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Unmarried Women of the Country Estate: Four Stories from 17th-20th Century
Not yet published
Expected 30 Mar 26As the fight for women's rights continues, and while men and women alike push for gender equality around the globe, this book aims to introduce readers to four women who, in their own way, challenged and defied the societal expectations of the time in which they lived.
Some chose to be writers, some were successful businesswomen, some chose to nurture and protect, some traveled the globe, some were philanthropists. Each one made the conscious decision not to marry a man.
Elizabeth Isham of Lamport Hall, Ann Robinson of Saltram, Anne Lister of Shibden Hall and Rosalie Chichester of Arlington Court. These are elite women, all connected to country houses or from noble families throughout the UK, and this book explores to what extent privilege gave them the opportunity to choose the life they wanted, thus guiding the reader to challenge their own beliefs about elite women throughout history.
This book is unique in that it brings the stories of real historical women to light - some of which have never been written about before, while also offering an introduction to the history of marriage and societal expectations of women.
Starting in 1609 and traveling chronologically up to 1949, with a chapter for each woman, this book tells their remarkable stories, revealing how strong, resilient and powerful women have always been.
Some chose to be writers, some were successful businesswomen, some chose to nurture and protect, some traveled the globe, some were philanthropists. Each one made the conscious decision not to marry a man.
Elizabeth Isham of Lamport Hall, Ann Robinson of Saltram, Anne Lister of Shibden Hall and Rosalie Chichester of Arlington Court. These are elite women, all connected to country houses or from noble families throughout the UK, and this book explores to what extent privilege gave them the opportunity to choose the life they wanted, thus guiding the reader to challenge their own beliefs about elite women throughout history.
This book is unique in that it brings the stories of real historical women to light - some of which have never been written about before, while also offering an introduction to the history of marriage and societal expectations of women.
Starting in 1609 and traveling chronologically up to 1949, with a chapter for each woman, this book tells their remarkable stories, revealing how strong, resilient and powerful women have always been.
192 pages, Paperback
Expected publication March 30, 2026
19 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 27, 2021
I thank Rosie Croft, from Pen & Sword, for providing me a hard cover ARC copy of this non-fiction book that I freely chose to review.
At a time when we are trying to recover the history and memories of women of the past, this book is a step in the right direction. It is particularly diffecult to find information about working class women, as they rarely had access to education and/or time to write their own stories. Well-off married women might have a bit more leisure and better access to education, although they are often constrained by the social roles they had to play as wives and mothers, but what about single women of means who didn’t get married? That is the question that Charlotte Furness tries to answer, not exhaustively but rather by choosing four “genteel” women who never got married, from the XVII to the XX century. As she explains, some have been subject to more research and are better know than others (although this is changing), but they also share the fact that they were attached to country states (either because they owned them or because they lived there their entire lives) and also that, luckily for us, they left plenty of written materials for us to peruse, be it letters, diaries, or even, as is the case for Rosalie Chichester, fiction and stories.
The author includes a section of acknowledgements, a note explaining her methodology, a list of plates (there are a number of black and white illustrations and photographs in the book, including portraits and photographs of the women, when available, and also of their relatives and the properties), an introduction where Furness talks about what marriage and married life was like in the periods covered, four chapters, one dedicated to each one of the women, a conclusion, a set of detailed notes (where extra information is provided), a select bibliography (for those who need to find out more), and an index.
The four women chosen are quite different, and the differences go beyond the historical period. Elizabeth Isham was deeply religious, battled with mental health difficulties (as did her mother and sister), and she clearly chose dedicating her life to her religious devotion rather than to a standard family life (there was even discussion about her marrying John Dryden at some point, so it definitely wasn’t due to a lack of prospects); Anne Robinson, stepped up and took on the duties of family life when her sister died, becoming the hostess of Saltram House for her brother in-law and bringing up her niece and nephew; Anne Lister is a fascinating character, who always challenged the constraints of a woman’s role, took over the property and the business-side of things, and would have married her long-term companion, Ann Walker, if that had been possible at the time; while Rosalie Chichester fits more into the spinster image usually portrayed in fiction and movies: staying at home, living with her mother, involved in many local projects, looking after her animals, and leaving her property to the National Trust. But, she was also an eager traveller, kept detailed diaries, wrote fiction, and was passionate about protecting Arlington Court.
This is not a long book, but it manages to bring to life these four very different women, and, more importantly, tries to make sure we get to hear their own voices, rather than just read the interpretations others might have imposed on them. There are many things we don’t know about them, and,there is plenty more research to be done, but this is a great introduction for readers looking to learn about social history and the history of women from a different perspective.
I enjoyed learning about these four women, their lives, and their historical period, and I’d love to learn more about them. I recommend this book to people interested in women’s history, social history, also those interested in UK country properties, and, in general, readers of history looking for a different approach.
