the expansion of the double house system. In England, the effects of constant Viking raids combined with the general decline of a cloistered life during the early 9th century all led to a sharp decrease in the populations and activities of these double houses. The Danish invasions of the 9th century led to the destruction of the double monasteries of Whitby, Barking, and Ely by 870. Often, former double monasteries were eventually converted into all-female convents. Beginning in the late 10th century, Anglo-Saxon England experienced a revival of monasticism. Alfred the Great and his queen, Elswitha, both established convents, though by the time of the Norman Conquest there remained only a few convents and no double monasteries in England. In this new wave, the Regularis Concordia was compiled, which was a form of standardized monastic rule. This rule contained explicit instructions regarding the separation of the sexes, forbidding men to enter convents or disturb a nun at prayer. By the twelfth century, double monasteries experienced a faint resurgence, especially in England under Gilbert of Sempringham’s rule. He established a total of thirteenth mixed houses by the end of that century. These new monasteries were not without controversy, however. Scandals involved with these new monasteries ranged from the secular- pregnant nuns - to the ecclesiastical— Pope Alexander threatened Gilbert with excommunication for promoting in a banned form of religious community, and only the intervention of King Henry and prominent English bishops allowed Gilbert to continue his double monasteries. Double monasteries continued in Frankish society, but both sections, male and female, eventually shifted into more separate communities of canons and canonesses. In Sweden, on the other hand, double monasteries experienced a great revival during the late fourteenth century with the spread of the Order of the Holy Saviour, also known as the Bridgettines after their founder, Birgitta of Sweden. While double monasteries never again reached the heights of influence and ubiquity they had achieved during the mid-seventh century, the later Middle Ages saw a re-emergence and evolution of double houses and a spread across Europe. References Note Bibliography Gilchrist, Roberta. Gender and Material Culture: The Archaeology of Religious Women. London: Routledge, 1994. Hefele, Charles Joseph. A History of the Christian Councils, from the Original Documents to the Close of the Council of Nicæa. Translated from the German and Edited by William R. Clark. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1894. Hefele, Charles Joseph.