1270). Other uses of water power to which French millers significantly contributed
include wood sawing (first documented at Évreux, 1204; first illustrated by Villard de
Honnecourt, ca. 1235) and paper making (in Italy and Spain, late 13th c.; in France, at
Troyes, 1338).
Worthy of note here is the appearance in medieval Europe of the windmill, perhaps
from eastern origins or, certainly in its distinctive western form, as an independent
invention. This consisted of wind vanes set vertically upon a horizontal axle that was
geared to the vertical axle and the working parts, all located, until the early 15th century,
in a structure that could be pivoted upon a post to face the wind. Such mills are now
identifiable in mid-12th-century England and were at work by the early 13th century
grinding grains in France, as at Arles (1202). Not to be ignored in the tradition of
medieval European and French milling is a simpler but geographically adaptable kind of
water mill employing a horizontal waterwheel whose vertical axle turned the grinder
without the intervention of gears. Notable, too, are distinct improvements throughout the
period in the design of manually operated devices, such as flat-rotating grinders, edge
rollers, cranked or treadled whetstones and lathes, water-raising mechanisms, and hoists
for heavy materials.
The technical variety and advances in medieval milling and related machinery are
clearly discernible. The ingenuity involved is admirable. And both of these are nowhere
more evident than in France.
Bradford B.Blaine
[See also: BREAD]
Bautier, Anne-Marie. “Les plus anciennes mentions de moulins hydrauliques industriels et de
moulins à vent.” Bulletin philologique et historique (1960):567–626.
Boyer, Marjorie N. Medieval French Bridges: A History. Cambridge: Mediaeval Academy, 1976.
Forbes, Robert J. “Power,” and Bertrand Gille, “Machines”. In A History of Technology, ed.
Charles Singer et al. 5 vols. Oxford: Clarendon, 1954–58, Vol. 2: The Mediterranean
Civilizations and the Middle Ages, c. 700B.C. to C.A.D. 1500, pp. 589–662.
Holt, Richard. The Mills of Medieval England. New York: Blackwell, 1988.
Reynolds, Terry S. Stronger than a Hundred Men: A History of the Vertical Water Wheel.
Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1983.
White, Lynn, Jr. Medieval Technology and Social Change. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1962.
MINING AND METALS
. France possesses no preciousmetal resources and little copper. Iron ores are abundant,
and there are regional deposits of lead, zinc, and coal. All of these were exploited during
the Middle Ages.
Evidence for ironworking exists from Merovingian France onward. By the reign of
Charlemagne, Frankish iron weapons and armor were so famous that exports had to be
forbidden. Decorative ironwork was also widely praticed, as on the hinges and scrollwork
of the western portals of Notre-Dame in Paris (13th c.). At Liège, we find from the late
14th century evidence of blast furnaces blown by water-powered bellows. Gunpowder
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