ABSTRACT
Examining the activities of the noble-born women of Europe’s ruling aristocratic elite, this entry discusses their household-based roles and lordly powers arising from the central place of noble families and their courts in medieval politics and rule. It then analyses the extent of changes in noble women’s fields of action as a result of changing inheritance customs and marriage laws after the year 1000. It concludes by passing in review their contributions in literary, cultural, and ecclesiastical domains.
