Mother and Sons, Inc.

Martha de Cabanis in Medieval Montpellier

Nonfiction, History, France, Medieval
Cover of the book Mother and Sons, Inc. by Kathryn L. Reyerson, University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Kathryn L. Reyerson ISBN: 9780812294507
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc. Publication: September 22, 2017
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press Language: English
Author: Kathryn L. Reyerson
ISBN: 9780812294507
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
Publication: September 22, 2017
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press
Language: English

In the late 1320s, Martha de Cabanis was widowed with three young sons, eleven, eight, and four years of age. Her challenges would be many: to raise and train her children to carry on their father's business; to preserve that business until they were ready to take over; and to look after her own financial well-being. Examining the visible trail Martha left in Montpellier's notarial registers and other records, Kathryn L. Reyerson reveals a wealth of information about her activities, particularly in the area of business, commerce, and real estate. From these formal, contractual documents, Reyerson gleans something of Martha's personality and reconstructs what she may have done, and a good deal of what she actually did, in her various roles of daughter, wife, mother, and widow.

Mother and Sons, Inc. demonstrates that while women were hardly equal to men in the fourteenth century, under the right conditions afforded by wealth and the status of widowhood, they could do and did more than many have thought. Within the space of twenty years, Martha developed a complex real estate fortune, enlarged a cloth manufacturing business and trading venture, and provided for the support and education of her sons. Just how the widow Martha maneuvered within the legal constraints of her social, economic, and personal status forms the heart of the book's investigation. Situating Martha's story within the context of Montpellier and medieval Europe more broadly, Reyerson's microhistorical approach illuminates the opportunities and the limits of what was possible for elite mercantile women in the urban setting in which Martha lived.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In the late 1320s, Martha de Cabanis was widowed with three young sons, eleven, eight, and four years of age. Her challenges would be many: to raise and train her children to carry on their father's business; to preserve that business until they were ready to take over; and to look after her own financial well-being. Examining the visible trail Martha left in Montpellier's notarial registers and other records, Kathryn L. Reyerson reveals a wealth of information about her activities, particularly in the area of business, commerce, and real estate. From these formal, contractual documents, Reyerson gleans something of Martha's personality and reconstructs what she may have done, and a good deal of what she actually did, in her various roles of daughter, wife, mother, and widow.

Mother and Sons, Inc. demonstrates that while women were hardly equal to men in the fourteenth century, under the right conditions afforded by wealth and the status of widowhood, they could do and did more than many have thought. Within the space of twenty years, Martha developed a complex real estate fortune, enlarged a cloth manufacturing business and trading venture, and provided for the support and education of her sons. Just how the widow Martha maneuvered within the legal constraints of her social, economic, and personal status forms the heart of the book's investigation. Situating Martha's story within the context of Montpellier and medieval Europe more broadly, Reyerson's microhistorical approach illuminates the opportunities and the limits of what was possible for elite mercantile women in the urban setting in which Martha lived.

More books from University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.

Cover of the book Gray Panthers by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book The Associational State by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Rebellion and Savagery by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book The Heart of the Mission by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book The Way of Improvement Leads Home by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book The Organization of Islamic Cooperation and Human Rights by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Cancer in the Lives of Older Americans by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Military Cultures in Peace and Stability Operations by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Miami Transformed by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Zoot Suit by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book European Civil Society and Human Rights Advocacy by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book Deans and Truants by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book History of the University of Pennsylvania, 1740-1940 by Kathryn L. Reyerson
Cover of the book On Risk and Disaster by Kathryn L. Reyerson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy