Prostitution in Medieval Europe

The Christian church in medieval Rome held a lot of social and religious authority but along with authority came issues of society that they were forced to deal with. Sexuality was a matter of the churches concern that was more often related to the word "Evil". I am going to attempt to prove that the "evils" involved in sexuality such as prostitution, and homosexuality were necessary for the church to maintain a growing authority over society. The chronological limits I am focusing on will fall between 300AD – 1200AD, with some references to dates both prior and thereafter these dates. I will explore the views on women held by Christians, related to traditional beliefs, gender roles, and sexual norms of behaviour. Prostitution as a necessary evil was a well recognized view, with much history and controversy behind it. I will discuss a range of beliefs on prostitution as well as its purpose as a necessary evil to prevent homosexuality. The purpose of many of my footnotes will be to illustrate the strong convictions held by members of the Christian church at this time.

Woman's accessibility to take an active role in society is even today still developing; it wasn't until 1920 that women were allowed to vote in America, 1935 when married women in England had the full right to own property, and 1963 that they were granted equal pay for equal jobs compared to men. This view of women as the lesser of the two sexes can be traced back to ancient Rome and earlier. In 131BC the censor Metellus, one of the two officials in ancient Rome responsible for taking the public census and supervising public behaviour and morals, stated, "if we could live without wives we should not have all this trouble. Since nature has brought it about that we can neither live with them in peace nor without them at all, we must ensure eternal benefit rather than temporary pleasure."1 The acceptance of women in medieval Rome is similar to this quote in the sense that the Christian church accepts