Radical Renaissance Women - Part III

with Alexandra Lawrence

We are all familiar with the idea of the ‘Renaissance Man’—the polymath geniuses, scholars, princes, courtiers, writers, and artists that lived and worked in the 14th - 17th centuries. But what of the women not included the traditional canon?

This series is the third part of the Radical Renaissance Women course which revisits early modern society by looking at some of the less traditional and more radical figures in Italy at the time: the creative and powerful women whose names have been left out of the mainstream history books.

Part III is a deep dive into the world of female convents and cloisters, where we will explore the inspirational lives of the nuns who lived, worked, wrote, ruled and created in these fascinating and often surprising women-only spaces. Many of these Renaissance women, operating in a wholly patriarchal society with few rights and little access to education would go on to have a global impact that has lasted up to our present day.

13 January - 3 February 2026
Tuesdays, 18:00-19:30

In person lectures in the Library and simultaneously available on Zoom.

Recordings will be available for registered participants.