Hermits, Friars, and Monks

Hermits, Monks, and Friars in the Medieval World

    Although friars, monks, and hermits have of a lot in common, they are different in many ways. Throughout this time period all of these particular groups played an important role in society. They gave up their lives in order to find who they were within their religion. Although they chose the way to live life was by serving God, when taking a deeper look one can see how significant the differences were between each group. 

What is a hermit?

     In medieval times hermits were those who would give up their lives in order to go on to have a spiritual journey. Often they would live in mountains or forests. Those who were hermits wanted to have a deeper relationship with God and felt as though the way of doing this would be through isolation. In order to gain the relationship they wanted with God, hermits would at times do difficult tasks. For example, they would at times sleep on beds of nails or wear uncomfortable clothing know as hair shirts in order to make a sacrifice to God (2). In romances during the medieval time period, hermits were often viewed as a symbol of the journey to find love (5). In today's world hermits are not as well know, but do still exist. As of few years ago, it is believed that there is about 200 religious hermits in Britain (8). 

Hair shirts that are kept in a display at the Can Papiol Romanticism Museum
(4)

What is a friars? 

    A friar was also a religious figure during this time period. A friars duty was to travel, so they can preach and spread awareness of their religion. Friars would also treat the sick. In most cases a person would become a friar because they felt they were being called upon by God. They sacrificed their lives to take on a life of poverty. The typical attire of a friar during this time period was a robe tied with a rope. For footwear, they would wear closed toe shoes or sandals. Along with their preaching, they were not allowed to except money. All that they were allowed to take from their listeners was food and clothing (1).

Medieval Missal used by famous friar St. Francis of Assisi

(7)

What is a monk?

A Monks main duty was to stay and live within large monasteries. Monks gave up their life to focus on religious rituals and rights. It is said that people started becoming monks after the death of Jesus Christ and when Christianity had finally reached Europe. In a monks day to day life they would read the bible, attend church services, and meditate. Along with this, monks also did labor. For example they would cook, make wine and ale, and do work within the community. The attire that medieval monks wore was simple and like a uniform. They would wear two tunics and two cowls.  They would pair the tunics and cowls with shoes and stockings. To hold everything together they would wear leather belt and scapular (3). 

Manuscript that belonged to Cistercian abbey of Pontigny, which housed many monks. 
(6)

Work Cited

1) Admin. “Medieval Friar | Medieval Chronicles.” Medieval Chronicles, Dec. 2022,                                     

               www.medievalchronicles.com/medieval-people/medieval-clergy/medieval-friar.

2) ---. “The Strange and Mysterious Lives of Medieval Hermits | Medieval Chronicles.” Medieval 

            Chronicles, Apr. 2023, www.medievalchronicles.com/medieval-people/the-strange-and 

            mysterious-lives-of-medieval-hermits.

3) Cartwright, Mark. “The Daily Life of Medieval Monks.” World History Encyclopedia,  Sept. 2023, 

            www.worldhistory.org/article/1293/the-daily-life-of-medieval-monks.

4) Garton, Christina. “The History of Hairshirts.” Handwoven, Mar. 2019,  

            handwovenmagazine.com/history-hairshirts.

5) Leclercq, Jean. “Monks and Hermits in Medieval Love Stories.” Journal of Medieval History, vol. 18, 

            no. 4, Taylor and Francis, Jan. 1992, pp. 341–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-4181(92)90007-l.

6) “Manuscript Illumination With Initial V, From a Bible | French | the Metropolitan Museum of Art.” The 

            Metropolitan Museum of Art, www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/472539.

7) Matysek, George P., Jr. “Baltimore Museum Showcases Medieval Missal Used by St. Francis of 

            Assisi.” Diocese of Raleigh, 2 Mar. 2020, dioceseofraleigh.org/news/baltimore-museum-

            showcases-medieval-missal-used-st-francis-assisi.

8) Readers, Guardian, and Sarah Marsh. “‘If You Choose to Be Alone You Can’t Be Lonely’: Meet the 

           Modern-day Hermits.” The Guardian, 9 Dec. 2016      

            www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/dec/08/modern-day-hermits-share-experiences