Monday, February 02, 2015

Question from Lana - Women and hunting

I'm currently in the process of writing a story a fanfiction if you will, what if Prince Arthur lived and the impacts it would create during the Tudor time period.

My question was how did women participate in hunting. I have found many sources stating wealthy women frequently participated in the hunt. I doubt they boar hunted with spears, but what other sort of activities did they participate in? Or were they simply around for the ride/adventure?

Thank you in advance!

1 comment:

kb said...

Most of us are researchers and prefer to point people in the direction of doing their own research. There are lots of sources available online for working on this topic.

The first example I thought of was Lettice Knollys Devereux and her sister Anne Knollys hunting in 1573 at Kenilworth. They shot down some deer. This information is in the printed primary sources of the period. Women hunted with bow and arrow, birds of prey, and following the hounds. Hunting was, as you surmise, also a social activity.

You might want to look at some of the printed primary sources available online closer to your preferred time period including the Letters and Papers of the reign of Henry VIII. You might also want to look at any information available about Isabel of Castile hunting. She was Katherine of Aragon's mom and very active in the field.

One of the most effective ways to find relevant source material is to look at the bibliography for books you like. The best historical fiction is well-researched. Enjoy the process!