Frederick Casimir Kettler

At the table

Rye bread as daily staple

For ordinary people, rye bread was the staple food, while white bread made from wheat was reserved only for celebrations.

What people wore

Festive versus everyday footwear

Footwear for ordinary people primarily consisted of bark shoes (vīzes) or pastalas, while boots were generally reserved for festive occasions.

Getting around

Slow overland travel between towns

Traveling between towns was slow, and a trip from Vilnius to Kaunas, which now takes less than 1.5 hours, required a full day at the time.

Work

Grueling Daily Work Routine

A typical workday began before dawn and lasted until deep into the night, often continuing by moonlight due to a lack of lamps. Work was grueling, and laborers could be punished with 10 to 20 lashes for minor transgressions or failing to work fast enough.

Music

Late night merchant wedding dances

At merchant weddings, guests celebrated with dances until midnight, often ending in fights after extensive beer consumption.

Daily life

Peasant Threshing-Dwelling Houses

In the 17th century, Vidzeme peasant homes, known as threshing-dwelling houses, combined living space with a drying house and a threshing room under one roof.