This study investigates the organizational structure, autonomy, and religious practices of the Order of Fontevraud's English monastic houses between 1100 and 1350. Berenice M. Kerr, a scholar of medieval religious life, utilizes archival records and historical documentation to examine the specific establishments of Amesbury, Nuneaton, and Westwood. The work argues that these houses maintained a unique level of prestige and administrative independence, challenging broader assumptions about the limitations placed on female monastic communities during the high Middle Ages.

Historians recognize this monograph as a foundational text for understanding the specific dynamics of female monasticism in medieval England. Scholars frequently cite the work for its rigorous archival approach and its contribution to the study of gender and institutional power in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.