. The grand master would then symbolically break his "magisterial staff" before the royal household officers, signifying the end of their service to the deceased monarch.

Royal attendance at predecessors' funerals was customary in earlier Frankish dynasties, but this practice diminished after King John. Later, sovereigns would typically only sprinkle the body with holy water. Beyond royal funerals, various regions and brotherhoods maintained unique customs, such as carrying the dead on state-beds in southern France, which then became the priest's property. The medieval period, with its profound faith in the resurrection and eternal life, viewed death as a transition, transforming the place of burial into a "place of sleep" (cemetery). This spiritual perspective, enhanced by art and liturgy, rendered the decomposition of the tomb poetic, akin to a seed decaying to sprout new life. This deep mystical belief offered solace and shaped the elaborate funeral rites that endured through the Middle Ages.