Religious Underpinnings

Judeo-Christian traditions shaped how medieval societies understood the role of women. The more ancient Judeo-Christian teachings posited that females were little more than property or chattel, which made medieval times "a man's world," according to historian Kenneth Scott Latourette.

Progress

"In the man's world of the Middle Ages, women were remarkably successful," teachnet states. The kinds of vocations that women pursued reflected that success. Women worked at shopkeeping, baking, spinning, ale brewing, farming, weaving and other trades.

Landowners

With land and property ownership, women were able to buck the trend of male domination. Eleanor of Aquitaine is the quintessential woman who, at the peak of the Middle Ages, exerted tremendously wide-ranging, political influence in Europe.

Revolutionaries

Women who revolutionized the roles of females in society were often Christian mystics---in some cases even renegades operating outside of established religious communities or monastic orders. Julian of Norwich (1342-1416), Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) and Hildegarde of Bingen (1098-1179) are noteworthy examples.

Military

Arguably, the most well-known and adored woman of medieval times is Joan of Arc (1412-1431). She epitomized a strange trend of women sometimes leading armies into battle. Castles-of-britain.com notes that often the task of castle defense fell to women when husbands were away at the battlefront.