On International Women’s Day it is worth clarifying the historic reality of women’s lives. Men were legally responsible for women as husbands were the primary source of income. They were also legally responsible for wives and children and were arrested for abandoning them.

A woman could abandon her family without punishment though she would struggle to survive financially and would be shamed for abandoning her children. Abandoned husbands placed ads in the press denying any responsibility for debts run up. This was not legally binding, though it warned people not to trust her.

Beasts were a major source of death and injury, especially for men who could be gored, trampled or impaled at work. By contrast, childbirth was the main source of female deaths. Coach drivers often rode on horses as the jolting on top of the coach or wagon was unbearable. Until the 1920s police stations kept rifles to destroy out of control animals.

In my book on wife selling was a tragic tale of a publican with an alcoholic wife. Instead of helping run their business she was ruining it. He tried to get her into a poor house but he was still liable for her so was denied. Instead of being his business partner she was destroying it.

Women contributed to the family economy by making clothes, growing food, maintaining the home & raising & educating children. Until the early 19th century skilled women such as dairymaids earned near male equivalent in wages.

Many had jobs in urban communities eg in shops, cooking, cleaning, laundry to add to family incomes. Between and during the wars many filled the gaps in male workforce and were angry to lose this when men returned.

The major source of female death was childbirth but many women were worn out or incapacitated. When the nhs was founded there were women with completely prolapsed uteruses, and other maternal problems so were very restricted in their daily lives.

The big change came following World War 2 when the USA avoided the usual cycle of post war mass unemployment and economic decline by adapting industries to domestic production. Cars and trucks became more common. To encourage women to be full time housewives, they gave them gadgets. Washing machines. Mix masters. Reliable ovens. They moved to out of town estates from their local communities where there had been help and part time work to supplement their incomes. Women lost much of their independence and many were bored out of their minds so drug companies promoted antidepressants.

These conveniences made housewives less important. Fast food and synthetic no iron clothes allowed men to live independently so there is now less housework, so full time housewives are less necessary.