ABSTRACT
This chapter explores connections between madness and demonic possession, providing a counter-narrative to the so-called naturalisation of twelfth-century miracle texts. The foundation book of Saint Bartholomew’s Church in London, compiled in the late twelfth century, contains records of miracles that occurred there during the lifetime of its founder, Rahere, as well as further miracles that were witnessed after his death, including four cases of miraculously-cured demonic possession. In the foundation book, the dysfunctionality of demonically-induced madness was vividly contrasted with Rahere’s own feigned foolishness, which he adopted in the pursuit of spiritual well-being. Some popular assumptions about medieval demoniacs are challenged: women were not considered any more vulnerable to demonic possession than men, and the binding of demoniacs does not seem to have been a punitive measure, aimed at the demon inside them, but rather a practical means of controlling them so that they could receive care or healing.
