Medieval Women Religious, c.800–c.1500: New Perspectives, ed. Kimm Curran and Janet Burton

Research into pre-modern women’s convents or, more precisely, into women who chose a religious way of life, in organised groups or alone, is flourishing. Sources are being made accessible, established assumptions are being challenged, and modern methods, among them those of the Digital Humanities, are being applied. Thanks to the dedicated work of (mostly female) researchers around the globe over the last few decades, the topic has become well established and energetic. It is in this context that the present volume situates itself by taking an interdisciplinary approach to bring new aspects into the discussion.

The volume comprises twelve articles, which are arranged in four thematic segments. Following an introduction from editors Kimm Curran and Janet Burton in which they set the stage with an overview of historical approaches to religious women, the first section offers a concise outline of three different periods that were important for the organisation of medieval women religious and for research on the topic. Steven Vanderputten scrutinises the monastic reforms of the ninth century, but also of the tenth and eleventh centuries, in terms of their defining effect on female religiosity. Recent research points to a continuous and accepted diversity of practice and experience that requires new and more detail-sensitive examination. Katharine Sykes similarly questions the developments of the twelfth century and the new orders, and Alison More challenges assumptions about the mendicants and tertiaries during the thirteenth and subsequent centuries.

The second section, consisting of only two articles, brings often-overlooked figures into the spotlight: anchorites (Cate Gunn) and vowesses (Laura Richmond), two very heterogeneous groups or rather loose framings of the varied lifestyles of religious women who did not fit into the defined orders. Both show clearly that these women played a central role in society that should not be ignored.

The third section brings together articles that consider various more abstract elements of the lives of women in monastic convents or in other religious environments. First, Elizabeth A. Lehfeldt argues for a new, less biased assessment of the agency and competence of women in leading roles in religious communities. Rachel M. Delman also examines the leading functions of religious women, comparing them to forms of leadership which noble laywomen could perform. She particularly emphasises elements of exchange between the monastery and the outside world; an aspect echoed in Diana Denissen’s contribution, who describes women’s competence in authorship, reading and translating in the Devotio Moderna, which they achieved in the face of many restrictions on women’s activity. Sara Charles then looks at contacts specifically between lay families and the sponsors of women’s convents. The frequent exchange of material and immaterial gifts that kept religious women’s communal and personal networks alive underscores the importance of these gifts for our understanding of the convent’s working.

The last three articles are linked by their consideration of materiality and space. Yvonne Seale opens this segment by looking at the formative influence that women’s convents had on their physical environment, an area which is still relatively unexplored and yet so important for our understanding of women’s influence on cultural landscapes. Tracy Collins describes archaeological research into women’s convent buildings and, because of the diversity of the finds, advocates for more interdisciplinarity and new methods. Finally, Mercedes Pérez Vidal looks at rituals and material remains related to death and memoria in women’s convents. She shows how space and liturgy must always be considered together; looking at just one or the other will only give an incomplete picture.

In some parts of the book, the contributions of non-English research and research on non-English-sources seem to have been considered a bit superficially. A stronger focus on the ‘new’ in ‘new perspectives’ would also have been appreciated, perhaps in a synopsis of current tendencies and emerging trends in research which is becoming ever more global, specialised and digital. However, since most articles, and especially all articles read together, draw a diverse picture and successfully highlight new tendencies and possibilities in their respective areas, the volume is a highly valuable addition to current discussions.