Widows in Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Britain

This volume provides a comprehensive study of widowhood in Medieval Britain based on literary and historical sources from the seventh to the fifteenth centuries. The book is divided into two parts: the first deals with the Anglo-Saxon period, the second with the Medieval period. Because widows shared certain preoccupations specific to their status, the two parts deal with similar topics: the fundamental role played by the Church in the doctrine of marriage, and the dominant male discourse a...