Ulla von Liewen

What people wore

Festive men's leather breeches

For festive occasions, men in some areas wore leather breeches tied below the knee with colorful, tasseled ribbons and knee-high boots with red heels.

Getting around

Travel by horseback and packhorse trails

In the early to mid-1700s, riding on horseback or walking were the standard ways to travel long distances, while goods were often transported using packhorses (klövjehästar) on trails because many roads were too poor for wheeled vehicles.

At the table

Grain-based diet and survival mixtures

Ordinary Swedish families relied on a grain-based diet, consuming bread, porridge, and gruel as their primary energy sources. To extend limited grain supplies during spring, common people frequently mixed their flour with alternative ingredients like chaff, bark, or various plants.

Music

Rural wedding festivities lasted days

In rural Swedish wedding customs during this era, celebrations often spanned from Sunday to Wednesday, with dancing starting after the first evening meal. Couples typically danced two dances at a time, such as a minuet and a polska, or two polskas.

Daily life

Simple wooden cottage construction

Ordinary rural homes were typically built of wood planks, often with clay packed into the joints to seal gaps, and featured thatched roofs. Inside, peasant cottages typically had only one window on the gable and one on the long wall.

What it cost

Rising cost of rye relative to wages

Between 1770 and 1784, the price of rye was 31 percent higher relative to the wages of day-workers compared to the period of 1735 to 1744.