By Divine Grace: appreciation of female pilgrimage in the Middle Ages
"For evyr the mor slawnder and repref that sche sufferyd, the mor sche incresyd in grace and in devocyon" (1)
Margery Kempe (ca. 1373-1439) was an English mystic famed for her religious devotion and pilgrimages, as well as her loud weeping which defined her expression of religious love and devotion. As author of the first autobiographical work in English literature, her book, The Book of Margery Kempe, has been studied as a source for medieval religious experience, travel literature and even early feminism. Kempe encountered numerous difficulties on her journey towards religious fulfilment: after her first pregnancy she experienced severe post-partum depression, which in turn caused her to receive visions of Jesus Christ and led to her complete devotion to God. These visions and conversations with the Lord continued her whole life, causing her to want to live a chaste life (which did not go over well with her husband, although she succeeded eventually) and travel to Rome, Santiago de Compostella and Jerusalem on a devotional pilgrimage. During these travels she was constantly teased, neglected, abandoned, robbed and sent away by her travel companions, whom she annoyed intensely with her religious devotion and the additional constant loud weeping. She was also incarcerated several times within Britain, as people did not trust her public displays of religious devotion and thought her either insane or a heretic. This research aims to find an explanation for the hostility towards Margery Kempe from both her direct and familial surroundings and her travel companions and to place this hostility in a bigger perspective, combining Kempe's personal travel experiences with broader commentary on the perception and appreciation of female pilgrims as a whole.
Female pilgrimage from a modern perspectiveEver since the start of gender studies, attention for female involvement in historic events has been on the rise. The participation of women in pilgrimage is a much discussed fact: whereas some state women were not participating, others say female participation figures are as high as 25-30% of all pilgrims.(2) This research accepts female participation figures in pilgrimages, but focuses on the appreciation of this participation. In order to study this appreciation, The Book of Margery Kempe is chosen as a case-study; partly because of her vast and diverse writings and experiences, but also because there are a limited number of sources available within this timeframe. Kempe’s exceptional work, both in its value for studying religious devotion during the Late Middle Ages ánd its importance as a source for female pilgrimage, can be used to construct the relationship between societal norms and the practice of pilgrimage, seeing as Kempe often describes the reasons her travel companions alienate her.
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Female pilgrimage and societal norms
Devotional pilgrimage by women during the Middle Ages was frowned upon by society: unwritten rules dictated that a woman’s place was in the home, with a duty as wife, mother and caregiver.(3) The individual aspect of a devotional pilgrimage, which was centered around expressing a personal love for and devotion to God, was seen as self-centered and undesirable. Apart from these social conventions, women were thought to be naturally inclined towards immoral behaviour (more so then men) and were accused of using a pilgrimage as an excuse to engage in immoral and sexual relations.(4) These accusations and societal norms often resulted in discriminatory behaviour towards female pilgrims.
The medieval monk Felix Fabri, who engaged in pilgrimages in the 1480s, observed the appreciation of female pilgrims in his book, the Evagatorium in Terra Sanctae, Arabiae et Egypti Peregrinationem. In this work he states the aforementioned expected female role as a caregiver and the personal and egocentric aspect of a devotional pilgrimage as reasons for hostility towards female pilgrims, but adds a third: women were expected to remain ‘invisible’ in the public domain.(5) They were expected to be silent participants (if they insisted on participating at all), which went as far as restricting them to their cabins at all times during the weeks or months spent at sea whilst travelling.
The medieval monk Felix Fabri, who engaged in pilgrimages in the 1480s, observed the appreciation of female pilgrims in his book, the Evagatorium in Terra Sanctae, Arabiae et Egypti Peregrinationem. In this work he states the aforementioned expected female role as a caregiver and the personal and egocentric aspect of a devotional pilgrimage as reasons for hostility towards female pilgrims, but adds a third: women were expected to remain ‘invisible’ in the public domain.(5) They were expected to be silent participants (if they insisted on participating at all), which went as far as restricting them to their cabins at all times during the weeks or months spent at sea whilst travelling.
Social network analysisSocial network analysis is an analytical approach used to construe connections between people, places, objects and events in order to comment on the effect and existence of certain ties between these elements. By focusing on the appreciation of the participation of women in pilgrimages we can uncover much more than the physical existence of religious networks connecting the pilgrim-sites such as Rome, Santiago de Compostella and Jerusalem to the rest of the Mediterranean and European region. To combine social network analysis with an analysis of contemporary sources these networks are not just described or construed, but analysed by the effect they had on the practical journey towards the pilgrimage sites for women. Any lasting academic research aims to do more than comment on the existence of a phenomenon, but instead tries to explain and describe the effect and consequences of the phenomenon. In using this approach, it becomes apparent that the generally negative view of female pilgrims, as observed by Felix Fabri, was reciprocated by Kempe’s travel companions. Kempe’s public religious engagement caused feelings of irritation and hindrance with her companions: her lack of obedience to the prescribed societal norms for women led to her alienation and the active hostility towards Kempe herself.
