The Role Of Women In The Anglo-Saxon Culture

The role of women in Anglo-Saxon culture was to take care of their households and husbands and keep everything in order while their men were away at war. Though they were not allowed to fight, women maintain a key role in the Anglo-Saxon culture. They were able to attain dignity and respect by becoming wives, mothers, peace-weavers and mistresses of their halls. A woman’s loyalty was to her husband and she was expected to care for him and bear him heirs. They were also used as peace offering to stop wars and arguments. A woman would be married off to the leader of an enemy tribe in hopes of wining their loyalty or ending a feud. Though this solution did not always work, the honor of being a peace weaver (as they were called) was very high, and they were respected by their people for their sacrifice. Another role of women in the Anglo-Saxon culture was that of mistress. The mistress of the hall was in charge of all household matters with her husband’s permission. The mistress presided over the hall table with her husband during mealtimes and made sure that everyone had enough to eat and was comfortable. Though the women of the Anglo-Saxon culture were never considered heroes, they did heroic deeds for their country and people and helped bring peace to a culture that was dominated mainly by wars and conflict.