So this question might be a little morbid, but it seems like nunneries would be easy /attractive targets for thieves, roaming hordes and rapists. A place filled with women, no men around, a lot of them old/frail. How were these places and the nuns themselves protected throughout more brutal time periods?
Was it simply isolation and dressing as nonsexual as possible? Seems like it had to be more.
EDIT: Thanks for all the comments. Convent was the word I was looking for, I just kept thinking of the “get thee to a nunnery” line in Hamlet. Everything I know about life in a convent is pretty much from Sound of Music and a handful of shows.
In: 413
Are you referring to a convent? Convents were historically places for the poor and sick to go to. There were no hospitals. Convents often had schools attached. They weren’t just buildings full of vulnerable women. The Vatican was very powerful for centuries. Convents had their protection under cardinals and bishops. Cloistered convents often had farms and shared food with the community.
Latest Answers