This collection of sixteen essays examines the households of royal and aristocratic figures from the ninth through sixteenth centuries in Western Europe. Based on a variety of sources, ranging from economic records to letters, wills, legal charters, and inventories, the studies in this
volume showcase the complexity of great households with their large cast of characters. While length restrictions make detailed discussion of individual essays impractical here, the different contributions complement each other along several thematic strands, notably court studies, economic
history, and especially gender studies. Nine contributors focus on female households (Megan Welton, Penelope Nash, Linda E. Mitchell, Eileen Kim, Sally Fisher, Caroline Dunn, Manuela Santos Silva, Zita Rohr, and Theresa Earenfight), five on primarily male households (David McDermott, Alexander
Brondarbit, Alana Lord, Audrey M. Thorstad, and Hélder Carvalhal), and one deals equally with the households of a king and queen (Isabel de Pina Baleiras). Many of the contributors focus on English material, although several essays give insights on France, Germany, Italy and the Iberian
Peninsula.
