List of Tables Acknowledgements Introduction Women and Alcohol Sex and Alcohol Alehouses, Taverns, and Prostitutes Sexual Encounters Unruly Women and Violent Men Husbands and Wives Conclusion Bibliography Index

This book examines drinking and attitudes to alcohol consumption in late medieval and early modern England, France, and Italy, especially as they related to sexual and violent behavior and to gender relations. According to widespread beliefs, the consumption of alcohol led to increased sexual activity among both men and women, and it also led to disorderly conduct among women and violent conduct among men. Dr Lynn shows how alcohol was a fundamental part of the diets of most people, including women, resulting in daily drinking of large amounts of ale, beer, or wine. This study offers an intimate insight into both the altered states induced by alcohol, and, by opposition, into normal relations in family, community, and society.

A. LYNN MARTIN is Reader in History at the University of Adelaide, South Australia, a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and of the Australian Academy of the Humanities. He is the author of three books and his articles have appeared in several journals.