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Hatshepsut (Maatkare, 1473-1458 BCE)
Aspasia of Miletus (born between 460 and 455 BCE - c. 401)
Hypatia of Alexandria (c. 355-415)
Khadija of Mecca (c. 555 - 619)
Wu Chao (aka Wu Zetian) (625-705)
Murasaki Shikibu (c. 978-1030)
Trotula of Salerno (??-1097)
Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
Razia of Delhi (1236-1240)
Christine of Pizan (1364/5 - 1434)
Elena Lucretia Corano Piscopia (1646 - 1684)
Phyllis Wheatley Peters (c. 1753-1784)
Matilda Joslyn Gage (1826-1898)
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Perhaps best known for her magnificent temple at Deir el Bahari in Thebes, Hatshepsut, the fifth ruler of the 18th Dynasty, was the daughter of Thutmose I and the beautiful Queen Ahmose. When Thutmose II, Hatshepsut's husband and half-brother, died in 1479 BCE, his son by a minor wife, Thutmose III, was appointed heir. Because of his youth, however, Hatshepsut was appointed regent. They ruled jointly until 1473 when she declared herself pharaoh. Assuming all of the regalia and ceremonies of a true Pharaoh and dressing in men’s attire, Hatshepsut administered affairs of the nation, with the full support of the religious leaders. As was the custom of the time, her mortuary temple at Deir el Bahari included reliefs of her divine birth as the daughter of Amon. Hatshepsut disappeared in 1458 B.C. when Thutmose III, wishing to reclaim the throne, led a revolt.
Her shrines, statues and reliefs were mutilated some 20 years after her death. Who and why her images were mutilated is not known. If Thutmose III wanted her images desecrated, why did he wait until 20 years after she died to do so?
Joyce Tyldesley, Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh, Viking Press, 1996
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Old Testament prophet and judge who lead the Israelite troops to victory over the Canaanites, Deborah's story is celebrated in The Song of Deborah, which is universally attributed to her. According to legend, the out-numbered Israelites fighting on foot faced the chariot-equipped Canaanites in a battle that was to be a certain defeat. Deborah positioned her troops on a rocky hill-side where the Canaanite chariots were less than useless, they were an encumbrance. The Israelites decisively defeated the Canaanites.
Bible, Judges 4-5
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Well-educated by the standards of her time, Aspasia's reputation as a rhetorician (speaker) has come down to us through the works of men such as Plato, Xenophon, Cicero, Athenaeus, and Plutarch. In a time and a place where women were as secluded from public life as women are today in countries like Saudi Arabia, Aspasia opened an academy (school) for girls. Her skills in rhetoric were so well respected that her academy for women became a popular meeting place for male philosophers including Plato, Socrates, Anaxoagoras, Sophcles, Phidias, and Pericles.
Working in Athens as a hetaira before moving to Miletus and becoming the mistress of Pericles, Aspasia's trade freed her from the social restraints of "respectable" married women and allowed her to engage in a public life. Unusual for the time, her match with Pericles was a love match. Drawn to her intellect, he allegedly kissed her every morning and every evening.
from http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/gallery/rhetoric/issues/women.html
among others, source Campbell, Karlyn Kohrs (1989) Man Cannot Speak for Her: A Critical Study Of Early Feminist Rhetoric, Volume 1. New York: Greenwood Press.
from http://rosin.ubb.uib.no/users/bubsy/Bakom1C.htm
http://www.iag.net/~meg/asp.html
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Men from all over the ancient world flocked to Alexandria to become her students because she was noted for her mastery of mathematics and philosophy. Her closest, most loyal students later held high imperial or ecclesiastical positions. Through her network of former students, her influence reached as far as Constantinople, Syria, and Cyrene. Moving in high government circles, surrounded by imperial and town dignitaries and by wealthy, well-born, and influential students, doted upon by the influential of the city, and showered with civic honors, Hypatia had substantial influence in the political and social life in Alexandria.
A pagan in an increasingly Christian world, Hypatia's students included Christians and pagans alike. When Cyril became bishop, he began a battle for the purity of the Christian faith by moving against groups that did not hold orthodox beliefs. By using heavy-handed methods, such as expelling the Novatians from the city, closing their churches, confiscating their liturgical objects, and depriving their bishop of all rights, Cyril earned the contempt of many Alexandrians. Yet, he had followers who would stop at nothing to support this cause.
