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For western European Christians living in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, pilgrimage offe... more For western European Christians living in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, pilgrimage offered a nearly unique opportunity. Women were not prohibited from engaging in the majority of pilgrimage-related activities, and they were in many ways encouraged to participate. Female pilgrims appear in a variety of texts, written by authors who held a variety of opinions about their presence. While precious few of these sources record the subjective opinions or remembrances of a female pilgrim, women's presence at pilgrimage shrines-virtually all of them-is nonetheless well-documented in the later Middle Ages. Mystics, beguines, and female pilgrims all interacted with a Christian tradition that was at times openly misogynist, but was also tremendously flexible. They all participated in forms of devotion that did not absolutely require official Church sanction or formal adoption of religious status. And all three forms of religious practice were increasingly attractive or available to women.Keywords: female pilgrims; later Middle Ages; religious practice; western European Christians

Church History, Sep 1, 2017

This chapter explores discussions of women's mobility, and especially pilgrimage, in several ... more This chapter explores discussions of women's mobility, and especially pilgrimage, in several later medieval texts, noting their common heritage and their repetition of similar elements. It first locates the roots of the castigation of mobile women in the late Antique misogynist tradition, in both social commentary and in medicine. The chapter then examines the ways in which these same ideas appeared in later medieval satire and allegory. But the ongoing concern about women's mobility was not entirely a satirical or humorous one. It also appeared in proscriptive literature, wherein women were warned against needless travel, and were instructed in how to avoid misbehavior when they did appear in public. The most striking later medieval examples of the trope of the wandering woman were satirical caricatures and allegorical representations, female figures who were lampooned for the sexual and materialistic ill-conduct which was presented as the prime motivator for their travels.Keywords: later medieval allegory; later medieval satire; pilgrimage; wandering woman

Female pilgrims might be fashioned into predators, prey, intercessors or quasi-saints. This remar... more Female pilgrims might be fashioned into predators, prey, intercessors or quasi-saints. This remarkable flexibility in the meanings of pilgrimage in the later Middle Ages made room for blanket condemnation of female pilgrims by satirists, but simultaneously made it reasonable to compel women who were out of their minds, and those who were heretics, to become pilgrims. This chapter explores these compulsory pilgrimages, which were carried out within the context of an entirely different relationship between the female pilgrim and the power structures that surrounded her than voluntary pilgrimages were. As such, the rituals of compulsory pilgrimage differentiated compulsory pilgrims from other sorts. But even in cases where a woman's pilgrimage was forced, rather than self-willed, it was possible for her to help shape both the events of the journey and the shared interpretations of those events.Keywords: compulsory pilgrimage; female pilgrims; later Middle Ages

Women commonly became pilgrims in Latin Christendom in the later Middle Ages, despite the opposit... more Women commonly became pilgrims in Latin Christendom in the later Middle Ages, despite the opposition of contemporary critics. This book explores women’s participation in many forms of pilgrimage, and also their construction of positive interpretations of that participation.

Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages

Women who participated in the long-distance pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the fourteenth a... more Women who participated in the long-distance pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries faced a variety of economic and social barriers. Based upon the pilgrimage narratives of Margery Kempe, Felix Fabri, and others, this article examines the strategies women used to overcome those barriers both before and during the journey. While resistance to women's pilgrimages was strong, in part, because they did not fit their quotidian roles as caregivers, it was nevertheless to aspects of those same normative roles that women appealed in order to justify their pilgrimages and shield themselves from censure during their journeys.

The field of disability studies significantly contributes to contemporary discussions of the marg... more The field of disability studies significantly contributes to contemporary discussions of the marginalization of and social justice for individuals with disabilities. However, what of disability in the past? The Medieval Disability Sourcebook: Western Europe explores what medieval texts have to say about disability, both in their own time and for the present.This interdisciplinary volume on medieval Europe combines historical records, medical texts, and religious accounts of saints’ lives and miracles, as well as poetry, prose, drama, and manuscript images to demonstrate the varied and complicated attitudes medieval societies had about disability. Far from recording any monolithic understanding of disability in the Middle Ages, these contributions present a striking range of voices—to, from, and about those with disabilities—and such diversity only confirms how disability permeated (and permeates) every aspect of life.The Medieval Disability Sourcebook is designed for use inside the ...

A Companion to Medieval Miracle Collections, 2021

The Sacred and the Secular in Medieval Healing, 2017

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2020

History Compass, 2014

This article explores the extent of recent publications on the history of madness and mental illn... more This article explores the extent of recent publications on the history of madness and mental illness in the Middle Ages. It also argues that as this work continues, the categorical groupings of "madness" and "mental illness" deserve our close scrutiny. An exploration of both medieval and present-day categorical assumptions reveals the ways in which they shape our reading of medieval texts, of historical causation, and of social agency.

