ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the relationships between the built environment and gendered identity in late medieval and early modern Europe. It explores the relationship between the architecture of early modern Europe and the bodies it was built to represent or to house, seeking to link architectural discourse not simply to that of social hierarchy and exclusivity. The book focuses on the architecture of early modern Europe. It engages with the developing analysis of how the social organization of women's and men's bodies, the institutions of family, class relationships, and religious and social regulation are defined by, relate to, and resist architectural discourses. The book comprises nine case studies, selected to illuminate critical junctures, places, institutions and issues in this debate. It also focuses on the roles of architects and patrons, while seeking to explain them in relation to broader historical issues.
