Sisters of the Earth: The Landscapes, Radical Identities and Performances of Female Reformers in 1819

Abstract

Female reformers were radical activists during 1819. They attempted to forge a 'feminine' radicalism through connecting their politics to their domesticity and families. They organised meetings, processed to mass platform protests, crafted liberty caps and wrote letters. Commentators and observers satirised and insulted their efforts through print and press, producing a reading which considered the women to be unfeminine. This conflict between insiders and outsiders creates a 'female masculinity' and fragmented identities. Using an historical archaeology framework, this paper analyses the contested identities female reformers performed within radical landscapes and spaces.