Description
Book SynopsisThe book is a valuable text for students and scholars in early modern European history, religion, women's studies, and economic history.
Trade ReviewStrocchia examines the complex interrelationships between Florentine nuns and the laity, the secular government, and the religious hierarchy. The author skillfully analyzes extensive archival and printed sources. Choice Strocchia performs a service both to convent studies and to historians of Renaissance Florence by bringing these two fields together... Convents, long a hazy presence on the rich scholarly map of Renaissance Florence, now have their political and economic contours there clearly charted. -- P. Renee Baernstein Renaissance Quarterly An enjoyable, well-written account by a gifted historian clearly knowledgeable about her subject. -- Laura Swan Magistra Strocchia makes a significant contribution to the developing body of work on women's religious life in the Renaissance... providing a plethora of research avenues for the interested scholar and an interesting glimpse of Renaissance life for the general reader. -- Sally Mayall Brasher American Historical Review A convincing and wide-ranging analysis of a crucial facet of Renaissance Florence. -- Brian Maxson Canadian Journal of History An original and high-quality contribution to the knowledge of the monastic institute. -- Gabriella Zarri Catholic Historical Review One of the central arguments advanced in this book is that the fifteenth century was a decisive moment both for convents and for their relations with urban society. -- Karin Tilmans European Review of History This is a splendid intervention in the expanding study of religious women's communities. It is a 'must read.' -- Constance H. Berman Historian An important volume which deserves to be read and re-read not only by historians of the Renaissance church, but also by those interested in the histories of women, work and early modern urban culture. -- Roisin Cossar European History Quarterly Lucidly written and meticulously organized... The book is remarkable for both its richness and its clarity: the chapters are logically framed, the sections of broad argumentation are supported by vivid case studies, and the conclusions are both sound and thought-provoking... Strocchia's study makes a significant contribution to the study of Renaissance Florence. By weaving the convent into myriad aspects of Florentine social and political life, she offers both thought-provoking findings and a trove of new evidence that will make the book required reading for a wide range of scholars. -- Diana Bullen Presciutti Early Modern Women: An Interdisciplinary Journal Well worth your close attention whether you are interested in Renaissance religion or ruling dynasties or the textile industry of Florence. Bibliotheque d'Humanisme et Renaissance A most impressive investigation of the intricate connections that developed between convents and the Florentine state in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. Journal of Social History Through scrupulous archival research, Strocchia situates her nuns in the context of late medieval spiritual, political, social, and urban developments... Strocchia convincingly moves the history of nuns and nunneries to the center of our understanding of Renaissance urban geography. -- Holly S. Hurlburt Enterprise and Society In this brilliant study, Strocchia brings us a deftly crafted analysis of Florentine convents and life within them... The combination of Strocchia's scholarship and engaging narrative sets a new standard for future studies of nunneries in other Italian cities. This is a superb book! -- Charmarie J. Blaisdell Church History This well-conceived work breaks new ground for the role of convents in society and politics in early modern Europe. -- Carol M. Bresnahan Journal of Interdisciplinary History Strocchia has written a judicious, balanced, and meticulously researched book, one that is drawn from a splendid breadth of archival sources and that makes a major contribution to our understanding of the complex and changing relationships between ecclesiastical institutions, family strategy, and civic consciousness. -- Philip Gavitt Speculum
Table of ContentsList of Tables, Graphs, and Figures
Preface
1. The Growth of Florentine Convents
Convents in Crisis
The Midcentury Resurgence
The Rush to the Convent
2. Nuns, Neighbors, and Kinsmen
From Neighborhood Enclaves to Citywide Institutions
Property and the Topography of Power
Defenders of the Parish
3. The Renaissance Convent Economy
The Structure of Convent Finance
The Paradox of ''Private'' Wealth
Balancing the Budget
The Medici and the Monte
4. Invisible Hands: Renaissance Nuns at Work
Economic Strategies and Opportunities
The Century of Silk: Nuns and Textile Production
Three Case Studies in Textile Work
Books and Educational Activities
5. Contesting the Boundaries of Enclosure
The Practice of Open Reclusion, 1300–1450
Privatization, Enclosure, and Reform, 1430–1500
The Florentine ''Night Officers''
Ecclesiastical Reform Initiatives, 1500–1540
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Index
