Women and Parliament in Later Medieval England (The New Middle Ages)

This Palgrave Pivot provides the first ever comprehensive consideration of the part played by women in the workings and business of the English Parliament in the later Middle Ages. Breaking new ground, this book considers all aspects of women’s access to the highest court of medieval England. Women were active supplicants to the Crown in Parliament, and sometimes appeared there in person to prosecute cases or make political demands. It explores the positions of women of varying rank, from queens to peasants, vis-à-vis this male institution, where they very occasionally appeared in person but were more usually represented by written petitions. A full analysis of these petitions and of the official records of parliament reveals that there were a number of issues on which women consistently pressed for changes in the law and its administration, and where the Commons and the Crown either championed or refused to support reform. Such is the concentration of petitions on the subjects of dower and rape that these may justifiably be termed ‘women’s issues’ in the medieval Parliament. Preface 7 Contents 8 Abbreviations 10 Chapter 1: Introduction: Debates and Sources 12 The History of Parliament 13 Sources and Method 18 Women, Power and Agency 23 References 30 Unpublished Primary Sources 30 Published Primary Sources 30 Published Secondary Sources 30 Chapter 2: Queens and Noblewomen in Parliament 35 Introduction 36 Queens and Parliament 36 Noblewomen and Parliament 41 References 47 Unpublished Primary Sources 47 Published Primary Sources 47 Published Secondary Sources 48 Chapter 3: Women of the Gentry and Lesser Social Status 51 Introduction 52 Femmes Soles as Petitioners in Parliament 52 Married Women as Petitioners in Parliament 54 The Petition of Margaret Basset 56 Conclusion 58 References 61 Unpublished Primary Sources 61 Published Primary Sources 61 Published Secondary Sources 62 Chapter 4: Women on Trial in Parliament 63 Introduction 64 The Trials of Alice Perrers 64 The Trial of Eleanor Cobham 68 References 70 Unpublished Primary Sources 70 Published Primary Sources 71 Published Secondary Sources 71 Chapter 5: Female Institutions and Collectives as Petitioners in Parliament 73 Introduction 74 Nuns as Petitioners in Parliament 74 Lay Female Collectives as Petitioners in Parliament 77 References 82 Unpublished Primary Sources 82 Published Primary Sources 82 Published Secondary Sources 83 Chapter 6: Women’s Issues in Parliament: Dower 84 The Law of Dower 85 Parliamentary Petitions on Dower 85 The Consequences of Rebellion 88 Conclusion 94 References 99 Unpublished Primary Sources 99 Published Primary Sources 100 Published Secondary Sources 100 Unpublished Dissertations 102 Chapter 7: Women’s Issues in Parliament: Rape 103 The Law of Rape 104 Parliamentary Petitions on Rape 105 The Frequency of Rape Cases in Parliament 107 Pardons for Rapists 111 Rape and Emotion 113 Conclusion 114 References 119 Unpublished Primary Sources 119 Published Primary Sources 120 Published Secondary Sources 120 Chapter 8: Women, Parliament and the Public Sphere 123 Introduction 124 Women and Work 125 Women and the Public Finances 126 References 130 Unpublished Primary Sources 130 Published Primary Sources 130 Published Secondary Sources 131 Chapter 9: Conclusion: Women Speaking Out in the Medieval Parliament 133 The Women of London 134 Accessing Royal Grace 135 First-Person Narratives 137 Conclusion 141 References 144 Unpublished Primary Sources 144 Published Primary Sources 144 Published Secondary Sources 144 Unpublished Dissertations 146 Index 147 Front Matter ....Pages i-xii Introduction: Debates and Sources (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 1-23 Queens and Noblewomen in Parliament (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 25-40 Women of the Gentry and Lesser Social Status (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 41-52 Women on Trial in Parliament (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 53-62 Female Institutions and Collectives as Petitioners in Parliament (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 63-73 Women’s Issues in Parliament: Dower (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 75-93 Women’s Issues in Parliament: Rape (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 95-114 Women, Parliament and the Public Sphere (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 115-124 Conclusion: Women Speaking Out in the Medieval Parliament (W. Mark Ormrod)....Pages 125-138 Back Matter ....Pages 139-148