The Medieval Housewife & Other Women of the Middle Ages

by Toni Mount

Have you ever wondered what life was like for the ordinary housewife in the Middle Ages? Or how much power a medieval lady really had? Find out all about medieval housewives, peasant women, grand ladies, women in trade and women in the church in this fascinating book. More has been written about medieval women in the last twenty years than in the two whole centuries before that. Female authors of the medieval period have been rediscovered and translated; queens are no longer thought of as merely decorative brood mares for their royal husbands and have merited their own biographies. In the past, historians have tended to look at what women could not do. In this book we will look at the lives of medieval women in a more positive light, finding out what rights and opportunities they enjoyed and attempting to uncover the real women beneath the layers of dust accumulated over the centuries.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval, Medieval History

136 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 28, 2014

About the author

Toni Mount is a writer, teacher and speaker, specialising in ordinary lives and fascinating characters from history. She has an MA by Research from the University of Kent. Diplomas in European Humanities, Literature and Creative Writing and a first class honours degree from the Open University.

Reviews

[Helena Schrader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a gold-mine of anecdotal evidence demonstrating conclusively that medieval women were far more “empowered,” active and effective than conventional stereotypes allow. As Ms. Mount states in her introduction, “historians have tended to look at what women could not do.” Such a perspective is not only inherently negative (the glass is half empty rather than half full), it effectively denigrates women to objects of male power. As Mount so eloquently argues, women are — and have always been — independent personalities capable of coping with “tricky circumstances.” To focus exclusively on legal norms and male literature describing female “ideals,” denies women their own voice. This book is a refreshing change from polemical tirades against male domination that lets medieval women speak for themselves — through the books they wrote (yes, even middle class women in the Middle Ages were literate!), their wills, and their actions.

The book is organized by theme, looking at women in their homes (housewives), in trade, in rural communities (peasants), in the church and in the upper class. Mount uses exclusively primary sources and archaeological evidence to build her case, and provides many photos from medieval sources and re-enactments. The book is short and easy to read, yet meticulously documented with a good bibliography of recommended further reading.

As a historian, I already knew a great deal about the wealth, power, influence and substantial legal rights of royal and aristocratic women (you can’t read history without running into these women — Empress Mathilda, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Melisende of Jerusalem, Isabella of France, Joan of Kent, Marguerite d’Anjou etc.). I also knew about the legal rights of widows even in the middle and peasant class, their ability to inherit, run their husband’s businesses and hold their husband’s vacant seats in guilds etc. What completely surprised me was learning that girls were also frequently apprenticed at young ages to learn trades, many of which they continued to practice after marriage. The ability of women to run their own business while still wives, not just as widows, was news to me as well. Mount’s evidence — and it is hard, solid evidence — completely transforms my view of women’s role in the lower tiers of medieval society and is so doing rounds out the picture I already had. It makes much more sense that women, regardless of class, had a comparable relationship with the men of their respective class. After all, women at the lower end of the social scale looked to the women of the elites not only for fashion but also as role models. A powerful queen would embolden the ladies of her court, who in turn inspired the women serving them etc. etc.

My only disappointment with this book is that it remains a collection of anecdotes rather than a more systematic analysis of women in the Middle Ages. Rather than just dismissing previous historians for their “half-empty” approach, Mount could have tackled some of the more destructive theses about women in the Middle Ages head on. She almost does this in her chapter on women in the church in which she quotes some extraordinarily positive views of women recorded by leading churchmen that refute the oft-stated notion that “the Church” was hostile to women. It wasn’t that simple. But ultimately Mount shies away from taking a firm position and putting forward her own comprehensive thesis on women’s place in Medieval Society. A pity — unless that will be the subject of a later book.

[Deyanira C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good reading for those interested in Medieval times.

I consider the medieval ages extremely fascinating so many different ideas and ways to live and the role of the women is indeed interesting, the book gives a good idea about the life of medieval housewives the legal stuff, food religion and everything with the help of contemporary accounts and some pictures of festivals done nowadays to celebrate medieval ages.
But be aware that the book is short the information is there but the author doesn't explore much of it basically tells a short text of some biography, or legal paper, and with that shows how some lady went through this or that but not more there is not context or something and I would have like the author to give some type of analysis to make the book more interesting and the same way almost all is information that you could easily find and indeed is in any medieval blog, so if you already read something of medieval times you will not learn much, I have been reading about medieval times for less than six months 2 or 3 blogs and 2 books and with that all the information here was something that I already knew although isn't a bad book specially to introduce yourself to the topic.

[Hella · Rating 3 out of 5]

wel leuk, beetje oppervlakkig

[Willow Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed all the lengthy extracts from the source materials and that it dips into a range of topics. I love hearing about kitchen/food practices, the exact kind of clothes people wore, religious practices, brothels, marital affairs, the handling of crime, and much more.

I knew nothing about female business owners or appretinces, that was very interesting and I could have read a bigger chapter on the specific examples.

I'd love to read more about medieval prostitutes, but no one alive at the time thought they were worth breathing. So. I guess we'll never have a proper account of what they thought and felt.

This was a great little book!

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This slim book is full of interesting data on the lives on women in the medieval period. It's written in a lovely accessible fashion and covers all relevant topics from household management to religion. A great introduction to this specific part of history.

[Elena · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful little jewel about everiday life of medieval women, from peasants to ladies. Full of informations and original accounts, this is a must have for everyone interested in Middle Ages or that simply want to learn more about human's life in the past.

[Marie Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great research and easy to read. This book was useful and entertaining, and I enjoyed Toni Mount's storytelling style. There's always something new to learn about the middle ages.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting and very readable.

[English · Rating 4 out of 5]

This little book started out as a series of Lecture notes for a course the author was teaching, and was later developed into a book for general consumption. Unlike a lot of short books on this subject, it combines academic content with a readable style, examining legal and other contemporary records.

I don't agree with all the author's conclusion towards the end (theologians have largely debunked the idea that the writing of St Paul are mysogynisic for instance, as this is based on a few isolated passages taken out of context), especially those regarding domestic violence. There were cases of women taking abusive spouses to court, and even forms of communal punishment for them. However its a useful work overall.

Recommened for anyone who wants a complimentary work on Medieval Englishwomen.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fascinating look at women in a sometimes "forgotten era" for women (the focus so often being huge historical events w/ royalty or tragedies like the pestilence). I especially enjoyed learning about women in trade, particularly women who sold extra ale for pocket money. I had no idea. Definitely recommend this book to anyone looking to see medieval England/France in a different light than what is so often portrayed elsewhere.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very much an introduction to the subject, but a fun one. The author's tone is conversational, funny but always to the point. I also liked the illustrations of reenactors.

Recommended if you are new to the subject and want a quick (but never shallow) overview.

[Susan Abernethy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Link to my review of this book:

http://flhwnotesandreviews.com/2015/0...

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

An informative, nicely illustrated book, although I found the telling of it a little dry. I had to keep re-reading some bits as I realised I hadn't taken anything in.