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Conclusion
Margery Kempe's exceptional story proves that, even in the face of adversity, personal goals can be achieved. In this particular case, society's expectations, norms and dictated morals caused a direct and negative effect on Kempe’s journey. Not only does Kempe’s involvement in devotional pilgrimage go against the grain and was considered inappropriate, but she ‘worsened’ this situation by openly defying society’s expectation of women’s behaviour. Kempe’s public display of religious devotion unnerved and irritated her surroundings up to the point of alienation, incarceration and a portrayal of the same immoral behaviour society chastised women for. Luckily, this hypocrisy within societal norms for female pilgrims did not influence Margery Kempe in her quest for religious devotion. This study has shown that whilst female pilgrimage during the Late Middle Ages might have been difficult and at times extremely discriminating and infuriating, it was never impossible: a fact illustrated by Kempe’s amazing journeys and her undying devotion to the Lord.
Suggestions for further reading
Atkinson, Clarissa. Mystic and pilgrim: the Book and the World of Margery Kempe. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1983.
Craig, Leigh Ann. Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages. Reeks Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions, Volume 138. Boston: Brill Academic Publishers, 2009.
Goodman, Anthony. Margery Kempe and Her World. London: Longman, 2002.
Hopper, Sarah. To be a pilgrim: The medieval pilgrim experience. Phoenix: Sutton Publishing, 2002.
Kempe, Margery. The Book of Margery Kempe, ed. Barry Windeatt. Hammondsworth: Penguin Books, 1985.
McAvoy, Liz Herbert. The Book of Margery Kempe: an Abridged Translation. Woodbridge: D.S. Brewer, 2003.
Neuburger, Verena E. Margery Kempe: A Study in Early English Feminism. Berne: P. Lang, 1994.
Craig, Leigh Ann. Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages. Reeks Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions, Volume 138. Boston: Brill Academic Publishers, 2009.
Goodman, Anthony. Margery Kempe and Her World. London: Longman, 2002.
Hopper, Sarah. To be a pilgrim: The medieval pilgrim experience. Phoenix: Sutton Publishing, 2002.
Kempe, Margery. The Book of Margery Kempe, ed. Barry Windeatt. Hammondsworth: Penguin Books, 1985.
McAvoy, Liz Herbert. The Book of Margery Kempe: an Abridged Translation. Woodbridge: D.S. Brewer, 2003.
Neuburger, Verena E. Margery Kempe: A Study in Early English Feminism. Berne: P. Lang, 1994.
Sources
(1): Margery Kempe, The Book of Margery Kempe (ed. Lynn Staley, 1996), http://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/staley-book-of-margery-kempe-book-i-part-i. Translation: "For ever the more slander and reproof that she suffered, the more she increased in grace and in devotion"
(2) Leigh Ann Craig, “‘Stronger than men and braver than knights’: women and the pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the late middle ages”, Journal of Medieval History 29 (2003): 154.
(3) Leigh Ann Craig, Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages, (Boston: Brill Academic Publishers, 2009), 2.
(4) Craig, Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages, 2.
(5) Craig, “‘Stronger than men and braver than knights’: women and the pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the late middle ages”, Journal of Medieval History 29 (2003): 162; 167.
(2) Leigh Ann Craig, “‘Stronger than men and braver than knights’: women and the pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the late middle ages”, Journal of Medieval History 29 (2003): 154.
(3) Leigh Ann Craig, Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages, (Boston: Brill Academic Publishers, 2009), 2.
(4) Craig, Wandering Women and Holy Matrons: Women as Pilgrims in the Later Middle Ages, 2.
(5) Craig, “‘Stronger than men and braver than knights’: women and the pilgrimages to Jerusalem and Rome in the late middle ages”, Journal of Medieval History 29 (2003): 162; 167.
Image sources
Header: "The Attainment: The Vision of the Holy Grail to Sir Galahad, Sir Bors, and Sir Perceval", Number 6 of the Holy Grail tapestries woven by Morris & Co. 1891-94 for Stanmore Hall. Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. Public domain.
Image 1: "Cent Ballades", creator unknown, British Library, Ms. Harley 4431, f° 4. Creative Commons License.
Image 2: "The Book of Margery Kempe", Margery Kempe, +/- 1450, “MS 61823”, British Library, Creative Commons License.
Image 3: "Cours de philosophie à Paris Grandes chroniques de France", late 14-th century, creator unknown, located in the bibliothèque municipale of Castres, Public domain.
Image 1: "Cent Ballades", creator unknown, British Library, Ms. Harley 4431, f° 4. Creative Commons License.
Image 2: "The Book of Margery Kempe", Margery Kempe, +/- 1450, “MS 61823”, British Library, Creative Commons License.
Image 3: "Cours de philosophie à Paris Grandes chroniques de France", late 14-th century, creator unknown, located in the bibliothèque municipale of Castres, Public domain.
Thank you for reading! X.M. v.d. S.