Overview

At the time of her death in 1780, British-born Esther DeBerdt Reed—a name few know today—was one of the most politically important women in Revolutionary America. Her treatise “The Sentiments of an American Woman” articulated the aspirations of female patriots, and the Ladies Association of Philadelphia, which she founded, taught generations of women how to translate their political responsibilities into action. DeBerdt Reed’s social connections and political sophistication helped transform her husband, Joseph Reed, from a military leader into the president of the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania, a position analogous to the modern office of governor. DeBerdt Reed’s life yields remarkable insight into the scope of women’s political influence in an age ruled by the strict social norms structured by religion and motherhood. The story of her courtship, marriage, and political career sheds light both on the private and political lives of women during the Revolution and on how society, religion, and gender interacted as a new nation struggled to build its own identity. Engaging, comprehensive, and built on primary source material that allows DeBerdt Reed’s own voice to shine, Owen Ireland’s expertly researched biography rightly places her in a prominent position in the pantheon of our founders, both female and male.

Full Product Details

Author:   Owen S. Ireland
Publisher:   Pennsylvania State University Press
Imprint:   Pennsylvania State University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 22.90cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.431kg
ISBN:  

9780271079295

ISBN 10:   0271079290
Pages:   264
Publication Date:   18 December 2018
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   To order  
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.

Table of Contents

Contents Acknowledgements Introduction Chapter One: Esther: Imprudent and Impatient Love Chapter Two: Joseph: Love and Calculation Chapter Three: A Willful Girl Matures Chapter Four: Responsibilities and Schemes Chapter Five: Politics: Old World Patronage Chapter Six: Love Defeats Prudence Chapter Seven: Exiled Where Women “stooped like country girls.” Chapter Eight: A New Political Identity: “They” becomes “We” Chapter Nine: “Unleash the Dogs of War” Chapter Ten: Politics: New World Democracy Chapter Eleven: America’s Female Politician Chapter Twelve: Triumph and Tragedy Bibliographical Essay Notes Index

Reviews

Despite Reed's importance, this is the first full biography of this pioneer politician. It is, in Ireland's telling, an engaging tale that mingles the drama and romance expected of a novel with the politics, finance, and suffering of Reed and her husband during the struggle for American independence. --Susan E. Klepp, author of Revolutionary Conceptions: Women, Fertility, and Family Limitation in America, 1760-1820 This exciting book is a significant contribution not just to our understanding of revolutionary-era America but also to our understanding of global history itself. Esther Reed is a fascinating protagonist, and her transatlantic life--and especially her intercontinental courtship with her eventual husband, Joseph Reed--sheds light on the complex ties that connected the North American colonies to England and the wider world. --Tonio Andrade, author of The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History Historian Owen Ireland's gracefully written full-fledged biography of Esther DeBerdt Reed, a British-born American patriot, is a welcome and necessary addition to Revolutionary Era history. Based on deep research, Ireland makes a compelling case for understanding the rich but tragically short life of Esther DeBerdt Reed, an important female politician and American founder. --Alison M. Parker, author of Articulating Rights: Nineteenth-Century American Women on Race, Reform, and the State In a comprehensive and moving study, Owen Ireland brings to light the important but little-known story of Esther DeBerdt Reed, one of the most powerful female figures to emerge during the American Revolution. Ireland chronicles the grand love affair between Reed, a privileged Londoner, and her husband, an American lawyer and patriot, and also explores how Reed became the leading organizer of the Philadelphia Ladies Association, a group that provided critical financial assistance to Washington's troops. Improbable, inspirational, and instructive, Reed's life is a tale of female self-invention and of love played out in the shadows of the Revolutionary crisis. --Rosemarie Zagarri, author of Revolutionary Backlash: Women and Politics in the Early American Republic Sentiments of a British-American Woman is an exciting story of how Esther DeBerdt Reed negotiated the challenges of immigration, marriage, and Revolutionary politics. As an eminent political historian, Owen S. Ireland marshals his command of Pennsylvania politics and women's history and, in quoting her substantial correspondence, allows DeBerdt Reed to speak for herself. --Jean Soderlund, author of Lenape Country: Delaware Valley Society Before William Penn

Despite Reed's importance, this is the first full biography of this pioneer politician. It is, in Ireland's telling, an engaging tale that mingles the drama and romance expected of a novel with the politics, finance, and suffering of Reed and her husband during the struggle for American independence. --Susan E. Klepp, author of Revolutionary Conceptions: Women, Fertility, and Family Limitation in America, 1760-1820 Sentiments of a British-American Woman is an exciting story of how Esther DeBerdt Reed negotiated the challenges of immigration, marriage, and Revolutionary politics. As an eminent political historian, Owen S. Ireland marshals his command of Pennsylvania politics and women's history and, in quoting her substantial correspondence, allows DeBerdt Reed to speak for herself. --Jean Soderlund, author of Lenape Country: Delaware Valley Society Before William Penn This exciting book is a significant contribution not just to our understanding of revolutionary-era America but also to our understanding of global history itself. Esther Reed is a fascinating protagonist, and her transatlantic life--and especially her intercontinental courtship with her eventual husband, Joseph Reed--sheds light on the complex ties that connected the North American colonies to England and the wider world. --Tonio Andrade, author of The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History In a comprehensive and moving study, Owen Ireland brings to light the important but little-known story of Esther DeBerdt Reed, one of the most powerful female figures to emerge during the American Revolution. Ireland chronicles the grand love affair between Reed, a privileged Londoner, and her husband, an American lawyer and patriot, and also explores how Reed became the leading organizer of the Philadelphia Ladies Association, a group that provided critical financial assistance to Washington's troops. Improbable, inspirational, and instructive, Reed's life is a tale of female self-invention and of love played out in the shadows of the Revolutionary crisis. --Rosemarie Zagarri, author of Revolutionary Backlash: Women and Politics in the Early American Republic Historian Owen Ireland's gracefully written full-fledged biography of Esther DeBerdt Reed, a British-born American patriot, is a welcome and necessary addition to Revolutionary Era history. Based on deep research, Ireland makes a compelling case for understanding the rich but tragically short life of Esther DeBerdt Reed, an important female politician and American founder. --Alison M. Parker, author of Articulating Rights: Nineteenth-Century American Women on Race, Reform, and the State

