THE CULTURES OF CHARITY OF THE BEGUINES OF MARSEILLE FACING THE CHALLENGES OF THE MERCANTILE ECONOMY IN THE LATE MIDDLE AGES

Abstract

In this paper, the Institute of the Ladies of Roubaud of Marseille, founded by Douceline of Digne (1214-1274), is analyzed from its involvement with lay penitential devotion, which agitated the cities of Provence and Italy in the Late Middle Ages, and its commitment to the cultures of charity, which inspired policies of social assistance and women empowerment in the urban arena. From the delimitation of the religious experience of the beguines of Marseille, we discuss their diferences and similarities with the Northern European beguine movement and their relationship to the renewal of religious life and lay piety in the thirteenth century.