Although recent years have witnessed the histories of crime and of women become two major areas of historical research, this collection of essays is the first attempt to synthesize such studies for the early modern period. The volume focuses on the nature and extent of women's criminal activity and how the legal system and society perceived women and crime between the late sixteenth and early eighteenth centuries. Drawing together current research the essays illuminate various aspects of the lives of ordinary women: how they interacted with each other and in the community generally; the ways in which they participated in the formal legal process; the treatment they received at the hands of the judiciary and justices of the peace; ways in which "deviant" women perceived themselves and how they were viewed by contemporaries. Each essay in turn poses a challenge to accepted notions of the relationship between women and the courts. This book is intended for undergraduate courses: Early modern British history, women's history, specials on witchcraft, punishment and crime. Women's studies.

First published in 1994. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.