With her students, Hypatia had separated herself from the masses and was, consequently, not particularly popular with the populous. Her fellow pagans knew that she had not fought to preserve traditional Hellenic religion. Cyril discovered her weaknesses and attacked. His people began to spread rumors that Hypatia performed black magic, a very dastardly crime which drew the severest punishments. Whipping the crowd into a frenzy, Cyril's men seized Hypatia, by now an old woman, off the street, beat her, and dragged her body to a church where they mutilated her flesh with sharp tiles and burned her remains.
Dzieska, Maria, Hypatia of Alexandria, Harvard University Press, 1995
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Khadija, an established, wealthy trader decided to take a chance on the penniless young man, perhaps 15 years her junior: she hired him to manage one of her caravans. When he returned, she was so pleased with his work that she married him. Their marriage was a love match. Contrary to the prevailing custom, he took no other wife while she lived. She bore 2 sons, 4 daughters, was considered the perfect wife, and dearly beloved by Muhammed.
Her fortune gave him entree into the world of the rich and powerful of Mecca. Still, she continued to work as he meditated. One day, he announced that he was God's prophet and she became his first convert. He would go on to found the religion of Islam: she and her fortune were crucial to his success. Even the Koran states that she was the perfect wife.
Forbes, Malcom, Women Who Made a Difference, Simon & Schuster, 1990, p. 146-148
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
The only woman to rule as emperor of China came to the throne by her ruthless determination to rule. Wu Chao, daughter of a Chinese general, first entered the palace as the emperor's concubine at age 13: she served emperor T'ai Tsung faithfully until his death in 649, then she entered Buddhist convent. Her retirement was short-lived: she was brought back to the palace by next emperor as his concubine. This time, Wu Chao was not content to play second fiddle to anyone.
She accused the Empress of sorcery and of plotting to kill the emperor. She strangled her own daughter and accused the empress of murder. Believing Chao, emperor Kao Tsung replaced the empress with Wu. Eventually, Kao Tsung allowed Wu Chao to rule while he dallied.
Chao made good use of her time by wooing the Buddhist monks. Chinese troops defeated Korea in war, then she negotiated with the Koreans to become China's ally. Chao reformed taxes, decreased the military budget, increased agricultural production, replaced military control with scholarly bureaucrats, constructed magnificent buildings in the capital, and promoted Chinese art and culture. Emperor Kao Tsung died in 683, Wu Chao exiled her son Chung, and ruled with her another son Jui. Since he was weak, she effectively ruled alone. She retired in 690 after recalling Chung to become the rightful emperor.
"Wu Chao" by S. Susan Jane in Herstory: Women Who Changed the World, Ruth Ashby and Deborah Gore Ohrn (eds.) Viking, 1995, p. 31-32
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Author of The Tale of Genji, which is widely regarded as the first novel in the world. Much of what we know about the Japan of her time, Heian Japan, comes from women's diaries, poems, and novels.
Educated by her father, she was married in her early 20s, had a daughter (who would become a well-known author in her own right) in 999, and was widowed in 1001. Shortly thereafter, she was brought to court by the imperial family who had heard of her brilliant mind and writing talent.
Gloria Steinem, Herstory: Women Who Changed the World, Viking, 1995, p. 32-34
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Midwife, teacher, and author, Trotula's treatise on gynecology, Passionibus Mulierum Curandorum (The Diseases of Women), in which she identified herself as a woman, was used in medical schools until the sixteenth century. Long regarded as one of the preeminent medieval scientists, Trotula lost her place in the history of medicine only in the beginning of the 20th century when historians became unable to accept that such a woman could exist in eleventh-century Italy. Writing with disarming frankness, Trotula dealt with gynecology, obstetrics, cosmetics, and skin disease in a sensible and humane manner. Generally up-to-date for its time, Passionibus Mulierum was far ahead of the current practices when discussing surgery, analgesics, and the care of the mother and child during the post-partum period. Her topics included the need for cleanliness, a balanced diet, and regular exercise, warned of the effects of emotional stress, and discussed birth control, problems of infertility, male infertility, sewing (and avoiding) tears suffered in childbirth, repositioning a baby during a breech birth, and the problems of sex and celibacy. She even told how a woman might pretend to be a virgin. Unlike many other works of the period, her cures rarely include prayers, incantations, astrology, or other forms of blatant superstition.
