Is today the best time to be alive? Inspired by games, some people dream of a return to medieval life. But the reality was often harsh.
Four brutal truths of medieval life
Grim reality: Today, there are effective treatments for leprosy. Medieval sufferers, like this man from a 13th Century Swiss illustration, would not have been so lucky. Glossary
Middle Ages - The Middle Ages was the period in European history that came between ancient and modern times. It lasted from about 500 to about 1500.
Progress - The idea that history is the gradual improvement of society developed during the European Enlightenment, beginning in the 17th Century.
Philosophy - The study of key questions and knowledge about nature, reality and existence.
Peasants - A historical term often used to describe poorer people who worked in farming.
Average - Typical or usual.
Famines - Times of great hunger, when there is very little food.