Read "Cities of Women", an interview with Jacqueline Murray
An interview with Jacqueline Murray, University Professor Emeritus at the University of Guelph, Centre for Medieval Studies Faculty, Fellow at St. Michael’s College, and organizer of the Mediaeval Symposium.
Jacqueline Murray invites the public to explore the life and times of medieval city women with the revival of the Mediaeval Symposium on Saturday, April 5. This ‘Modern Symposium at Mediaeval Prices’ will include lectures by U of T medievalists, including CMS Faculty, exploratory discussions, and a medieval feast!
What attracted you to the field of medieval studies and the community of medievalists at the University of Toronto?
Entering university, I had been interested in history, but, like so many students today, I floated a bit, not exactly sure on which field to focus. By serendipity, I heard a guest lecture on Libraries in the Middle Ages by a wonderful and engaging mediaevalist, and it changed my life; I was hooked and never looked back. I studied everything mediaeval, including Dante, early Christianity, and Latin, and was accepted to the Honours History Program at UBC. Until then my courses had been mostly about kings and popes, but when Fr. Michael M. Sheehan came to UBC for a term and a series of guest lectures on marriage and family in the Middle Ages, it was another transformative moment. I was transfixed by this new history of regular people, and I proposed the topic “The Position of Women in Las Siete Partidas” for my Honours Thesis. This was met with some consternation, as it was basically before historical studies of women, medieval or of any other period. My professors were not enthusiastic, which prompted me to pursue my research of marriage and family under the guidance of Fr. Sheehan at the Centre for Medieval Studies, the place recommended above all others by my UBC professors.
The truth is, I was not admitted to the Centre for my MA. However, at that time, the curriculum was such that I could be registered at the Department of History but take most of my courses at CMS. I attained the MA Level of Latin (as it was then called), the Centre accepted me into the PhD program, and I never looked back. But, my graduate research did not go as planned. Rather than following in Fr. Sheehan’s footsteps, my primary sources - manuals for confessors - pushed me in a different direction. Fr. Sheehan and I expected these texts would contain discussions about the family as an affective unit; instead, their main concern was about sex, legitimate, illegitimate, and contra naturam, and I followed where these sources led. At the same time, the study of women in the Middle Ages was emerging, and I widened my scope to explore the intersections of sex and gender, and ultimately the history of sexualities more broadly. Sometimes, I’ve been led by sources, sometimes I’ve been led by currents in the field; there has been a certain serendipity to my research questions and sources. In the past decade or so, my research focus has been on men and masculinities and male embodiment, a field in which I maintain an active research and writing program.
I have considered CMS and PIMS intellectual homes since my arrival in Toronto. The strong medieval culture, lectures and seminars, and wonderful library brought me back virtually every summer after completing my PhD. I still consider Toronto one large, integrated, friendly, community – a real centre of excellence. I feel connected here because, although I have had excellent teaching and administrative careers at the University of Windsor and the University of Guelph, Toronto remains my research base and academic community. I am so proud and pleased now to be an Adjunct Professor at the Centre and a Fellow of St Michael’s College.
What are the origins and aims of the Mediaeval Symposium?
The Mediaeval Symposium dates back to the 1980s when PIMS Fellow Sheila Campbell began a wonderful collaboration with St. Michael’s College Continuing Education. The premise was that one Saturday in April, the doors to the Middle Ages would be open to the public, and a series of lectures centering on a single theme would be given by medievalists from across Toronto (and sometimes beyond). The themes were interesting and could be looked at from various perspectives, beginning with “The Glory of Byzantium,” followed by “Charlemagne.” Over the years,
audiences were taken from the Holy Land to Russia and Spain; they were introduced to Vikings, Celts, Monks, Pilgrims, Jews and Fringe-dwellers, while the last Symposium in 2006 focused on Great Cathedrals. Medievalists – all experts on some aspect of the topic – lectured and chatted with the audience (sometimes as many as 125 people) over coffee and a Mediaeval Feast.
