This article considers the opportunities available to, and the constraints to be negotiated by, female litigants at the court of Star Chamber during the reigns of the early Tudor kings. Star Chamber was a prerogative court and grew in popularity following the transformation and clarification of its judicial functions under Thomas Wolsey in the early sixteenth century. While it has suffered losses to its records, around five thousand cases still survive from the early Tudor period, including nearly one thousand cases involving female litigants. Unlike those in other Westminster courts, such as Common Pleas, Chancery, or the Court of Requests, Star Chamber cases have yet to be fully examined for what they can tell us about women's access to justice and their experience of legal process. This article begins by surveying the number of cases involving female litigants, showing that far more women came to the court as plaintiffs than as defendants. The numbers were significant—in line with Chancery—but still show women as a minority. Drawing on a wide range of examples, the paper explores the major factors determining, and limiting, women's active roles as litigants, taking into consideration cultural expectations, legal practice (including the operation of coverture), and, where detected, individual decision-making.

中文翻译：

---

“一个 Besy 女人……充满法律”：早期都铎王朝星室的女性诉讼人

本文考虑了在早期都铎王朝统治时期，星庭宫廷中的女性诉讼当事人可利用的机会和需要谈判的限制因素。Star Chamber 是一个特权法院，随着 16 世纪初托马斯·沃尔西（Thomas Wolsey）对其司法职能的转变和澄清，其知名度越来越高。尽管它的记录遭受了损失，但从都铎王朝早期开始，仍有大约 5000 起案件幸存下来，其中包括近 1000 起涉及女性诉讼当事人的案件。与其他威斯敏斯特法院（如普通认罪、衡平法院或请求法院）的案件不同，Star Chamber 的案件尚未得到全面审查，它们可以告诉我们关于女性诉诸司法的机会和她们在法律程序方面的经验。本文首先对涉及女性诉讼当事人的案件数量进行了调查，发现女性作为原告出庭的人数远多于作为被告出庭的女性。这些数字很重要——与 Chancery 一致——但仍然表明女性是少数。借助广泛的例子，本文探讨了决定和限制女性作为诉讼当事人的积极作用的主要因素，同时考虑了文化期望、法律实践（包括隐蔽的运作）以及在发现时的个人决策.