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divorcehistory.bsky.social
Divorce_History
@divorcehistory.bsky.social
2.7K followers 1.4K following 140 posts
A New Methodological Approach to the History of Divorce 1857-1923 @drjenniferaston.bsky.social @dianeranyard.bsky.social
@Northumbria Law School #ESRC #UKNatArchives ‪#welshwomensaid ‬ #CAFCASS Website: https://hosting.northumbria.ac.uk/divorce_history
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
Calling all #lawyers #policymakers #charityworkers #genealogists #familyhistorians #archivists! This FREE workshop on 20 Jan 2026 will showcase #divorce project findings & welcome speakers from policy, practice & the 3rd sector to highlight the power of #archival research. In person/hybrid. Details👇
November 11, 2025 at 11:54 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
See below for details of a FREE one-day workshop 'Archives to Action: Historical Evidence for Policy Reform in Marital Breakdown, Domestic Abuse, and Child Welfare' held @northumbriauni.bsky.social on Tuesday 20 January 2026.

www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/new...
Archives to Action: Historical Evidence for Policy Reform
This one-day workshop showcases the results of a groundbreaking two-year interdisciplinary project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council: 'A New Methodological Approach to the History of ...
www.northumbria.ac.uk
November 11, 2025 at 11:07 AM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
I won a prize 🥳 Well, Deserted Wives did 😍 📖
Thank you to The Society of Legal Scholars for a lovely evening and wonderful recognition. I am very grateful (as the cheesy grin shows!)

Deserted Wives currently has 30% off:
www.bloomsbury.com/uk/deserted-...

#19thC #WomensHistory #sls2025
Four people stood in front of a Society of Legal Scholars vertical banner. Three of the people are holding certificates, the other is President of the SLS and has presented the awards. A certificate with black text on a cream background awarding 'Deserted Wives and Economic Divorce' 2nd prize in the 2025 Margaret Brazier Prize for Outstanding Mid-career Scholarship.
September 4, 2025 at 9:41 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
At the World Economic History Congress in Lund? wehc2025.com #WEHC2025 Dr Jennifer Aston will be giving a paper ‘Marital Status and Credit: navigating the legal constraints of being a married woman in England and Wales 1850–1925’ on 29th July 2025 from 9.30-10.30am in Universitetshuset, Room 125.
World Economic History Congress 2025
wehc2025.com
July 28, 2025 at 8:38 AM
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lsangha.bsky.social
📢OUR TRANSCRIBATHON IS TODAY!📢

Online registration has now closed, but if you missed out then DM me and I can provide a workaround ... we wouldn't want anyone to miss the chance to read some lovely wills!

#EarlyModern 🗃️ @leverhulme.ac.uk @uniofexeterhass.bsky.social @uoearchhist.bsky.social
A poster advertising the 'Wills Project Transcribathon' on Thursday 24 July, 1-4pm BST, in the Digital Humanities Lab at the University of Exeter, and on zoom. The poster features black text on green and yellow backgrounds, and three images - a box of folded will manuscripts, an unfolded will manuscript, and the painting Thomas Braithwaite of Ambleside making his will, Abbot Hall, 1607. Photo: Lakeland Arts. The poster text reads: ' - Transcribe on Zooniverse alongside like-minded volunteers, - Learn more about English wills from 1540-1790 during talks from the experts, - Share & discuss interesting discoveries, - Attend for all or part of the event, - Contribute to academic research & help make these remarkable documents more accessible for all'.
July 24, 2025 at 8:02 AM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
I'm beyond thrilled that 'Deserted Wives & Economic Divorce' has been shortlisted for the The Society of Legal Scholars Margaret Brazier Prize 2025. It is wonderful to see Deserted Wives recognised in this way & to share the shortlist with such brilliant authors 🤩

