Under certain circumstances, people who were held as slaves in the British colonies and early United States were able to sue for their right to be free from slavery. In the 17th through the 19th centuries, hundreds of “freedom suits” were filed and many slaves were able to successfully petition the courts for their freedom […]
What Are Bluestockings? The Movement, Origins, and Insult
A “bluestocking” generally refers to an educated woman with intellectual, especially literary, interests, but the term has changed quite a bit over time. More specifically, it can also refer to women who were members of an 18th century literary group called the Blue Stockings Society. After the decline of the Blue Stockings Society, the term […]
Elisabeth Christine Ulrike – Scandal and Exile
Elisabeth Christine Ulrike was briefly a Crown Princess of Prussia until her refusal to play along with their double-standards got her exiled for life.
Lady Mary Montagu, Brilliant Autodidact Aristocrat
Lady Mary Montagu was an 18th century noblewoman whose contributions to the fields of travel writing and medicine were nearly forgotten due to her sex.
Théroigne de Méricourt, Heroine of the French Revolution
Born Anne-Josèphe Terwagne on 13 August 1762, but better known as Théroigne de Méricourt, Théroigne is a sad, yet fascinating figure who was a political activist of the French Revolution. The French press turned her into a flamboyant caricature, labeling her a “patriots’ whore” or a “female war chief” and praising her for impersonating the […]
Grace Dalrymple Elliott, Courtesan and Spy
The infamous eighteenth-century courtesan Grace Dalrymple Elliott’s birth has not been recorded, but she was certainly born in Scotland, most likely in Edinburgh around 1754. She was to grow up to achieve a scandalous notoriety due to her divorce and high-profile lovers — but there was much more to Grace than mere scandal. She was […]
Marguerite D’Youville, the First Canadian Saint
On December 9th, 1990 thousands of North Americans converged on St. Peter’s to celebrate the canonization of Marguerite d’Youville (1701–1771), the first Canadian-born saint. Born over 245 years ago outside Montreal, Marguerite d’Youville was an 18th century Mother Teresa who dedicated her life and work to the poor, the ill and the destitute. This foundress […]
Rose-Adélaïde Ducreux, French painter, composer, and musician
Though the art world of the 18th century was dominated by men, quite a few women were trained as artists and held their own in exhibits and sales. One of these women was Rose-Adélaïde Ducreux, whose portrait of herself tuning her harp is a gorgeous and historically fascinating work of art. Rose was born in […]
Suzanne Valadon, self-taught artist of Bohemian Paris
Suzanne Valadon (1865-1938) was a successful, self-trained artist of Montmartre in Paris. She began her career modelling for such artists as Toulouse-Lautrec and Renoir, and was close friends with Degas and the composer Erik Satie (who proposed to her immediately — but she turned him down). Watching how the artists painted her, she taught herself […]
