Female Monasticism in Italy from 700 to 1100: Family, Power, Memory

Abstract

This Monographic Section proposes to study female monasteries in Italy in the period 700 to 1100, focusing on comparing and contrasting those in cities covering northern, central and southern Italy (Brescia, Venice, Verona, Ravenna, Rome, Benevento and Naples). Key elements of this comparison are the links of nuns and abbesses with the most powerful royal and aristocratic families in the area, and the way in which these contributed to the power and wealth of the relative houses. Examining these, as well as the role of the nuns in the memorialisation and representation of these families through prayers, relics, and patrimonies, will also lead to a comparison between various monastic traditions (Lombard, Frankish Carolingian, post Byzantine, Roman) in different areas, and to the identification of specific features of these in their associations with the contemporary elites.