Clemens August of Bavaria

Getting around

Comfort and benefits of tow barges

Tow barges were popular for inter-town travel because they offered a comfortable, reliable, and scheduled service, often separated into different classes such as a cabin or hold, and sometimes allowed passengers to eat a meal on board. Unlike carriages, they were not shaken by road travel and allowed horses to rest when it was windy.

At the table

Rural taverns and new drinking habits

In the early 18th century, visiting the local tavern was a favorite Sunday pastime for rural people, where they could observe new consumer trends such as tea and coffee drinking. By 1704, at least one innkeeper in the rural district of Lier already owned tea-serving utensils.

What people wore

Sumptuary Laws Against Opulent Clothing

Authorities issued sumptuary laws to maintain social hierarchy, often banning lower classes from wearing gold, silver, pearls, silk, or costly furs, with violators risking fines or imprisonment.

Music

High fines for unauthorized trumpet playing

In the Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst, musicians who performed with unauthorized trumpets or kettledrums at public fairs or taverns faced a fine of fifty Reichsthaler.

Daily life

Single-room village schooling and discipline

Village schools, such as the one in Ename, often held boys and girls of all ages in a single common room. Misbehaving children were punished with a blow to the hand from a ferule.