anchoress

An anchoress is a woman who has chosen to withdraw from ordinary society to live in solitary religious seclusion. In medieval Christian Europe, anchoresses typically resided in an anchorhold: a small, windowed cell attached to a church or cloister, enclosed by walls with only a window or grille for contact with the outside world. A formal vow of enclosure and obedience to the church governed the life, which centered on prayer, Scripture reading, and contemplation. Provisions and spiritual guidance were supplied by a network of supporters—often local parishioners and a priest or nun who supervised the cell.

Life in an anchorhold was structured around the liturgical hours, private devotions, and the interpretation of mysteries through meditation. Although physically isolated, anchoresses could receive visitors through the window or grille, and, in some communities, provided counsel or healing advice to the laity. Some anchoresses produced writings or left behind spiritual legacies that influenced local devotion.

The most famous anchoress is Julian of Norwich (c. 1342–c. 1416), who lived in the church of St. Julian in Norwich and authored The Revelations of Divine Love after a series of visions. Similar practices existed across medieval Europe, though the institution waned with the late Middle Ages and the Reformation. The term may be used broadly to describe female religious hermits, with male counterparts called anchorites.