Archduchess Maria Maddalena of Austria

What people wore

Common citizens limited to serviceable fabrics

Under the 1530 Augsburg dress code, which influenced regional standards, common citizens were forbidden from using costly materials like gold, silver, pearls, velvet, or silk.

Daily life

Strict rules for school discipline

Teachers were strictly forbidden from hitting students with their fists, pulling hair, or striking heads, though the rod remained an approved disciplinary tool.

Work

Moonlighting militia in the cities

City militia members, whose military pay was meagre, often supplemented their income by working as bakers, cobblers, or innkeepers.

Music

Boisterous folk-style dancing at festivals

During feast days and festivals, dances often included boisterous styles like the branle, which involved circles or lines of people jumping and kicking until the musician was exhausted.

At the table

Common Staples: Porridge and Bread

The daily diet of ordinary families centered on cereal-based porridges made of oats, millet, or barley, often prepared with water, milk, or lard. Bread, typically made from rye or oats, was another primary staple, sometimes baked into durable flatbreads that could be softened with water.

Getting around

Couriers covered up to 150 kilometers daily

Professional couriers could cover up to 150 kilometers a day using a relay system of horses and riders established by the Taxis Post.

What it cost

Daily worker wages in Vienna

Between 1575 and 1599, a daily wage for a worker in Vienna typically ranged from 7 to 10 kreuzer.