At a time when we are trying to recover the history and memories of women of the past, this book is a step in the right direction. It is particularly diffecult to find information about working class women, as they rarely had access to education and/or time to write their own stories. Well-off married women might have a bit more leisure and better access to education, although they are often constrained by the social roles they had to play as wives and mothers, but what about single women of means who didn’t get married? That is the question that Charlotte Furness tries to answer, not exhaustively but rather by choosing four “genteel” women who never got married, from the XVII to the XX century. As she explains, some have been subject to more research and are better know than others (although this is changing), but they also share the fact that they were attached to country states (either because they owned them or because they lived there their entire lives) and also that, luckily for us, they left plenty of written materials for us to peruse, be it letters, diaries, or even, as is the case for Rosalie Chichester, fiction and stories.
The author includes a section of acknowledgements, a note explaining her methodology, a list of plates (there are a number of black and white illustrations and photographs in the book, including portraits and photographs of the women, when available, and also of their relatives and the properties), an introduction where Furness talks about what marriage and married life was like in the periods covered, four chapters, one dedicated to each one of the women, a conclusion, a set of detailed notes (where extra information is provided), a select bibliography (for those who need to find out more), and an index.
The four women chosen are quite different, and the differences go beyond the historical period. Elizabeth Isham was deeply religious, battled with mental health difficulties (as did her mother and sister), and she clearly chose dedicating her life to her religious devotion rather than to a standard family life (there was even discussion about her marrying John Dryden at some point, so it definitely wasn’t due to a lack of prospects); Anne Robinson, stepped up and took on the duties of family life when her sister died, becoming the hostess of Saltram House for her brother in-law and bringing up her niece and nephew; Anne Lister is a fascinating character, who always challenged the constraints of a woman’s role, took over the property and the business-side of things, and would have married her long-term companion, Ann Walker, if that had been possible at the time; while Rosalie Chichester fits more into the spinster image usually portrayed in fiction and movies: staying at home, living with her mother, involved in many local projects, looking after her animals, and leaving her property to the National Trust. But, she was also an eager traveller, kept detailed diaries, wrote fiction, and was passionate about protecting Arlington Court.
This is not a long book, but it manages to bring to life these four very different women, and, more importantly, tries to make sure we get to hear their own voices, rather than just read the interpretations others might have imposed on them. There are many things we don’t know about them, and,there is plenty more research to be done, but this is a great introduction for readers looking to learn about social history and the history of women from a different perspective.
I enjoyed learning about these four women, their lives, and their historical period, and I’d love to learn more about them. I recommend this book to people interested in women’s history, social history, also those interested in UK country properties, and, in general, readers of history looking for a different approach.
September 16, 2020
Books which focus on fascinating and enterprising women in the past lure me in. The author researched four women, spanning 1608 to 1949, different eras with the common thread of remaining single in times when it was highly unusual. All four wrote candidly about their lives and those around them in splendid detail. Thankfully the author researched these compelling women so in depth! I was drawn to each of the four stories and could clearly envision them.
The first woman, Elizabeth Isham, chose God over marriage and chronicles her relationship with God beautifully. Ann Robinson chose to nanny her brother-in-law's children after her beloved sister died. Anne Lister was a business woman and was involved in the mining industry and politics. She chose a woman. Rosalie Chichester loved animals and nature and taught botany. She traveled extensively.
Be sure to read the author's notes where she discusses shedding light on lesser-known women in history. She also includes issues which affected these woman...and are still relevant today, including depression and lesbianism.
All four women deserve further research. I wish to learn more! This makes me curious about the thousands of stories we have yet to learn about others in history. Such a breath of fresh air!
Thank you to the author, Charlotte Furness, Pen & Sword and NetGalley for the pleasure of this delightful book!
The first woman, Elizabeth Isham, chose God over marriage and chronicles her relationship with God beautifully. Ann Robinson chose to nanny her brother-in-law's children after her beloved sister died. Anne Lister was a business woman and was involved in the mining industry and politics. She chose a woman. Rosalie Chichester loved animals and nature and taught botany. She traveled extensively.
Be sure to read the author's notes where she discusses shedding light on lesser-known women in history. She also includes issues which affected these woman...and are still relevant today, including depression and lesbianism.
All four women deserve further research. I wish to learn more! This makes me curious about the thousands of stories we have yet to learn about others in history. Such a breath of fresh air!
Thank you to the author, Charlotte Furness, Pen & Sword and NetGalley for the pleasure of this delightful book!
October 13, 2020
Unmarried Women of the Country Estate by Charlotte Furness is a really different kind of book I have ever read. It was different as in it concentrates on four different womens lives . The time period is different as in the different years as you will see how things had changed over the years with each women. The time period covers from the 17th -20th centuries so saying that you can and will see the changes,not only in the world but what women believed or didn't believe, what they were allowed and not allowed to do...and what each of these four women themselves, what their views were and are and not! Have to say it was really interesting emotional and spiritual. The characters of these women you will see through this writer's amazing writing. Grab some tissues as I did and see what all their reasons are and were for all that they did in and with their lives and why! I don't think I have read this authors work before but I will look her up because I think this is a very well written and exciting and emotional story of each of these well known women that I had never heard of before but I do now so yes,I learned from this book and thankful for the century that I as a woman live in now!!😁😁 Received from Net Gallery!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews