Emily Graham

author of "Networks of dissent and the Franciscans of the Crown of Aragon" in "The Friars and their Influence in Medieval Spain"

February 8, 2019

Dr. Graham's research examines the intersection of politics and religion in medieval Europe. Her research interests include sanctity, monastic orders, religious reform and heretical movements and papal politics. Dr. Graham's current book project, Princes, Popes, and Heretics: The Spiritual Franciscans and Late Medieval Political Life, examines the influence of patronage networks on Franciscan reformers in the late middle ages, and the role of religious reform movements on Western Mediterranean diplomatic relations.

Her work has appeared in the Journal of Medieval History and Studies in Church History, and has been supported by, among others, the American Philosophical Society and the NEH Summer Scholars Program, as part of the workshop "Reform and Renewal in Medieval Rome."

In the 14th century, the Franciscan Order was riven by conflict over the observance of their Order’s vow of poverty, precipitated by the writings and political connections of a group known today as the Spiritual Franciscans. The Kingdom of Aragon’s Franciscan communities, though not widely studied as part of the disputes, were deeply involved.

Catalonian poverty enthusiasts were frequent participants in the network of Spiritual Franciscan supporters throughout the Western Mediterranean. Local communities in Aragon were affected by the disputes for several generations, as demonstrated by the trial of the Franciscan tertiaries and beguins of Vilafranca del Penedes from 1345-1346.

URL: https://library-dep.okstate.edu/news/celebratingbooks/2019-honorees/emily-graham

Last Updated: 12 February 2019