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Medieval women are often stereotyped as having had a miserable lot in life: destined either for domestic drudgery or use as a political pawn (depending on their social status), with an early death in childbirth a distinct possibility, and religious seclusion and celibacy offering the only alternative. They had little agency, and less power, to influence their fate or the wider world around them – or did they? A new exhibition at the British Library offers a more vibrant and much more interesting view of female experiences, aspirations, and achievements during this period.
Spanning the years 1100-1500, Medieval Women: In Their Own Words draws together over 140 documents, books, and objects from Britain, Continental Europe, and the world of the Crusades. Highlights include a letter signed by Joan of Arc; the oldest-known Valentine’s Day missive; and the earliest autobiography in the English language, dictated by the 15th-century mystic Margery Kempe. The exhibition’s wide-ranging displays set out to rebalance narratives that are often dominated by kings, male scholars, and churchmen, vividly demonstrating how many women’s stories still survive in archives and the archaeological record.
The deeds of queens, saints, and high-ranking religious women were, of course, more likely to be documented, and the exhibition includes a host of famous females from Margaret of Anjou and Empress Matilda to Hildegard of Bingen. Less expected, however, are its many glimpses – surprising, poignant, amusing, and often remarkably relatable – into the lives of ordinary women.
Displays are organised around three main themes, exploring private, public, and spiritual lives. The first includes items related to the home, cosmetics, education, and reproductive health. Unless dedicated to the Church, medieval women were expected to become wives and mothers, and visitors can see some of the ways in which they tried to counteract the dangers of childbirth – among them a parchment ‘birthing girdle’ (below), colourfully decorated with prayers and charms; a ring depicting St Margaret of Antioch, patron saint of pregnancy and childbirth; and an illustrated Latin text about the same saint, smudged by devotional kissing.
Other items challenge expectations about medieval women’s interests and achievements outside the home. Here we find Christine de Pizan (d. 1430), the first professional female author in Europe; Licoricia of Winchester (d. 1277), a Jewish businesswoman who rose to become one of Henry III’s chief financiers; Juliet Dürer of Lübeck, a 15th-century criminal notary; and numerous female medical practitioners. Meanwhile, displays about religion explore how nunneries offered unique opportunities for education and self-expression; the dangerously fine line between being viewed as saints and visionaries, or heretics and witches; and female experiences in 13th-century England’s Jewish communities, and in al-Andalus (Islamic Iberia).
Imaginative interactive elements enhance this wealth of historical detail – but perhaps the most enjoyable aspect are the colourful personalities that you encounter on the way. Characters like Gwerful Mechain (d. 1502), who wrote erotic poetry celebrating the female form, and ‘Black Agnes’, who sent her women to ‘sweep the battlements mockingly’ during the 1338 siege of Dunbar Castle, explode any lingering preconceptions about medieval women living meekly surrendered lives, instead highlighting the courage, ingenuity, and ambition of these long-vanished individuals, how they built worlds for themselves within existing social boundaries, and how fiercely some fought to further their rights and follow their desires.
Further information: Medieval Women: In Their Own Words runs at the British Library until 2 March 2025. For more details, see http://www.bl.uk/whats-on/medieval-women.
Image: Harley Roll T 11 © British Library Board
