Dafydd Johnston
“Focusing on one of the most widespread and intriguing of saints’ cults, this collection of essays brings together a range of languages and disciplines to explore the complex implications of Ursula’s story and the light it sheds on attitudes towards gender and violence in medieval culture.”
Pádraig Ó Riain
“Sancta Colonia, ‘Holy Cologne’, was an extremely rich medieval repository of Christian relics, and none of its churches more so than that of St Ursula, allegedly the daughter of a British king, and the eleven thousand virgins supposedly martyred with her. In this volume, the growth of Ursula’s legend, in traditions covering almost the entire continent of Europe, is examined for the first time in English, expertly and fascinatingly. The volume, which also includes discussion for the first time by the editor Jane Cartwright of the Middle Welsh version of the saint’s life, is to be warmly welcomed.”
Cathryn A. Charnell-White
“This edited collection of essays places Ursula, a Welsh saint and her cult, in an international context of religious literature, hagiography, and devotional practices in Medieval Europe. Wide ranging and multidisciplinary, it is a valuable resource and essential reading for anyone interested in the religious and political culture of sainthood and feminine sanctity.”
Barry Lewis
“This is an important collection of essays that advances our understanding of this very significant cult, which was at once international and the subject of peculiar interest in medieval England and Wales. Jane Cartwright has brought together some very distinguished contributors who between them cover a great geographical range, from Iceland to Hungary. The book should be of interest to anyone concerned with medieval saints’ cults and legends, with images of female sanctity and with cultural and religious links between medieval Britain and the Continent.”
Pádraig Ó Riain
“Sancta Colonia, ‘Holy Cologne’, was an extremely rich medieval repository of Christian relics, and none of its churches more so than that of St Ursula, allegedly the daughter of a British king, and the eleven thousand virgins supposedly martyred with her. In this volume, the growth of Ursula’s legend, in traditions covering almost the entire continent of Europe, is examined for the first time in English, expertly and fascinatingly. The volume, which also includes discussion for the first time by the editor Jane Cartwright of the Middle Welsh version of the saint’s life, is to be warmly welcomed.”
