The England of 1350 was something of a polyglot nation. Hundreds of years of invasions made it a grab bag of peoples, from the original Celtic Britons to the Angles—who gave England its name—and the Saxons, Danes, and Norwegians of Northern Europe. French-Viking Normans conquered the country in 1066; at the time of The Door in the Wall, their descendants, the House of Plantagenet, ruled England under the well-liked King Edward III and his equally popular wife, Queen Philippa. The king and queen make an appearance late in the novel.

Much of the story’s action takes place in western England near the border with Wales, a Celtic nation struggling to break free of England’s domination. In the book, Welsh soldiers capture a border town, hoping to control its castle.

Most English citizens were extremely impoverished and relied mainly on farming and sheep ranching for survival. Many of them worked for feudal lords, sometimes as indentured servants. Their diet consisted largely of bread, mutton, and ale but included apples and other occasional fruits and vegetables in season. Sometimes deer or hog meat was available, especially on feast days.

Walking was the chief method of transport. Horses and donkeys were also available, but they were costly to maintain.