Louise de Mérode

What people wore

Feast day footwear with silver buckles

On feast days, women wore shoes adorned with large silver buckles that covered the entire forefoot.

Getting around

Slow but steady horse-drawn barges

Before railways, tow barges drawn by horses were a common way to travel between towns, moving at a steady but slow pace of 3 to 4 km per hour.

At the table

Potatoes and Rye Bread Staples

Ordinary families relied heavily on potatoes and rye bread as their cheapest daily staples, often eating potatoes with sauce and only rarely having meat.

Music

Popularity of social dancing and balls

Social dancing was a popular activity for all levels of society, with balls frequently held in casual settings like barracks to overcome cultural barriers during the military occupation. Popular dances of the time included group dances and pair dances like the waltz, polka, and various forms of contradance.

Daily life

Small home layouts and sleeping arrangements

Ordinary homes in the Waremme region featured two ground-floor rooms and two upstairs bedrooms, with parents sleeping in an alcove to watch the fire. Beds lacked springs and were made of rye straw mattresses with oat-chaff pillows.

What it cost

Cost of a pair of shoes

Shoes were expensive items that could cost a dagloner the equivalent of five days of hard work.