The Cloister and the World

These essays reflect the interests of a distinguished scholar renowned for her work on medieval society, and especially on the monastic community at Westminster. Contributions range from the eighth to the sixteenth centuries, looking at urban religion, monastic education, and the role of religious communities in stimulating economic growth. Westminster Abbey figures prominently, alongside essays on the effects of the Dissolution on nuns, the role of sanctuary in local communities, and on individuals such as Matthew Paris and Robert of Knaresborough, whose lives reveal much about medieval England.