Trailblazing Women of the Georgian Era: The Eighteenth-Century Struggle for Female Success in a Man's World

by Mike Rendell

Overview

Trailblazing Women of the Georgian Era offers a fascinating insight into the world of female inequality in the Eighteenth Century. It looks at the reasons for that inequality – the legal barriers, the lack of education, the prejudices and misconceptions held by men – and also examines the reluctance of women to compete on an equal footing. Why did so many women accept that ‘a woman’s place was in the home?' Using seventeen case studies of women who succeeded despite all the barriers and opposition, the author asks why, in the light of their success, so little progress was made in the Victorian era.

Representing women from all walks of life; artists, business women, philanthropists, inventors and industrialists, the book examines the way that the Quaker movement, with its doctrine of equality between men and women, spawned so many successful businesses and helped propel women to the forefront. In the 225 years since the publication of Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, questions remain as to why those noble ideas about equality were left to founder during the Victorian era? And why are there still so many areas where, for historical reasons, equality is still a mirage?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781473886056
Publisher:	Pen and Sword
Publication date:	05/18/2018
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

Mike Rendell has written many books, all of them about Georgian England. His interest in the period was inspired by a fascinating cache of papers left by his 18th century ancestors. His other books with Pen & Sword include ‘In Bed with the Georgians: Sex, Scandal and Satire in the 18th Century’, ‘Trailblazing Women of the Georgian Era’ and 'Pirates & Privateers in the 18th Century: The Final Flourish'.

When not writing, he spends his time talking on Georgian topics both in Britain and abroad, and in particular on board cruise ships. He travels extensively but his home is on the edge of Dartmoor.

Table of Contents

Preface vi

Introduction: Women and the law ix

Part 1 The Arts & Literature

Chapter 1 Fanny Burney - diarist and novelist 2

Chapter 2 Anne Damer - sculptor 10

Chapter 3 Sarah Siddons - actress 18

Part 2 The Scientific World

Chapter 4 Lady Mary Wortley Montagu - medical advocate 30

Chapter 5 Jane Marcet - scientific book writer 38

Chapter 6 Sarah Guppy - inventor 47

Part 3 Business & Commerce

Chapter 7 Hester Pinney - lace maker and stockbroker 54

Chapter 8 Hester Bateman - silversmith 60

Chapter 9 Eleanor Coade - manufacturer of artificial stone 69

Chapter 10 Mary Darly - print shop owner 76

Chapter 11 Teresia 'Con' Phillips - bigamist, litigant and courtesan 84

Chapter 12 Elizabeth Raffald - cookery book writer and businesswoman 89

Chapter 13 Anna Fry - chocolatier 96

Part 4 Reformers and Educationalists

Chapter 14 Margaret, Lady Middleton - anti-slavery campaigner 102

Chapter 15 Hannah More - bluestocking, educationalist and pamphleteer 109

Chapter 16 Elizabeth Fry - prison reformer 114

Chapter 17 Mary Wollstonecraft - feminist and writer 122

Conclusion 130

Appendix The Education of Women by Daniel Defoe 142

Bibliography 146

Image accreditation 150

Index 154