I think most mediaeval iconography depicts minstrels using a harp rather than a lute. Lutes are extremely delicate and temperamental instruments highly unsuited to the road and a million miles away from the guitar. Mind (he said grudgingly) you may have a pointlet - the cittern (a sort of renaissance bouzouki) was hung up in barber shops so that 17th century customers could busk a version of 'Ye Owle & Ye Pussyecatte' while they were waiting their turn.

MtheGM - I do look at Wiki but I would never rely on it.

Songbob - I cannot, in my wildest nightmares, imagine Child ballads sung to a guitar accompaniment. I reckon the rot set in with the GIs - overpaid, oversexed, overguitared and over here.

Stringsinger - I go with your vision of singers improvising with citoles, citterns or vihuelas but more likely the easier and sturdier citterns. However, in Englandshire, this tradition had been long dead by the time Burl Ives reared his beaming, eccentrically-bearded head.

I'm left wondering when the review was written which said: "You'll never believe this, but Joe Soap sang 'John Barleycorn' and accompanied himself on the 'guitar'- an instrument with six strings, popular in foreign parts".

These worms are OK fried in breadcrumbs with tabasco sauce...