Margaret Alic, Hypatia's Heritage, A History of Women in Science from Antiquity through the Nineteenth Century, Beacon Books, 1986, pp. 50-56
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Known as "Sybil of the Rhine", Hildegard produced major works on theology, natural history, and the use of plant materials in medicine, wrote smaller works of biography, poems, hymns, and a mystery play, was consulted by and advised bishops, popes, and kings, composed ethereal, religious music including a complete mass, and founded a vibrant convent, where her musical plays were performed. Hildegard was beatified, but not yet canonized, and is frequently referred to as St. Hildegard. Born the tenth child (the tithe child) to a noble family, Hildegard was dedicated to the church at birth. From an early age, Hildegard experienced visions which she attributed to God. In an age of schism, Hildegard was desperate to have her religious writings, descriptions of her visions, judged to be orthodox. Even Pope Eugenius III became to be her champion and encouraged her to continue writing. Today scholars attribute her visions to her migraine headaches: her writings include classic descriptions of the experiences of migraine sufferers. To her tribute, Hildegard turned this potentially debilitating condition into a source of power and strength. Margaret Alic, Hypatia's Heritage, A History of Women in Science from Antiquity through the Nineteenth Century, Beacon Books, 1986, pp. 62-76
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
The only woman ever to sit on the throne of Delhi, India, Razia's ancestors were from Moslems of Turkish descent who invaded India in 11th century. "Like other Moselm princesses, she was trained to lead armies and administer kingdoms if necessary." (p. 34) Contrary to custom, her father selected her, over her brothers, to be his successor. After her father's death, she was persuaded to step down from the throne in favor of her stepbrother Ruknuddin, who, like her brothers, continued to neglect the kingdom and live a pleasure filled life. Disgusted with Ruknuddin's rule, the people demanded that she become Sultana in 1236.
She established peace and order, encouraged trade, built roads, planted trees, dug wells, supported poets, painters, and musicians, constructed schools and libraries appeared in public without the veil, wore tunic and headdress of a man. State meetings were often open to the populace at-large. Yet, she made enemies when she tried to eliminate some of the discriminations against her Hindu subjects.
Jealous of her attention to one of her advisors, Jamal Uddin Yaqut (not of Turkish blood), her governor, Altunia, rebelled. Razia's troops were defeated, Jamal was killed in battle, Razia was captured and married to her conqueror in 1240. One of her brothers claimed the throne for himself, Razia and her new husband were defeated in battle where both died.
"Sultana Razia" by Lyn Reese in Herstory: Women Who Changed the World, Ruth Ashby and Deborah Gore Ohrn (eds.), Viking, 1995, p. 34-36
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
A prolific writer (author of at least 20 books), de Pisan (an alternate spelling of her name) is the first European woman known to have earned her living by the pen. Widowed with 3 small children, her mother, and a niece to support, she wrote in many genres including: poetry, prose, novels, handbooks, letters on a topics ranging from history, biography, and military fortifications to women. De Pizan is considered to have begun discussion of the "woman question" on the continent. Her two books on women, Le Livre La Cite des Dames (The Book of the City of Ladies 1405) and Le Tresor de la Cite des Dames (The Treasury of the City of Ladies 1405), are feminist classics. Many historians date the beginning of the woman's movement from her works. In Epistres du debat sur le Roman de la Rose ( Letters on Debate about The Romance of the Rose c. 1402), a feminist response to the misogynistic The Romance of the Rose , she advocates for the equality of women. While in The Book of the City of Ladies (1405), an allegorical story, she catalogues many real and mythical, antique and, as well as, contemporary, women of accomplishment.
Katherine Wilson, Medieval Women Writers, The University of Georgia Press, 1984, p. 224-226
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
On June 25, 1678 Elena Lucretia Cornaro Piscopia became the first woman in the world to earn a doctorate in any field from any university. Her doctorate was in Philosophy since the University of Padua did not feel that they could grant a doctorate of theology to a woman, even though she was eminently well qualified for the title. In addition to speaking both Latin and Greek fluently, Elena mastered Hebrew, Spanish, French, and Arabic. A student of the sciences as well as of languages, she studied mathematics and astronomy in addition to philosophy and theology. A musician, Elena mastered the harpsichord, the clavichord, the harp, and the violin. Her mastery of musical instruments was crowned by the music she composed.
from http://www.scottlan.edu/lriddle/women/piscopia.htm, a paper written by Sarah Thieling, Class of 1999 (Agnes Scott College). Thieling gives as her references:
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
The first Black to be published in America (Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, 1773), Wheatley was only the second American woman, after Anne Bradstreet, to publish in America. Born in Gambia, she was captured into slavery and sold in Boston in 1761. Taught to read and write by her white owners, John and Susanna Wheatley, she became fluent and literate in English only 16 months after her arrival in the family. Within another year, she had mastered Latin. Early in the Revolutionary War, Wheatley became a patriot in spite of her owners' being staunch British loyalists. She wrote book of poetry in 1772 containing many pro-American poems but could not get the work published in America, probably because of the anticipated hard-times. She traveled to London in 1773 where her work was published after replacing her pro-America poems. While in London, she met with many people of influence. Freed in 1773, she married in 1771. John Wheatley died in 1778, leaving her in dire straights. She died in Boston in 1784 of complications arising from childbirth.
