Ladies-in-Waiting in Medieval England

Caroline Dunn is Associate Professor of Medieval History at Clemson University. She is the author of Stolen Women in Medieval England: Rape, Abduction, and Adultery c. 1110-1500. She was awarded the Bonnie Wheeler Fellowship in 2020.

• Introduction; Part I. The People of the Household: 1. The household: size, gender, and recruitment; 2. Marriage and courtier families; Part II. Rhythms of Life: 3. Daily life and domestic duties; 4. Ritual and ceremony; Part III. Power and its Rewards: 5. Authority, influence, and power politics; 6. Rewards for good service; Conclusion: Power, authority, influence, and service; Bibliography; Index.

'Caroline Dunn's richly fascinating book documents the careers of nearly 1200 elite female servants in royal and aristocratic households in England between 1236 and 1536. She devised a sophisticated methodology to convincingly argue that ladies-in-waiting were liminal but essential, vital to creating and maintaining networks of family alliances that comprise monarchy.' Theresa Earenfight, editor of Elite and Royal Households in Medieval and early Modern Europe