Current Research

Doctoral Project

My doctoral project is researching the influence of the Reformation, and the disappearance of Catholic infrastructure, on the development of urban centres in Scotland and England. This research bridges the gap between the widely understood religious changes of the 16th century and their consequences for secular life. My project consists of a comparative study of Oxford, England and Aberdeen, Scotland, analysing how the loss of urban catholic institutions affected the support, use and development of charitable works. The charitable works under analysis are poor relief, health care and education of the poor. The parish church, city cathedrals and urban monastic institutions served as the key supporters and managers of these charitable works and their disappearance created gaps that needed responses from the newly Protestant churches and civic insitutions.

By understanding how the development of towns and burghs was altered by the loss of monasteries, we can gain a greater understanding of how the changes of the Reformation affected daily life outside of the religious sphere. The comparative aspect of the research allows us to see changes that were universal or based on specific attributes of the country’s pre-Reformation infrastructure or unique experience of the Reformation. In doing so, we can establish how charitable works changed or continued in the face of significant religious, social and political upheaval.