When I became a Fellow at St. Mike’s, I was looking for a way to contribute to the community. I remembered how the Symposia had garnered great interest among a broad audience of non-specialists, and how they elevated all things medieval, showcasing medievalists from across U of T. Given the increasing marginalization of our historical period in the eyes of political and university decision-makers alike, rekindling an interest in the Middle Ages among the wider population seemed a valuable way to give back to all my medieval communities. The real trick will be attracting a new generation and a new audience to the event some twenty years later. I hope medievalists will encourage their acquaintances to attend.
Why “Cities of Women”?
The Symposium’s theme “Cities of Women” of course invokes Christine de Pizan’s City of Ladies, but also her Book of Three Virtues. I was mindful that the topic needed to be enticing with a broad interest, and also needed to be approached from various disciplinary perspectives. Combining these inspirations – women, cities, various statuses and roles – seemed perfect to attract an audience from urban Toronto. The program is rooted in the experiences of women who lived in different cities across Western Europe – a sampler of women’s lives, from different countries, different economic and social ranks – different religious communities who were all part of the surge in urban life that characterized the later Middle Ages.
I am so proud of the scholars willing to spend their Saturday with “Cities of Women,” sharing their research with an audience of interested generalists. Each speaker will take us to a different city, broadening the medieval map, and exploring different women from different perspectives. For example, Isabelle Cochlin will focus on nursing sisters in a French hospital, while Cathryn Spence reveals a cross-section of women’s lives in Edinburgh. Alexandra Guerson and Dana Wessell Lightfoot reveal the complex life of a Jewish merchant woman in Girona during a period of antisemitism and commercial opportunity, and Konrad Eisenbichler introduces a network of women writers in Siena, whose literary exchanges rival those of professional male writers. Finally, Sebastian Sobecki takes us to a court dispute in London involving a servant and Geoffrey Chaucer among others, in the process revealing significant implications for understanding city women against the backdrop of city life. This will be a remarkable event.
It is important to point out that this year’s registration fee is the same price as in 2006; a Medieval Symposium at Medieval Prices (so to say.) And that while the Symposium is directed to an audience of the interested public – teachers, and professionals, faculty, including medievalists – students may also find this an opportunity to expand their own research areas. Certainly, this was the case in the old days, plus it is always just a great time to be with others who love the Middle Ages.
Mediaeval Symposium: Cities of Women in the Middle Ages
Details
Explore the Life and Times of Mediaeval City Women
A Modern Symposium at Mediaeval Prices
Saturday, April 5, 2025
Registration: 8:30 am | Symposium: 9:00 am – 4:30 pm
Alumni Hall, Room 400, 121 St. Joseph St., Toronto
$150.00 Includes lunch & coffee/tea
Registration closes March 20 – register now to avoid disappointment.
An Interview with Sebastian Sobecki, Professor at CMS / English, and Mediaeval Symposium Participant
Among the brilliant medievalists, including CMS Faculty Isabelle Cochelin and Konrad Eisenbichler, Sebastian Sobecki will present Geoffrey Chaucer, Cecily Champaigne, and Female Labour at the Mediaeval Symposium.
Can you describe a little about your research, and how it connects with the theme of the symposium, "Cities of Women in the Middle Ages"?
Much of my work revolves around life-writing and the medieval archives. My sense is that such repositories hold a good deal of untapped knowledge on medieval women and their urban social settings, whether lived and experienced or imagined in literary texts.
What drew you to participating in this symposium, and what do you hope you can gain from sharing your research?
Jacqueline approached me about my work with the archivist Euan Roger on our discovery of new life records on Geoffrey Chaucer and Cecily Chaumpaigne that have radically transformed our ideas about their relationship. While scholars used to interpret the surviving documents as indicative of Chaucer’s sexual assault on Chaumpaigne, we have demonstrated that rather than opponents the two of them were part of the same party sued in court. This, in turn, has allowed us to shed light on the lives of London’s servant women, and I would like to talk about the new records in this context.
