God's Own Gentlewoman: The Life of Margaret Paston

by Diane Watt

The remarkable story of Margaret Paston, whose letters form the most extensive collection of personal writings by a medieval English woman.

Drawing on what is the largest archive of medieval correspondence relating to a single family in the UK, God's Own Gentlewoman explores what everyday life was like during the turbulent decades at the height of the Wars of the Roses. From political conflicts and familial in-fighting; forbidden love affairs and clandestine marriages; bloody battles and sieges; fear of plague and sudden death; friendships and animosity; childbirth and child mortality, Margaret's letters provide us with unparalleled insight into all aspects of life in late medieval England.

Diane Watt is a world expert on medieval women's writing, and God's Own Gentlewoman explores how Margaret's personal archive provides an insight into her activities, experiences, emotions and relationships and the life of a medieval woman who was at times absorbed by the mundane and domestic, but who also found herself caught up in the most extraordinary situations and events.

Genres: History, Medieval History, Nonfiction

288 pages, Hardcover

Published August 15, 2024

Reviews

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publishers – Icon Books – for giving me access to this book as an E-ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

As an ethnologist and a person very interested in medieval European history I love reading accounts written by normal people. It’s fascinating getting a glimpse into how life was lived in the past and I think Watt has produced a very interesting book.

I liked how the letters and correspondence of Margaret Paston was used as a spring board to the 1400s and other events taking place over the course of her writing her correspondence. I thought it was quite accessible too!

This was a joy to read.

[Charlotte reads history · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Most honourable husband… get some crossbows and poleaxes… and 1lb of almonds and 1lb of sugar.”

The Paston letters are the largest collection of correspondence from a single family in England, and there are more from Margaret than anyone else in the family. This is surprising for the time as literacy levels for women in the 1400s were low - but Margaret dictated her letters and we have documentation from her across 40 years - a fascinating insight into her life.

Diane Watt has studied the Paston letters over many years and this book is a brilliant and accessible dip into Margaret’s words, but Watt also follow sthe trail of the remaining physical evidence of the family across Norfolk and the surrounding area- visiting ruins, churches and fields where their properties once stood.

What struck me was how militaristic Margaret and her family’s life seemed to be. There were several times they had to defend their various family properties with force, sustaining attack and damage and even losing their homes. What a huge undertaking running these households was!

It was fascinating to learn more about Margaret from her own dictated words and the roles and responsibilities she had throughout her life - ‘captainess’, mediator, matriarch, estate manager and wife.

Thank you to @iconbooks for the gifted copy of God’s Own Gentlewoman, which is out now!

[Joanne Ellis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book about Margaret Paston, a woman that had the most extensive collection of personal writings in Medieval England.

It delves deep into what life was like in Medieval Reedham, how the church behaved under certain circumstances. Revealing what it was like to live in those times.
Reading the letters that Margaret wrote to her Husband, who was often away with his work. Also letters from her mother-in-law to her husband, we see the turbulent everyday lives of those that lived in those times.

From love affairs, battles, marriages and political times, we have the privilege of how people lived.
The author is a world expert on Medieval women’s writing, and with writing this book, we also see how Diane Watt gathered information and the research that was built up writing this,
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and I was fascinated by what went on in these times and what traces are left in today’s times, how prominent dates are now remembered in buildings, that are in the Reedham town now.

If you love history, this is a book for you! Really enjoyed it and I will be making sure I read more of the author’s work. Beautifully written.

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book offers an insightful exploration into the life of Margaret Paston, a 15th-century English gentlewoman whose extensive correspondence provides a unique window into medieval society. Through meticulous research, Watt reconstructs Margaret's experiences, highlighting her roles in managing estates, navigating family dynamics, and engaging in the socio-political landscape of the Wars of the Roses. The biography delves into themes such as domestic life, political intrigue, and the challenges faced by women of the era, presenting a nuanced portrait of a woman who was both a product and a shaper of her time. Watt's scholarly yet accessible narrative brings to light the complexities of medieval life, making it a compelling read for those interested in women's history and medieval studies.

[Arthur B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compelling digest of the most interesting things we can learn about Margaret Paston from the Paston Letters, which are otherwise somewhat dense to follow. Full review: https://refereeingandreflection.wordp...

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading all Margaret's letters & it was very informative. However, what I didn't enjoy was reading about the author traipsing around all the various places that Margaret had been/lived, of absolutely no interest to me whatsoever.

[Paul Dickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb - highly recommended.

[History Today]

Margaret Paston married into a family of Norfolk gentry around 1440. A private individual writing letters in a personal capacity, many of which are among those of the surviving Paston corpus, it is precisely because she was not writing for a public audience that her letters tell us so much about her and her era.

In some respects Margaret was very much the epitome of her sex, class and era: she married young, was the mother of seven surviving children and ran the family estates during the frequent lengthy absences of her husband, a lawyer, in London. Her letters span the course of many years, so we get to know her personally as bride, wife, mother and, eventually, widow. Watt is far too pragmatic to claim to have discovered the ‘real’ woman behind the pen. Rather, she lets the evidence speak for itself and, like Howes, uses her subject’s life and writings as the basis for an examination of medieval women’s experiences in a wider context.

Watt presents a carefully selected set of letters from Margaret’s collection, written between the 1440s and the 1480s. They enlighten the reader on subjects of national, local and personal interest: the Wars of the Roses, religious practices, hawking, legal disputes, clandestine marriages, the progress of Margaret’s latest pregnancy and the efficacy (or not) of treacle as a treatment for bubonic plague. The greatest danger for this book was always going to be that Watt’s abundant scholarly expertise would overwhelm a narrative aimed at a general audience, but happily this is not the case. The reading experience is pleasingly like watching a play: Watt steps forward to explain the context and provide a framing device before retreating to the wings to leave Margaret in the limelight as she speaks in her own vibrant voice. The book is, incidentally, a cracking tourist guide to Norfolk.

Read the rest of the review at https://www.historytoday.com/archive/...

Catherine Hanley’s latest book is 1217: The Battles That Saved England (Osprey, 2024).

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had previously read old transcriptions online of some of the Paston letters at different times and found it difficult to get the overall picture of the family and what they were doing because of the language and style and because of their habit of repeating family names. This book, concentrating on the life of one of the main letter writers, Margaret Paston, helps to clear the fog in this respect whilst depicting the eventful life of this East Anglian gentlewoman as told through her letters.

As soon as I became aware of this book I had to have it. A very informative and enjoyable read, recommended for anyone with an interest in the 15th Century.