Josephine Butler

"This remarkable account of the transformation of a genteel middle-aged woman, the wife of a distinguished schoolmaster and mother of four, into a powerful force for change is one of the great stories of the nineteenth century. Josephine Butler was no ordinary reformer - she didn't believe in punitive discipline, and the houses of rest she established for prositutes to rebuild thier lives were very different from those set up by other Victorian reformers. She approached these prositutes as friends, taking some into her home, which she did with the full support of her family. Her story is, too, the story of a remarkable marriage. Physically frail, Josephine Butler brought almost superhuman energy to her often dangerous campagining work, travelling great distances, swaying huge crowds with her speeches and writing fiery and effective polemics. She was largely responsible for the repeal of the Contagious Diseases Acts in 1886, which had subjected suspected prostitutes to painful, humiliating examinations. Her involvement in the exposure of the sale of young girls into prostitution helped to achieve the raising of the age of consent for girls from 13 to 16, and she was prominent in the campaign for equal education, which led to the establishement of university education for women. Jane Jordan's vivid biography does real justice to a fascinating and complex woman who was so much of her time, yet so modern in her attitudes." -- Book jacket.