''The Education'' (or ''Instruction'') ''of a Christian Woman'' was an early sixteenth-century book by

Juan Luis Vives Juan Luis Vives March ( la, Joannes Lodovicus Vives, lit=Juan Luis Vives; ca, Joan Lluís Vives i March; nl, Jan Ludovicus Vives; 6 March 6 May 1540) was a Spanish ( Valencian) scholar and Renaissance humanist wh ...

, written for the education of the future Mary I of England, precocious daughter of Henry VIII.p.467, Historical Dictionary of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, By Michael Mullett Written in 1523, the book was originally published in Latin with the title of ''De Institutione Feminae Christianae'' and was dedicated to Catherine of Aragon. The work was translated into English by

Richard Hyrde Richard Hyrde or Hirt (died 1528) was an English humanist scholar, translator and tutor. He was closely associated with the household of Thomas More, and with the contemporary discussion of female education. He graduated at the University of Oxford ...

around 1529 becoming then known by the title ''Instruction of a Christian Woman''. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the work was popular in both the Catholic and Protestant communities. This treatise on female education is divided into three parts: Book I “Which Treats of Unmarried Young Women”, Book II “Which Treats of Married Women,” and Book III “On Widows.” Praised by

Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' w ...

and

Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VIII as Lord ...

, Vives advocated education for all women, regardless of social class and ability. From childhood through adolescence to marriage and widowhood, this manual offers practical advice as well as philosophical meditation and was recognized soon after publication in 1524 as the most authoritative pronouncement on the universal education of women. Arguing that women were intellectually equal if not superior to men, Vives stressed intellectual companionship in marriage over procreation, and moved beyond the private sphere to show how women's progress was essential for the good of society and state.

References

External links

* 1523 books 16th-century Latin books Education in England Books about education Catherine of Aragon Mary I of England Women and education {{Christian-book-stub