Caroline Norton and William Lambe

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"A large sheep with the head of a man perches on the knees of a young woman, while a horned ram with the head of a man looks on. "Mrs N... and her pet L..." Refers to the affair of Caroline Norton and William Lambe. Coloured lithograph by H.B. (John Doyle), 1835/45."

https://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/obf_images/76/8f/7c99847be6c513a01a... https://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/image/V0050210.htmlWellcome Collection gallery (2018-03-22): https://wellcomecollection.org/works/qfu25bkp CC-BY-4.0, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=36671314

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Timeline of Events Associated with Caroline Norton and William Lambe

Caroline Norton Writes to the Queen: A History of Divorce

circa. 1855

 

Portrait of Mrs Caroline Norton

By George Frederic Watts - onlinecollection.nationalgalle…, Public Domain, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.…

Caroline Norton's inspiration for writing to the queen came from her personal life; after leaving her husband, because of coverture, she had no access to her income.  Her, along with all English women, did not have legal rights over their own children, money, or bodies, while husbands had full legal authority to do as they pleased, with no consequence. Women had very little autonomy within marriage. After surviving an abusive marriage, she started writing publicly about it. She sent letters to Queen Victoria pushing for legal reforms, and even though she wasn’t officially part of Parliament or the law, her voice still helped change things. This moment matters because it shows how writing can work as political pressure. Norton used her own experience to expose how the law treated women like property. 

Greenblatt, Stephen . The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 11th ed., vol. E, W.W. Norton & Company, 2024.

Matrimonial Causes Act of 1857

1857

The Matrimonial Causes Act of 1857 was one of several acts passed by Parliament from 1857 to 1878, reforming the law on divorce. Before 1857, divorce for the average person was almost impossible, especially for women. Women were under complete control of her husband, and had no power if he was having an affair, or abusing her in any way. The law required proof of adultery of either party, but a woman also had to show proof of cruelty from her husband. However, a woman could still lose custody of her children if she was found guilty of adultery. In addition, because women’s property became their husbands after marriage at this time, if a woman attempted to separate herself from her marriage, her husband would retain legal claim over all of her assets. The threat of being left with no money and the loss of children forced many women into staying in a bad marriage. 

By passing the Act, divorce became a matter of the court rather than church which was opposed by many, the Church of England being the biggest opposer. 

A huge advocate for divorce reform in order to give women rights was Caroline Norton, an English social reformer, and author of such works as “Brief Summary in Plain Language of the Most Important Laws Concerning Women”, and “English Laws for Women in the 19th Century”, among many others. Norton’s own marriage was abusive, and the trappings of marriage under law at this time inspired her to rally for change, and protection for women. She even wrote desperate letters to Queen Victoria, pleading for help for all the women trapped by their husbands, which had a major influence on getting the Act passed by Parliament. 

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall was published in 1848, with the novel taking place in the 1820s. Bronte used the character of Helen Huntington to address the unfortunately common occurrence of women trapped in bad and abusive marriages. Had this act existed when the novel took place, Helen would not have had to resort to running away and living in hiding in order to remove herself and her son from her husband's influence.

www.bbc.co.uk/history/familyhi…

Matrimonial_Causes_Act_1857

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divorce

www.britannica.com/biography/C…

Caroline Norton Writes to the Queen: A History of Divorce

Matrimonial Causes Act of 1857

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TimelineJS

Part of Group:

MSSU ENG272 - Spring 2025

Featured in Exhibit: 

Contemplating Oppression: The Job of Writers

Artist: 

  • John Doyle

Image Date: 

circa. 1835