The Canterbury Tales Pilgrims

The Knight

• Estate #2• A soldier, knight just back from the Crusades• Wore a stained tunic with blood, dirt• Honest, generous, wise, modest, a true and gentle

knight• Fought in 15 mortal battles, distinguished in battle

The Squire

• Estate #2• A knight in training (armor and shield bearer for the knight)• Wears embroidered clothes with red/white flowers; has a short gown

with long, wide sleeves• Average height, curly hair • Likes to flirt with girls/women, is respectful and courteous• The knight’s son, 20 years old, can dance, sing, write poetry, joust,

play the flute

Yeoman

• Estate #3• The knight’s servant, a forester (outdoorsman)• Wears a green coat with hood, has bow and arrows made of

peacock feathers, has a hunting horn• Head shaped like a nut, very tan (brown face)• Neat, orderly, smart, loyal, strong• Wore a St. Christopher’s medal, an excellent shot with bow and

arrow, knows woodcraft well

Prioress/Nun

• Estate #1• 2nd in command of a convent for nuns; took vows of poverty,

chastity, and obedience• Wore a charming cloak, a coral bracelet, rosary beads, and a gold

brooch with the motto, “Love Conquers All”• Has an elegant nose, gray eyes, small red mouth, wide forehead,

speaks in a nasly voice and she is “plump” (not skinny)• Pleasant, friendly, neat when she eats, compassionate to animals

rather than the poor, tender hearted• Her name is Madame Eglantyne, speaks French, kept and feed

dogs, 1 other nun and 3 priests ride with her

Monk

• Estate #1

• Monks are members of religious orders who live entirely in a monastary

• Has sleeves lined with fur, wears a gold pin tied in a lover’s knot, wears supple, expensive boots, horse bridles had bells

• Bald, greasy face, fat, bulging eyeballs

• Likes modern ways, doesn’t like hard labor, fun, friendly

• Owns expensive horses, loves to hunt and has greyhounds, rides a brown palfrey horse, loves good food

Friar

• Estate #1• Friars are members of the Franciscan order and they can live and

move between the monastery and the community. Friars can hear confessions

• Wears expensive clothes• Has a nice voice, but spoke with a lisp, has a white neck• Happy, popular, visits the taverns (bars), money hungry=greedy• Named Hubert, plays the harp and the hurdy-gurdy

Merchant

• Middle class• Merchants buy and sell goods/merchandise• Wears a multi-colored dress, a beaver hat, and boots with buckles• Has a forked beard and solemn voice• Very knowledgeable businessman, knows a good bargain,

respected• Very much in debt (irony)

Oxford Cleric

• Middle class• A student and tutor• Wears a threadbare coat and old, torn clothes• Is skinny, pale and has a sober stare• Is studious, thankful, quiet, respectful, and spends all his

money on books• Rides a skinny horse

Sergeant at LawLawyer

• Middle class• A lawyer who hears cases and can draft deeds, documents• Wears a multi-colored coat and pin-striped silk belt• Is discreet, wise, seems busier than he really was, well spoken,

good memory• Memorized all laws and court cases since “King William’s time,” but

doesn’t think for himself

Franklin

• Middle class• A well to do land owner, but not of noble birth• Has a white, silk purse and a dagger• Has white beard with a ruddy (red) complexion• Happy, generous, enjoys the “good life,” popular• Had the “party house” which was always full of food and

wine

Guildsman

• Trade class• There were 5 men in a guild or trade: a haberdasher, carpenter,

dyer, weaver, and carpet maker• Well dressed “trim and fresh”, knives lined with silver not brass• Concerned about their appearances, proud of their professions and

their money• Brought their wives who liked to be “seen”; middle class trades were

growing which brought these men more money

Cook

• Trade class• A very good cook, can bake, fry, boil, roast,

simmer and stew sauces, popular with the people

• Has an oozing ulcer on his knee, ? Doesn’t have good hygiene?

Skipper

• Trade class• Captain of a ship• Wears a woolen knee length gown with a dagger on a lanyard• Very tan, bearded• A good fighter, a thief, dishonest, likes to drink, excellent sailor• Made prisoners “walk the plank,” knew the stars and constellations

and sea currents, stole wine from the stock he transported on his ship, a pirate, didn’t ride horses very well

Doctor

• Middle class• Doctor• Wore bright red clothes lined with bluish gray• Very healthy• Very skilled doctor, knowledgeable about medicine and diseases

(for that time period); loves gold but does not spend a lot of money; is not religious

• Knows astrology (zodiac) and astronomy (the stars); works with the pharmacists to get more money from people

Wife of Bath

• Middle Class• Wife, was a skilled seamstress prior to marriage• Wore expensive clothes, red stockings, large hat, new shoes• Gap teeth, large hips, pretty, somewhat deaf• Liked to laugh and talk, got mad if she was not first at the alter • Had 5 husbands, travelled a lot, been to Jerusalem 3 times among

other places/pilgrimages

Parson

• Estate #1• Priest of an independence church (Protestant, not Catholic)• Wears simple clothes• Well educated, devout, generous, hardworking, patient, holy• “Practiced what he preached”, took care of his parishioners (church

congregation) in all types of weather, the ideal priest/pastor

Plowman

• Estate #3• A farm laborer• Wears a tabard smock (short jacket made of coarse material)• Honest, hard working, loves God with all his heart, helps the poor,

pays his tithes on time, lives in peace and harmony with God and his neighbors

• His brother is the Parson

Miller

• Estate #3 (peasant)• Grinds grain into flour• Wore a white coat with a blue hood, sword and buckler at his side• Weighted 16 stone (224 pounds), stout and strong, red beard, had a

wart at end of his nose with hairs growing from it; dark and wide nostrils

• Greedy and dishonest, tells dirty jokes, brags about his strength• Pulled doors from their hinges, overcharged for grain that he ground

for customers, plays the bagpipes

Manciple

• Trade class• In charge of ordering, buying, and storing food at colleges,

monasteries, and/or law offices• Illiterate, but very smart at his job; watched the market for good

deals, shrewd • Stashed money away for himself, in charge of 30 lawyers

Reeve

• Middle class• The manager of an estate• Wears a long, blue overcoat, has a rusty bladed knife at his side• Old, thin, has a short beard and short haircut, skinny legs• Bad tempered, feared like the “plague,” intimidating, a great

bargainer, efficient and capable at his job• Could predict next year’s crops by studying nature, rode a dapple

gray horse named Scot; a master carpenter

Summoner

• Estate #1• Summoned people to appear before the church court=someone

today delivering a subpoena for court• Has boils and pimples on his face, narrow eyes, thin beard, scabby

eyebrows, wears a garland on his head (taverns/bars would put a garland outside their door so people would know it was a bar)

• Loves garlic, onions, and leeks; likes to drink (get drunk); will bribe people to “lose their summons”;

• Children are afraid of his face, knows everyone’s secrets/business, only knows a few Latin phrases=not very smart

Pardoner

• Estate #1• Sells pardons for the church to sinners• Wears a little cap, no hood• Long, yellow, shoulder-length hair (blonde), bulging eyeballs, no

beard• Most corrupt of the pilgrims, sells fake religious relics, takes

advantage of poor people• Sings the loudest at offerings