Birthing, Churching, and Premodern Pregnancy: Medieval Mischief and Mayhem E18 2026

Описание: In this episode I interview Autumn Reinhardt-Simpson, a PhD candidate at the University of Alberta, specialising in Early Modern ritual reform in England. We delve into the history of pregnancy, birth, midwifery, churching, women's bodies and the politics of being. We had SO much to talk about that, not only is there additional content for paid subscribers on Patreon and SubStack, but a whole SECOND episode. We go in depth into the religious politics of Henry VIII, reformations, Martin Luther, King James, and a host of other topics. You can also LISTEN to audio only versions of the podcast on Spotify!! The additional material will go up later this week, and the second episode will drop on our regular schedule in two weeks.

Autumn is currently a history lecturer at MacEwan University, in Edmondton, Alberta and one of the founders of the collaborative project Bodies and Being. Autumn’s dissertation argues that women’s bodies were a vital battleground for liturgical reform during the English Reformations, specifically the reform of the churching rite, which was deployed to communicate the sometimes conflicting interests of church, state, and laity. Proficient in German, French, and Latin, her research encompasses medieval England and Early Modern religious conversion, recusancy, and church papistry. Autumn is also a contributing author to A Cultural History of Childbirth in the Early Modern Age (Bloomsbury , 2026) and The Dictionary of Virginia Biography (Library of Virginia, 2010).

https://bodiesandbeing.com/

My excellent skull mug is from Midnight Circle: https://midnightcircleshop.com/