www.linkedin.com/posts/societ...
🌟 Celebrating Outstanding Legal Scholarship 🌟 | The Society of Legal Scholars
🌟 Celebrating Outstanding Legal Scholarship 🌟 We're delighted to share the shortlisted nominees for the SLS 2025 Peter Birks Prizes for Outstanding Early Career Legal Scholarship and the Margaret...
www.linkedin.com
July 21, 2025 at 6:47 PM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
Thank you for coming @djrgrey.bsky.social! And thanks also to my amazing fellow panellists @sophiemhistory.bsky.social & @ellasbaraini.bsky.social. My first @socialhistsoc.bsky.social conference has been an amazing experience so far - presenting in a pub was a first! 🍻#SHSConf2025
djrgrey.bsky.social Daniel Grey @djrgrey.bsky.social · Jul 8
Thinking now @socialhistsoc.bsky.social about how mental health difficulties were understood by the divorce court between 1857 and 1937 with @drjenniferaston.bsky.social 👏🏻🌟 #SHSConf2025
July 8, 2025 at 4:00 PM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
If you’re at #SHSConf2025 join @drjenniferaston.bsky.social who’s presenting a paper called ‘Navigating Mental Illness in the Pre-1937 Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes’ on Tuesday 7th July 2025 as part of Panel 4 from 2.15-3.45pm in the E & C Lounge. More details here: shorturl.at/ojU0z
Tuesday 8th July 2025 - Dr Jennifer Aston's paper on divorce at the Social History Society Conference - A New Methodological Approach to the History of Divorce, 1857-1923
Dr Jennifer Aston will be presenting a paper called ‘Navigating Mental Illness in the Pre-1937 Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes’ at the 49th Annual Social History Society Conference at the Black Country Living Museum. This will be on Tuesday 7th July 2025 as part of Panel 4 from 2.15-3.45pm on ‘Constructing (In)sanity in 19th […]
shorturl.at
July 7, 2025 at 10:30 AM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
Thank you so much to Prof. Sharon Thompson for her amazing review of 'Deserted Wives'.

