A virgin and member of the Dominican Third Order, Catherine of Siena refused to marry and only after years of solitude began to mix with other people, first by nursing people in hospital. In the 13th century she was a notable example of the increasing influence of articulate, politically alert, and effective women in the church. She never learned how to write but her call for reform and repentance through a renewal of a total love of God led to some spectacular conversions.