Unwanted Children In Medieval Europe
The disposal of children was a widespread practice throughout Europe during the Middle
Ages. Childhood abandonment took place as a result of a myriad of reasons and motivations and occurred in a variety of forms. The study of the abandonment of children in medieval societies poses difficulties due to the discreet nature of the act. Due to the motivations and implications of child abandonment, parents would dispose of their children without being detected. Primary documents, such as diaries or letters, which would provide details of the experiences of individuals who either abandoned their children or individuals who were abandoned by their parents, do not exist. Rather, records of the church in reference to the disposal of children in medieval society are available and display the different ways in which this act transpired. The church played a key role in the disposal of children in medieval society by setting rules and regulations regarding the way in which parents should dispose of their children, procedures for taking in foundlings, and laws concerning the reclaiming of abandoned children. The church’s involvement in regulating the act of child abandonment as a response to the need of society reveals the process through which the disposal of children took place in medieval Europe.