Darlene Clark Hine, Elsa Barkley Brown, and Rosalyn Terborg-Penn, Black Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia, Vol II, M - Z, Indiana University Press, 1993, p. 1251-1255
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Suffragist, historian of women, author and lecturer, woman's rights activist and theorist, advocate for civil rights, and abolitionist, Gage was a leading theorist and activist in the nineteenth century woman's rights movement. Her trademark expression, " There is a Word sweeter than Mother, Home, or Heaven. That Word is Liberty," summarized her life long struggle for the full equality of all humanity.
Although she operated a way station on the Underground Railroad and decried the brutal and unjust treatment of the American Indians, Gage focused her efforts on the woman's movement. Her suffrage work included helping to form, being an officer in, and co-authoring many of the major documents of local, state, and national woman's suffrage associations, editing The National Citizen and Ballot Box, the official paper of the National Woman's Suffrage Association (NWSA), and running petition campaigns. Gage is, today, perhaps best known for co-authoring the 1876 "Declaration of Rights of Women" and the first 3 volumes of The History of Woman Suffrage.
In 1880, after women were given the franchise in school board elections, Gage organized the women of her village, Fayetteville, NY to run for and vote in school board positions where an all-woman slate was elected. Yet, Gage was becoming disenchanted with the quest for suffrage. When Susan B. Anthony maneuvered the merging of the more conservative American Woman's Suffrage Association (AWSA) with the NWSA, Gage, in protest, refused to join the new NAWSA (National American Woman Suffrage Association) and she formed the formed the Woman's National Liberal Union.
Still, as an historian of women, Gage was in a class by herself. In an era when most believed that the lives of women were slowly improving, Gage believed in an ancient, prehistoric, matriarchal society and wrote about the accomplishments of women throughout history. She wrote pioneering work on the source of women's oppression, decrying the unequal treatment of the prostitute and her client, the "practice of non-conviction or of pardoning" in rape trials, unequal pay, the double standard, wife battering, and the sexual abuse of female children, just to name a few.
Finally, Gage wrote Woman, Church, and State, an history of the church's oppression of women and an analysis of the mutually reinforcing techniques that the church together with the state use to oppress women.
from The Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation Website, http://www.NYHistory.com/mjg.html
If you answered, (d) All of the above, you are correct.
Second woman to earn a degree (BS) in science (biology) from MIT (1904), Dexter married (1904) an heir to the International Harvester fortune, Stanley McCormick, youngest son of Cyrus McCormick, inventor of the mechanical harvester. Two years after their marriage, Stanley was afflicted by schizophrenia. Katharine built story book castle, Riven Rock, in Santa Barabra, Ca where she took Stanley to live surrounded with peace, beauty, and harmony. Yet, he lapsed into and out of his schizophrenic episodes for the remainder of his life. Believing that his disease was genetic in origin, Katherine resolved never to bear children. By 1909, Stanley was declared legally incompetent and the lawyers for the Cyrus McCormick estate battled to restrain Katharine's power to spend the money in Stanley's trust fund without court approval.
Katharine made small contributions to numerous causes, including the woman's suffrage movement and, later, Margaret Sanger's Planned Parenthood Federation. Most of her charitable spending went into neuroendocrine research. As long as her husband remained alive, her spending would be monitored by the probate court in Chicago and as long as she spent money on research into causes of and treatments for her husband's disease, her spending was easily approved. Only after his death (1947) would she gain complete control of his money (1952) and be permitted to spend that money the way she wanted to spend it.
At age seventy-one, McCormick was wealthy in her own right and determined to develop a cheap, easy to use, safe, effective, artificial contraceptive pill. During her lifetime and in her will, she contributed $2 million to develop the birth control pill, not a single cent of the government's money went into developing the most revolutionary pharmaceutical invention of the century. No corporation financed the development of a birth control pill: corporate executives refused to believe there was a market for a drug that prevents women from becoming pregnant. Without Katharine McCormick's funding, the birth control pill would probably not have been invented, tested, and marketed for a long time.
Bernard Asbell, The Pill: A Biography of the Drug that Changed the World, Random House, 1995
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last updated March 18, 1998