Women in the Medieval Court: Consorts and Concubines

by Rebecca Holdorph

Overview

While the courts of medieval Europe ate up tales of knights in shining armor and damsels in distress, the reality for the elite women who inhabited those courts could be very different. Medieval society might expect the noblewomen who decorated its courts to play the role of Queen Guinevere, but many of these women had very different ideas.

In a society dominated by men, women who stood out from the crowd could experience great success – and greater failure. Great queens, who sometimes ruled in their own right, fought wars and forged empires. Noblewomen acted behind the scenes to change the course of politics. Far from cloistered off from the world, powerful abbesses played the role of kingmaker. And concubines had a role to play as well, both as political actors and as mothers of children who might change a country’s destiny. They experienced tremendous success and dramatic downfalls.

Meet women from across medieval Europe, from a Danish queen who waged political war to form a Scandinavian empire, to a Tuscan countess who joined her troops on the battlefield. Whether they wielded power in battle, from a convent or throne room, or even in the bedchamber, these women were far from damsels in distress.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781526739810
Publisher:	Pen and Sword
Publication date:	04/27/2022
Pages:	280
Sales rank:	1,100,174
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Rebecca Holdorph holds an MA in Medieval and Renaissance Culture and a PhD in History from the University of Southampton. Her doctoral research looked at the relationships between men, women, marriage, and power in late medieval England. Today she lives in Fort Collins, Colorado and spends her time balancing her love of history, travel, and good cooking.

Table of Contents

Introduction vi

Section 1 Noblewomen 1

Introduction 3

Chapter 1 Wife and Mother 5

Chapter 2 Public Lives 37

Section 2 Consorts 63

Chapter 3 Becoming a Queen 66

Chapter 4 The 'Profession' of Queenship 93

Section 3 Reigning Queens 131

Chapter 5 The Path to the Throne 134

Chapter 6 Wielding Royal Power 155

Section 4 Concubines 193

Chapter 7 'Blinded by Desire': The 'Bad' Mistress 196

Chapter 8 'Until the End of the World': The 'Good' Mistress 217

Conclusion 235

Bibliography 240

Endnotes 247

Editorial Reviews

…Holdorph does have a passion for this subject of medieval queens… a solid introduction to medieval European women who may be unfamiliar with many casual history fans.

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