Margery could not write, but she dictated her experiences to two scribes, producing The Book of Margery Kempe, which survives today in a single manuscript discovered in the 1930s. The book is an unparalleled record of medieval female spirituality, daily life, pilgrimage, and the complex role of women in religion. The text defies genre—it is pa

Margery Kempe’s spirituality was emotional, sensory, and deeply performative. She experienced vivid visions of Christ, the Virgin Mary, and various saints. She claimed mystical marriage to Christ, following a tradition established by earlier women mystics, which placed divine love above earthly relationships. Perhaps her most famous and misund

Margery Kempe is one of the most extraordinary and controversial figures of the English Middle Ages. A mystic, pilgrim, and visionary, she lived during a time of religious upheaval, political unrest, and social transformation. Yet despite being neither a nun nor a noblewoman, Margery's spiritual experiences and her dramatic life journey would becom

By the early 13th century, lordship faced internal and external challenges. Social, economic, and legal transformations strained the feudal order. Peasants and Townspeople While still dominated by lords, serfs began to negotiate for freedom, commutation of labor services, or fled to chartered towns. These towns, often protected by communal libert