"It is a shining example of the best of legal history." 🤩

Please consider ordering it for your library 📖
www.bloomsbury.com/uk/deserted-...
July 4, 2025 at 1:13 PM
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ladyburglar.bsky.social
Very pleased with the cover design for my new book, The Secret Life of the Hotel! Thanks ‪@bloomsburyhist.bsky.social
June 20, 2025 at 10:30 AM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
The first review of Deserted Wives has been published and it's a lovely one 🥳 The full review is here www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... but I've included a snippet below. Thank you so much @chloechallender.bsky.social 🙏
📖 available here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/deserted-...
Aston’s research and unconventional ‘collaboration’ has resulted in a work with elements of the detective story juxtaposed with two women’s love for their research, alongside a cast of wives the authors ‘met’ along the way. Perhaps the overriding lesson is not to believe conventional wisdom when it comes to women’s history, but to prise open the real story – and to experiment with writing history in new ways. Chloe Challender, University of Warwick
May 23, 2025 at 1:40 PM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
The Sex, Gender and the Law session has been an amazing way to start LSA2025 in Chicago. Female business ownership, family law, divorce and legal history - just a few of my favourite things 😍
Also worth noting the top logo-ing from #LSAChicago
An off-centre close-up photo of a dark grey tote bag with the Law and Society Association logo and title. The logo is a square grid of 9 different sized images in 3 rows of 3. They are (from top and left to right) a close up of a white grecian column on a maroon background. A pink silhouette of a swallow on a dark lavender background. The Disability Pride Flag with pink, yellow, white, blue and green stripes on a grey background. A close-up of a brown and black eye with a dilated black pupil and dark grey iris. A grey open padlock in a red circle on a grey background with red drops. A brown hand in a manacle and chains reaching up on a purple background. The intersex inclusive pride flag with a series of arrow shapes on yellow, white, blue, brown and black with a blue circle pointing into horizontal stripes of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple and blue. An image of a uterus, fallopian tube, ovary and vagina in white and pale pink on a dark pink background. A close up of half a butterfly with a green body and lavender wings, the top wing is crumbled and broken. The title of the conference is Politics of the Body at the Crossroads.
May 22, 2025 at 2:39 PM
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drjenniferaston.bsky.social
The perfect accompaniment to a morning cuppa ☕️ Take 5 mins to read the latest @divorcehistory.bsky.social blog, which explores if second time is the charm...
divorcehistory.bsky.social Divorce_History @divorcehistory.bsky.social · May 15
In case you missed it, here’s out latest blog ‘If at first, you don’t succeed...remarriage and the Divorce Court’ that looks at a couple with links to the #Guinness brewing family who used legislation to reconcile their romantic entanglements #Divorce #LegalHistory #Genealogy #Remarriage (1/16)
Image Description: The marriage certificate for Mary Alice and John Burke’s second marriage on 15 February 1896 from the divorce case file J 77/715/1722 Alternate Text: The image is of a marriage certificate that is on off white paper. The wording and format of the document are printed in green ink and there is a seal printed on the bottom right-hand side in a red/orange colour. The document has been filled in with handwriting in black ink. It says that the marriage took place at the Register Office in the District of St George’s Hanover Square in the County of London. The date of the marriage is the Fifteenth of February 1896 between John Burke and Mary Alice Burke. John Burke is 30 years old listed as a Bachelor (falsely) and under ‘Rank or Profession’ it says ‘Of Independent Means’. He is living at Artillery Mansions on Victoria Street at the time of the marriage and his father is listed as John Burke (deceased) who was a Merchant. Mary Alice Burke is 29 years old and listed as a Widow (falsely) and was living at 16 North Street, Westminster. Her father is listed as Henry Vansittart Riddell (deceased) a Colonel B.S.C. The document also notes the witnesses to the marriage and who conducted the ceremony. Image Citation: The National Archives; London, England, UK; Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes, later Supreme Court of Judicature: Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Files, J 77; Reference Number: J 77/715/1722; Series Number: J 77; Piece Number: 715
May 15, 2025 at 8:30 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
In case you missed it, here’s out latest blog ‘If at first, you don’t succeed...remarriage and the Divorce Court’ that looks at a couple with links to the #Guinness brewing family who used legislation to reconcile their romantic entanglements #Divorce #LegalHistory #Genealogy #Remarriage (1/16)
Image Description: The marriage certificate for Mary Alice and John Burke’s second marriage on 15 February 1896 from the divorce case file J 77/715/1722 Alternate Text: The image is of a marriage certificate that is on off white paper. The wording and format of the document are printed in green ink and there is a seal printed on the bottom right-hand side in a red/orange colour. The document has been filled in with handwriting in black ink. It says that the marriage took place at the Register Office in the District of St George’s Hanover Square in the County of London. The date of the marriage is the Fifteenth of February 1896 between John Burke and Mary Alice Burke. John Burke is 30 years old listed as a Bachelor (falsely) and under ‘Rank or Profession’ it says ‘Of Independent Means’. He is living at Artillery Mansions on Victoria Street at the time of the marriage and his father is listed as John Burke (deceased) who was a Merchant. Mary Alice Burke is 29 years old and listed as a Widow (falsely) and was living at 16 North Street, Westminster. Her father is listed as Henry Vansittart Riddell (deceased) a Colonel B.S.C. The document also notes the witnesses to the marriage and who conducted the ceremony. Image Citation: The National Archives; London, England, UK; Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes, later Supreme Court of Judicature: Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Files, J 77; Reference Number: J 77/715/1722; Series Number: J 77; Piece Number: 715
May 15, 2025 at 8:04 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
Our latest blog ‘If at first, you don’t succeed... #remarriage and the #Divorce Court’ focuses on a couple with links to the #Guinness brewing family and gives a unique glimpse into their attempts to reconcile their romantic entanglements with legislations #legalhistory #genealogy shorturl.at/F6F80
Image Description: All Saints Church, Binfield where Mary Alice and John Burke’s first marriage took place. Alternate Text: The image is of a small village church that is surrounded by a grassed graveyard that is filled with multiple tombstones. There is a path leading up to the church entrance which is in the shape of an arch. The church is made of small, pebbled bricks with arched windows and has a sloped tiled roof. There is a small tower on the left side of the church. Image Citation: All Saints Church, Binfield by Alan Hunt, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
April 23, 2025 at 8:02 AM
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ncsascholars.bsky.social
We’re writing with a quick update. NCSA has decided to quit Twitter. Our account is still open for now, but we will permanently close it on 7 July, 2025.

