Julian Leidy

Research Topic

Trans Subjectivity in the Middle Ages

Supervisor: Hannah Skoda

I study social inclusion and exclusion and the experiences of marginalised individuals in the later Middle Ages. My DPhil dissertation is concerned with the subjectivities and experiences of gender-nonconforming individuals and the textured ways in which those individuals were represented, perceived, and treated by others. I suggest that understanding those individuals as trans(gender) offers valuable insights into their own subjectivities, experiences of their gender and body, and agency. In doing this, I also seek to show how the study of the Middle Ages can be relevant to current transgender studies and LGBTQ+ activism. My project is particularly focused on late medieval Venice but connects and compares other cases of trans individuals from across Europe between c. 1350 and c. 1550.

I am also interested in disability and embodiment, gender and masculinity, and sexuality and queerness in the Middle Ages. 

I graduated with a first-class MA in medieval history from the University of St Andrews in 2022, having written my dissertation on gender nonconformity and transgressive sexuality in the late Middle Ages. I received my MSt in history from Corpus Christi, Oxford in 2024; my thesis explored intersections between disability, community, and sanctity in Siena from 1250 to 1350.

In addition to my academic studies, I work as an assistant editor and contributor at JancisRobinson.com and am the president of the Oxford University Blind Wine Tasting Society.