International Gothic Cuisine .............................................................

Lecture 14

I

n general, late medieval or Gothic cuisine was international and appealed
to a wide variety of social classes, all of whom tried to get spices when
they could as both a fl avoring and a mark of status. Above all, this
cuisine involved a very artifi cial style of cooking that loved colors, disguised
food, and sharp contrasts of fl avor. In this lecture, you will see how the
effl orescence of the medieval economy, the reconnection of Eastern trade
routes, and the increasing stratifi cation of society all led to a resplendent
cuisine that not only dominated the courts of kings and barons, but also was
increasingly imitated by those below them.

The Plague in Europe
 Around the year 1300, Europe was once again bursting at the
seams. It had reached the critical threshold of population density
and, given the technology available to provide food, was bound—
according to Malthus—to suffer some kind of major catastrophe to
rebalance people and resources.

 The fi rst major catastrophe came in the early 14th century, around

1315 to 1317, in the form of successive years of crop failure. This

meant that any reserves were eaten up. One year’s failure is not so

devastating, and happens naturally every 10 or 12 years, but if this

happens several years in a row, chronic malnutrition causes a sharp

and immediate population drop.

 The famines of the early 14th century are absolutely nothing

compared with a contagious disease that makes its appearance in

southern Europe in 1348. How it gets there is the most fascinating

part of the story. In the preceding century, Genghis Khan and

his Mongol hordes had conquered China, all of central Asia, and

most importantly Persia—bringing the Abbasid dynasty to an end.

However, it also, by coincidence, was the same time that Europe