I am reading the book "The six wives of Henry the VIII" by Alison Weir, and in a chapter she mentions that in court there were carpets only in the royal appartments, and else where in court there were rushes, What does she mean by that? English is my second language and I thought rushes were like grass, is it the same??
Hello Karla,
ReplyDeleteQuick answer - yes, she does mean the grass.
Slightly longer answer - the floors were covered in rushes and when the court would move to the next palace, the rushes would be swept out and replaced in the palace they just left.
If you ever have the opportunity to visit Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire, the late-16th-century home of Elizabeth Countess of Shrewsbury, the floors in many of its rooms are still covered in rushes. They are woven into massive mats, however. And the guides even speak about "watering" them periodically to keep them from becoming too brittle.
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