We can all rememÂber seeÂing images of medieval EuroÂpeans wearÂing pointy shoes, but most of us have paid scant attenÂtion to the shoes themÂselves. That may be for the best, since the more we dwell on one fact of life in the MidÂdle Ages or anothÂer, the more we imagÂine how uncomÂfortÂable or even painful it must have been by our stanÂdards. DenÂtistry would be the most vivid examÂple, but even that fashÂionÂable, vagueÂly elfin footwear inflictÂed sufÂferÂing, espeÂcialÂly at the height of its popÂuÂlarÂiÂty — not least among flashy young men — in the fourÂteenth and fifÂteenth cenÂturies.
Called poulaines, a name drawn from the French word for Poland in refÂerÂence to the footwear’s supÂposÂedÂly PolÂish oriÂgin, these pointy shoes appeared around the time of Richard II’s marÂriage to Anne of Bohemia in 1382. “Both men and women wore them, although the arisÂtoÂcratÂic men’s shoes tendÂed to have the longest toes, someÂtimes as long as five inchÂes,” writes Ars TechÂniÂca’s JenÂnifer OuelÂlette. “The toes were typÂiÂcalÂly stuffed with moss, wool, or horseÂhair to help them hold their shape.” If you’ve ever watched the first BlackÂadÂder series, know that the shoes worn by Rowan AtkinÂson’s hapÂless plotÂting prince may be comÂic, but they’re not an exagÂgerÂaÂtion.
RegardÂless, he was a bit behind the times, givÂen that the show was set in 1485, right when poulaines went out of fashÂion. But they’d already done their damÂage, as eviÂdenced by a 2021 study linkÂing their wearÂing to nasty foot disÂorÂders. “Bunions — or halÂlux valÂgus — are bulges that appear on the side of the foot as the big toe leans in towards the othÂer toes and the first metatarsal bone points outÂwards,” writes the Guardian’s NicoÂla Davis. A team of UniÂverÂsiÂty of CamÂbridge researchers found signs of them being more prevaÂlent in the remains of indiÂvidÂuÂals buried in the fourÂteenth and fifÂteenth cenÂturies than those buried from the eleventh through the thirÂteenth cenÂturies.
Yet bunions were hardÂly the evil against which the poulaine’s conÂtemÂpoÂrary critÂics inveighed. After the Great PestiÂlence of 1348, says the LonÂdon MuseÂum, “clerÂics claimed the plague was sent by God to punÂish LonÂdonÂers for their sins, espeÂcialÂly sexÂuÂal sins.” The shoes’ lasÂcivÂiÂous assoÂciÂaÂtions conÂtinÂued to draw ire: “In 1362, Pope Urban V passed an edict banÂning them, but it didÂn’t realÂly stop anyÂbody from wearÂing them.” Then came sumpÂtuÂary laws, accordÂing to which “comÂmonÂers were charged to wear shortÂer poulaines than barons and knights.” The powÂer of the state may be as nothÂing against that of the fashÂion cycle, but had there been a law against the bluntÂly square-toed shoes in vogue when I was in high school, I can’t say I would’ve objectÂed.
RelatÂed conÂtent:
EleÂgant 2,000-Year-Old Roman Shoe Found in a Well
ExquisÂite 2300-Year-Old ScythiÂan Woman’s Boot PreÂserved in the Frozen Ground of Siberia
Doc Martens Boots Adorned with HieronyÂmus Bosch’s “GarÂden of EarthÂly Delights”
How to Get Dressed & Fight in 14th CenÂtuÂry Armor: A ReenÂactÂment
Based in Seoul, ColÂin Marshall writes and broadÂcasts on cities, lanÂguage, and culÂture. His projects include the SubÂstack newsletÂter Books on Cities and the book The StateÂless City: a Walk through 21st-CenÂtuÂry Los AngeÂles. FolÂlow him on the social netÂwork forÂmerÂly known as TwitÂter at @colinmarshall.
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