How do you think the Mediaeval Symposium will connect the medieval community?
As a novice to the Medieval Symposium, I hope this year’s iteration will appeal to a broad group of the public interested not just in medieval culture but also in the historical lives and experiences of women.
Sessions & Speakers
8:30-9:00 Registration and morning coffee
9:00-9:10 Welcome, Jacqueline Murray, Host and Convenor, University of St Michael’s College & Mediaeval Studies, University of Toronto & History, University of Guelph
9:10-10:00 Sisters of Beaune: Caring for the Sick in the Late Middle Ages, Isabelle Cochelin, History & Mediaeval Studies, University of Toronto
Abstract: We often imagine that mediaeval women were forced to choose between marriage and the cloister. There were, however, multiple other options which scholars have only started to explore. One example is the sisters working in hospitals, such as those at the hospice of Beaune. Founded in 1443, by Nicolas Rolin and Guigone de Salins, a lay couple, who even wrote a rule to structure the sisters’ daily life. What do we know about these women who played a key role within late mediaeval society? How did their life differ from that of nuns, whose governing norms were usually written by churchmen)?
10:00- 10:30 Coffee Break
10:30-11:30 From Merchants to Servants: A Consideration of Women in Sixteenth- and Seventeen-Century Scotland, Cathryn Spence, History & Centre for Scottish Studies, University of Guelph
Abstract: In late mediaeval and early modern Scottish towns, women occupied a variety of economic positions. They were merchants, moneylenders, and servants and they forged and maintained relationships across social classes. Using Edinburgh as a case study, we will investigate the economic, social, and religious connections that affected their lives, including where they lived, which parts of the city they went to, their daily tasks, and their subsequent impact on their city.
11:30-12:30pm Constança of Girona: Conversion and Agency in Late Mediaeval Catalonia, Alexandra Guerson, New College, University of Toronto, and Dana Wessell Lightfoot, History, University of Northern British Columbia
Abstract: In the Summer of 1391, Jewish communities throughout the Kingdom of Castile and the Crown of Aragon were attacked by mobs and often faced the choice of death or conversion. In the Catalan city of Girona, a young Jewish woman named Bellaure converted to Christianity, taking the name of Constança, sparking a conflict with her Jewish husband. We will trace Constança’s story over three decades as she divorced, remarried, managed property, loaned and borrowed money, becoming one of the most active women connected to the Jewish community of Girona during a pivotal time. Throughout this period, she successfully cultivated ties with both Jews and Christians, navigating such relationships despite increasing conflict.
12:30-2:00 Mediaeval Lunch (Fr Madden Hall in Carr Hall, just across St Joseph’s St)
2:00-3:00 Rhyme by Rhyme: Women and Men in Poetic Dialogue, Konrad Eisenbichler, Victoria College, University of Toronto
Abstract: In the late summer of 1540, there was an exchange of sonnets between a group of noble women in Siena and Alessandro Piccolomini, at that time a student at the University of Padua. This exchange illustrates the level of linguistic and poetic competence among women who were not, by any means, professionally engaged with the world of letters or with poetic composition. The women responded per le rime, that is, by re-using Piccolomini’s rhyme scheme and even his rhyme words. This exchange of poetry identifies a network of women writers who knew each other personally and were aware of each other’s participation in this particular poetic venture.
3:00-4:00 Geoffrey Chaucer, Cecily Chaumpaigne, and Female Labour, Sebastian Sobecki, English & Medieval Studies, University of Toronto
Abstract: Geoffrey Chaucer is the most famous poet of the later Middle Ages. While The Canterbury Tales are widely familiar, less is known about Chaucer’s life in London, and a court case that surrounded Chaucer and a servant woman, Cecily Chaumpaigne. This case raises questions about what we know (and don’t know) about her relationship with Chaucer. This paper will summarise what we know about the relationship between Chaucer and his servant Cecily Chaumpaigne and will introduce new findings that have implications for our understanding of female labour in late-mediaeval London.
4:00-4:30 General Discussion & Concluding Remarks