Female sodomy

It was codified as a legal category in medieval and early modern Europe, although it differed greatly between regions.

Female sodomy was therefore typically punished more harshly than those who committed crimes which were solely transgressions of sexual norms.

The record of female sodomy in European history consists most overwhelmingly of fragmented court documents and personal correspondences, although the latter is quite rare.

As it was regarded as a transgression of gender, social, as well as sexual norms, these women were often charged with more than just sodomy.

This record offers insight on the differences between female and male sodomy, showcasing the strictness of social norms for women.

The term "hermaphrodite" acted as a stand in for sociological chaos and any kind of sexual or gender transgression.

In the early modern period there existed an idea that sodomites had physical representations of their deviancy.

These sources are difficult to analyze due to a lack of certainty regarding the truthfulness of the record and the intentions of the accusers.

There was a desire to punish these women as their actions were generally accepted as some sort of sexual transgression, but there was a lack of legal framework to do so.

If persecuting authorities could not prove that the relationship between a few given women violated their male-oriented sodomy laws they could accuse the woman of witchcraft and use their sexual transgressions as evidence for this.

In an early modern European context, both female and male hermaphrodites existed, as even transgressions of the gender binary must also slot within it.

Gossip, class, and interpersonal relationships played a key role in how or if a woman was accused of sodomy.

Rumour mills were more contagious in big cities, which had more people to catch women in the act or notice when something is not completely heterosexual or normative.

[7] Holy Roman Emperor Charles V introduced the Constitutio Criminalis Carolina into law in 1532.

A man solely identified in court records as Guilelmo accused Guercia of sodomy, magic, and fortune telling.

The court characterized her as a woman who adopted masculine sexuality, and it is transgression of gender norms that was the subject of offence at her trial.

[12] She was labeled as a hermaphrodite, and Hetzeldorfer, though originally she denied all charges against her, eventually was pressed to admit her transgressions.

Van Keyschote and a woman named Jeanne vanden Steene were scourged and had their hair burned off.

When speaking to authorities, he reported that his wife had run away a year prior with a woman named Magdaleene, who the community had labeled a vagrant hermaphrodite.

Mayken was ordered to pray to God for forgiveness and banished from the city of Bruges for 10 years under threat of torture.

Carlini had claimed to have visions imparted unto by the divine, an ability which eventually led to her becoming Abbess, as well as the growth of her authority in Pescia.

It is difficult and anachronistic to apply more modern terms to the phenomenon of female sodomy, like lesbianism, bisexuality, being transgender, and gender neutrality.

The historical record consists mainly of court documents, with the occasional extremely rare personal letter.