For western European Christians living in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, pilgrimage offe... more For western European Christians living in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, pilgrimage offered a nearly unique opportunity. Women were not prohibited from engaging in the majority of pilgrimage-related activities, and they were in many ways encouraged to participate. Female pilgrims appear in a variety of texts, written by authors who held a variety of opinions about their presence. While precious few of these sources record the subjective opinions or remembrances of a female pilgrim, women's presence at pilgrimage shrines-virtually all of them-is nonetheless well-documented in the later Middle Ages. Mystics, beguines, and female pilgrims all interacted with a Christian tradition that was at times openly misogynist, but was also tremendously flexible. They all participated in forms of devotion that did not absolutely require official Church sanction or formal adoption of religious status. And all three forms of religious practice were increasingly attractive or available to women.Keywords: female pilgrims; later Middle Ages; religious practice; western European Christians

Church History, Sep 1, 2017

This chapter explores discussions of women's mobility, and especially pilgrimage, in several ... more This chapter explores discussions of women's mobility, and especially pilgrimage, in several later medieval texts, noting their common heritage and their repetition of similar elements. It first locates the roots of the castigation of mobile women in the late Antique misogynist tradition, in both social commentary and in medicine. The chapter then examines the ways in which these same ideas appeared in later medieval satire and allegory. But the ongoing concern about women's mobility was not entirely a satirical or humorous one. It also appeared in proscriptive literature, wherein women were warned against needless travel, and were instructed in how to avoid misbehavior when they did appear in public. The most striking later medieval examples of the trope of the wandering woman were satirical caricatures and allegorical representations, female figures who were lampooned for the sexual and materialistic ill-conduct which was presented as the prime motivator for their travels.Keywords: later medieval allegory; later medieval satire; pilgrimage; wandering woman

Female pilgrims might be fashioned into predators, prey, intercessors or quasi-saints. This remar... more Female pilgrims might be fashioned into predators, prey, intercessors or quasi-saints. This remarkable flexibility in the meanings of pilgrimage in the later Middle Ages made room for blanket condemnation of female pilgrims by satirists, but simultaneously made it reasonable to compel women who were out of their minds, and those who were heretics, to become pilgrims. This chapter explores these compulsory pilgrimages, which were carried out within the context of an entirely different relationship between the female pilgrim and the power structures that surrounded her than voluntary pilgrimages were. As such, the rituals of compulsory pilgrimage differentiated compulsory pilgrims from other sorts. But even in cases where a woman's pilgrimage was forced, rather than self-willed, it was possible for her to help shape both the events of the journey and the shared interpretations of those events.Keywords: compulsory pilgrimage; female pilgrims; later Middle Ages

Women commonly became pilgrims in Latin Christendom in the later Middle Ages, despite the opposit... more Women commonly became pilgrims in Latin Christendom in the later Middle Ages, despite the opposition of contemporary critics. This book explores women’s participation in many forms of pilgrimage, and also their construction of positive interpretations of that participation.

Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages

Women who participated in the long-distance pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the fourteenth a... more Women who participated in the long-distance pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries faced a variety of economic and social barriers. Based upon the pilgrimage narratives of Margery Kempe, Felix Fabri, and others, this article examines the strategies women used to overcome those barriers both before and during the journey. While resistance to women's pilgrimages was strong, in part, because they did not fit their quotidian roles as caregivers, it was nevertheless to aspects of those same normative roles that women appealed in order to justify their pilgrimages and shield themselves from censure during their journeys.

The field of disability studies significantly contributes to contemporary discussions of the marg... more The field of disability studies significantly contributes to contemporary discussions of the marginalization of and social justice for individuals with disabilities. However, what of disability in the past? The Medieval Disability Sourcebook: Western Europe explores what medieval texts have to say about disability, both in their own time and for the present.This interdisciplinary volume on medieval Europe combines historical records, medical texts, and religious accounts of saints’ lives and miracles, as well as poetry, prose, drama, and manuscript images to demonstrate the varied and complicated attitudes medieval societies had about disability. Far from recording any monolithic understanding of disability in the Middle Ages, these contributions present a striking range of voices—to, from, and about those with disabilities—and such diversity only confirms how disability permeated (and permeates) every aspect of life.The Medieval Disability Sourcebook is designed for use inside the ...

A Companion to Medieval Miracle Collections, 2021

The Sacred and the Secular in Medieval Healing, 2017

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, 2020

History Compass, 2014

This article explores the extent of recent publications on the history of madness and mental illn... more This article explores the extent of recent publications on the history of madness and mental illness in the Middle Ages. It also argues that as this work continues, the categorical groupings of "madness" and "mental illness" deserve our close scrutiny. An exploration of both medieval and present-day categorical assumptions reveals the ways in which they shape our reading of medieval texts, of historical causation, and of social agency.

... 138 Page 4. Wandering Women and Holy Matrons Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages By Le... more ... 138 Page 4. Wandering Women and Holy Matrons Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages By Leigh Ann Craig LEIDEN • BOSTON 2009 Page 5. ... Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Craig, Leigh Ann. Wandering ...

The Medieval Review, 2010

The authors of this volume are to be commended for having produced something rare and valuable: a... more The authors of this volume are to be commended for having produced something rare and valuable: a book aimed at nonspecialist readers which documents a facet of medieval culture, and does so without lapsing into inaccuracy or painful oversimplification. Being a ...

Journal of Women's History, 2007

One of the more recent developments in the realms of social and cultural history has been a growi... more One of the more recent developments in the realms of social and cultural history has been a growing interest in the question of physical space, and how human beings living in various times and places have occupied space, parsed it, and sought to control it. Such inquiries ...

Journal of Women's History, 2001

... While Kelly discusses the real possibility of rape, and Roberts mentioned the historical evid... more ... While Kelly discusses the real possibility of rape, and Roberts mentioned the historical evidence for women's ... not only with chaste widowhood but also with virginity, and Hayward and Callahan's articles discuss ... Leigh Ann Craig is a Ph.D. candidate at the Ohio State University. ...