Gender, property and succession in the early modern English aristocracy: the case of Martha Janes and her illegitimate children

Abstract

This article addresses the boundaries of female power within early modern aristocratic families. It asks the question: could a woman's influence and authority with her husband and kin, and over matters of inheritance and succession, expand or contract through her abilityor notto have children? The focus of the article is the family arrangements of Lord Emmanuel Scroop whose marriage to Elizabeth Manners was childless. The research set out to uncover Lord Scroop's relationship with their servant, Martha Janes, the birth of four illegitimate children by this relationship, and the property litigation pursued by both wife and mistress after Lord Scroop left the family estates to these children. The article argues that the case of Janes and her children sheds light on the hidden histories of bastardy and property within aristocratic families. It investigates how Janes and her children ultimately played a central role in the inheritance and succession strategies of Lord Scroop, and examines how much importance aristocratic men attached to the concept of a legitimate male bloodline. The objective is to shine a light on economic and legal relationships in aristocratic families and reveal the relativeand relationalpower an unmarried woman could gain through maternity.

Women and estate management in the early eighteenth century: Barbara Savile at Rufford Abbey, Nottinghamshire (1700–34)

“…4 A recent critical review shows how women 'overcame the barriers of gender, social status and circumstances of birth by exploiting the power of property'. 5 The considerable contribution that women made to the management of landed estates in the medieval and early modern period through to the Restoration period has been highlighted by scholars such as Amanda Capern and Briony McDonagh. 6 There is also a number of individual case studies of elite women, which further establishes female involvement in eighteenth-century estate management.…”