Start here
The Medieval Concept of Courtly Love
Courtly love was a literary and social convention of devoted, often unattainable love among medieval nobles. Learn where it came from and why historians debate it.
Life and Learning
Courtly Love and Ideals
Love, chastity and etiquette in noble circles.
The Medieval Concept of Chastity: A Moral and Religious Ideal
Chastity in the Middle Ages was a moral and religious ideal for clergy, nuns and laypeople alike. See what it asked of each group and how it differed from courtly desire.
The Medieval Concept of Courtly Love: A Code of Conduct for the Nobility
Courtly love shaped manners in noble circles: gestures, service, gifts and secrecy. See what was expected of lovers and why no formal rulebook is certain.
The Medieval Concept of Love: A Look at Courtly Love
How did medieval people think about love and marriage? Compare courtly love with arranged unions, Church teaching on consent, and affection within the household.
The Medieval Concept of the Three Types of Love: Agape, Eros, and Philia
Agape, eros and philia are Greek words for love, but medieval writers mostly used Latin terms. See how these ideas were handled and where modern readings go too far.
Related topics
More in life and learning
Learning and Science Schools, universities, stars and maps. Food and Drink What people ate and drank, from peasant pottage to noble feasts. Dress, Festivals and Folklore Clothing, holy days, customs and legends. Literature and Legends Poems, sagas and tales told across the Middle Ages. Music and Entertainment Songs, dance, jesters and court amusements. Science and Technology Alchemy, astronomy, ships and the tools that changed work. Women in Medieval Society Work, law, family and religious life for medieval women. Poets and Authors Writers of the medieval world and those who shaped how it is remembered. Medieval Lives Typical lives of a peasant, a knight and a monk. Elements, Humors and Senses Medieval theories of matter, the body and perception. Medieval Worldview How medieval people thought about time, seasons, life stages and fate. Universities, Oxford and Cambridge How universities arose and how Oxford and Cambridge took shape. Everyday Life Details Homes, hygiene, childhood, marriage and death in ordinary medieval lives.