This book examines the relationship between religion and society in late medieval Florence through the vehicle of the religious confraternity, one of the most ubiquitous and popular forms of lay association throughout Europe. Based on a wealth of new documentation, it provides a fascinating account of the development of the major fraternities of the city in relation to other types of communal and ecclesiastical institutions.

The first part discusses in detail the devotional activities for living members, including the singing of lauds, self-flagellation, processions, and dramatic presentations, as well as funerals and commemorative services for the dead. Secondly, Dr Henderson provides one of the most detailed analyses of poor relief in late medieval Europe, all against the background of the changing social, demographic, and economic regimes of medieval Florence.

Taken together the two themes of this book, piety and charity, provide new evidence concerning the complex relationship between the secular and the sacred in both private and public life.