Despite Reed's importance, this is the first full biography of this pioneer politician. It is, in Ireland's telling, an engaging tale that mingles the drama and romance expected of a novel with the politics, finance, and suffering of Reed and her husband during the struggle for American independence. --Susan E. Klepp, author of Revolutionary Conceptions: Women, Fertility, and Family Limitation in America, 1760-1820 Sentiments of a British-American Woman is an exciting story of how Esther DeBerdt Reed negotiated the challenges of immigration, marriage, and Revolutionary politics. As an eminent political historian, Owen S. Ireland marshals his command of Pennsylvania politics and women's history and, in quoting her substantial correspondence, allows DeBerdt Reed to speak for herself. --Jean Soderlund, author of Lenape Country: Delaware Valley Society Before William Penn This exciting book is a significant contribution not just to our understanding of revolutionary-era America but also to our understanding of global history itself. Esther Reed is a fascinating protagonist, and her transatlantic life--and especially her intercontinental courtship with her eventual husband, Joseph Reed--sheds light on the complex ties that connected the North American colonies to England and the wider world. --Tonio Andrade, author of The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History Historian Owen Ireland's gracefully written full-fledged biography of Esther DeBerdt Reed, a British-born American patriot, is a welcome and necessary addition to Revolutionary Era history. Based on deep research, Ireland makes a compelling case for understanding the rich but tragically short life of Esther DeBerdt Reed, an important female politician and American founder. --Alison M. Parker, author of Articulating Rights: Nineteenth-Century American Women on Race, Reform, and the State In a comprehensive and moving study, Owen Ireland brings to light the important but little-known story of Esther DeBerdt Reed, one of the most powerful female figures to emerge during the American Revolution. Ireland chronicles the grand love affair between Reed, a privileged Londoner, and her husband, an American lawyer and patriot, and also explores how Reed became the leading organizer of the Philadelphia Ladies Association, a group that provided critical financial assistance to Washington's troops. Improbable, inspirational, and instructive, Reed's life is a tale of female self-invention and of love played out in the shadows of the Revolutionary crisis. --Rosemarie Zagarri, author of Revolutionary Backlash: Women and Politics in the Early American Republic

Despite Reed's importance, this is the first full biography of this pioneer politician. It is, in Ireland's telling, an engaging tale that mingles the drama and romance expected of a novel with the politics, finance, and suffering of Reed and her husband during the struggle for American independence. -Susan E. Klepp, author of Revolutionary Conceptions: Women, Fertility, and Family Limitation in America, 1760-1820 Sentiments of a British-American Woman is an exciting story of how Esther DeBerdt Reed negotiated the challenges of immigration, marriage, and Revolutionary politics. As an eminent political historian, Owen S. Ireland marshals his command of Pennsylvania politics and women's history and, in quoting her substantial correspondence, allows DeBerdt Reed to speak for herself. -Jean Soderlund, author of Lenape Country: Delaware Valley Society Before William Penn This exciting book is a significant contribution not just to our understanding of revolutionary-era America but also to our understanding of global history itself. Esther Reed is a fascinating protagonist, and her transatlantic life-and especially her intercontinental courtship with her eventual husband, Joseph Reed-sheds light on the complex ties that connected the North American colonies to England and the wider world. -Tonio Andrade, author of The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History Historian Owen Ireland's gracefully written full-fledged biography of Esther DeBerdt Reed, a British-born American patriot, is a welcome and necessary addition to Revolutionary Era history. Based on deep research, Ireland makes a compelling case for understanding the rich but tragically short life of Esther DeBerdt Reed, an important female politician and American founder. -Alison M. Parker, author of Articulating Rights: Nineteenth-Century American Women on Race, Reform, and the State In a comprehensive and moving study, Owen Ireland brings to light the important but little-known story of Esther DeBerdt Reed, one of the most powerful female figures to emerge during the American Revolution. Ireland chronicles the grand love affair between Reed, a privileged Londoner, and her husband, an American lawyer and patriot, and also explores how Reed became the leading organizer of the Philadelphia Ladies Association, a group that provided critical financial assistance to Washington's troops. Improbable, inspirational, and instructive, Reed's life is a tale of female self-invention and of love played out in the shadows of the Revolutionary crisis. -Rosemarie Zagarri, author of Revolutionary Backlash: Women and Politics in the Early American Republic Ireland draws on rich collections of DeBerdt and Reed family letters to produce this excellent biography. He argues perceptively that, while in some respects, the life of his subject was extraordinary, in others her experiences were much like those of other smart, politically engaged, and affluent wives and mothers in revolutionary America. -Cynthia A. Kierner, Pennsylvania Heritage A beautifully written biography of a strong-willed, smart, and forgotten heroine. . . . Adding to the still scant scholarship on women in early America, Ireland's book is enthusiastically endorsed. -B. B. Pfleger, Choice

Author Information

Owen S. Ireland is Distinguished Professor of History at The College at Brockport, State University of New York, and the author of Religion, Ethnicity, and Politics: Ratifying the Constitution in Pennsylvania, also published by Penn State University Press.

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