You can help us by spreading the word to our C19 colleagues. We’ve already built quite a following over the past year!
April 8, 2025 at 3:43 PM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
For #WomensHistoryMonth #WHM we’re reposting our blog on one of the most radical pieces of legislation in 19thC England that women could use, protection orders. The topic of the book Deserted Wives and Economic Divorce by Dr Jennifer Aston and Professor Olive Anderson. #womenshistory #women (1/11)
Credit: London – St Saviours Church, Southwark by Chronicle/ Alamy Stock Photo ALT TEXT: The image is an old etching of a church in black ink on an off-cream background. The church has a central tower and spire, and around it are other areas of the church building with pointed roofs, smaller spires and arched windows. Around the etching of the church is a circular border of leaves, and in the bottom left-hand corner are the words: ST SAVIOURS SOUTHWARK.
March 28, 2025 at 9:04 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
#genealogy #familyhistory #history #marriage #divorce #letters On the 16 June 1885, a 23-year-old Miss Charlotte Jane Bell (the daughter of a local gentleman) married Charles Marshall Dix (a 30-year-old widower) at the Parish Church in the small market town of Louth in Lincolnshire. After... (1/9)
Image Description: The front cover of a petition for a restitution of conjugal rights, Dix v. Dix. Image Citation: The National Archives; London, England, UK; Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes, later Supreme Court of Judicature: Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Files, J 77; Reference Number: J 77/904/7439; Series Number: J 77; Piece Number: 904 Alt Text: This image is the front cover of an old paper Divorce Court case file. It is a dirty shade of cream with black writing on it, some printed and some handwritten. The writing says 7439 in the top right-hand corner. On the left the letters UND. are stamped in red with the numbers 119 handwritten next to it. Below this in print it says: In the High Court of Justice PROBATE, DIVORCE, AND ADMIRALTY DIVISION (DIVORCE.) In handwriting it says: W.R.C.R. Below in handwriting it then says: Dix Charlotte Jane v Dix Charles Marshall. Below this in print it says: COURT MINUTES. Below this in black print it says Petition Filed, followed by the date 27th February 1907 handwritten in black ink. Below this in print it says Setting Down Cause, followed by the date 4 May 1907 handwritten in black ink. Below this in print it says Decree Nisi with the Nisi crossed through and RCR written on instead. This is followed by the date 31 July 1907 handwritten in black ink. Below this in print it says Final Decree, with no date written in. Below this handwritten in black ink are the words ‘Further proceedings for W.D.’ On the left-hand page at the bottom is a green sticker and on it are the words: Closed until 2008. Stamped on top of this in red ink is a cross with the words CANCELLED inside.
March 19, 2025 at 9:04 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
As it’s #InternationalWomensDay you can read a free chapter from @drjenniferaston.bsky.social and Professor Olive Anderson’s new book: Deserted Wives and Economic Divorce in 19th-Century England and Wales: For Wives Alone? tinyurl.com/bdfe8u9d #history #legalhistory #womenshistory #genealogists
Image Description: The Front Cover of the book Deserted Wives and Economic Divorce in 19th-Century England and Wales 'For Wives Alone' Jennifer Aston and Olive Anderson. Alt Text: The image is of some books. One faces forward and you can read the front cover. On that it says. Deserted Wives and Economic Divorce in 19th-Century England and Wales 'For Wives Alone' Jennifer Aston and Olive Anderson. The wording is in white against a dark blue background. Below the wording is an image of a courtroom from the 19th-Century. A woman is stood in the centre facing a male judge who is sat behind his desk. Around them are sat other men who are in wigs and robes or suits. Next to this book are 5 others where you can see the spine which also includes the title and author names.
March 8, 2025 at 10:25 AM
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@divorcehistory.bsky.social
March 5, 2025 at 10:10 PM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
In our latest blog we explore restitution of conjugal rights. A type of matrimonial cause available in the #DivorceCourt to deal with #desertion, #childcustody and #maintenance issues that could also be used as evidence of desertion in a #divorce case

hosting.northumbria.ac.uk/divorce_hist...
Image Description: An extract from a ‘Come back to me’ letter described in an affidavit from the Dix v. Dix restitution of conjugal rights petition. Image Citation: The National Archives; London, England, UK; Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes, later Supreme Court of Judicature: Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Files, J 77; Reference Number: J 77/904/7439; Series Number: J 77; Piece Number: 904 Alt Text: The image is of a piece of old paper with faint lines drawn horizontally and one line vertically on the left-hand side creating a margin. On the horizontal lines are words written in a flowing handwriting in black ink. The quoted words from the letter have a double quote sign at the start of every line even though the quote has not ended, and it says: ‘2. That on the 20th December 1906 I wrote my husband a letter which was as follows:- “I think I have waited long “enough to see if anything would happen and “I now ask you to tell me definitely if you “are prepared to put away this woman and “make a home for me and Jacqueline”. Such letter was address[ed] by me to my husband at his office situated at 2 Collingwood Street Newcastle-upon-Tyne where he practices as a solicitor.
March 3, 2025 at 8:59 AM
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royalhistsoc.org
Thanks to those who have followed us this week. Our channel will provide you with updates on the Society's work to support and advocate for history and historians, as well as the activity of other Uk / RoW organisations who do likewise.

They include 120+ networks in our Starter Pack bit.ly/4gLVuj7
February 18, 2025 at 11:55 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
In January we got to an exciting point in the project, with a visit to our Project Partners #NationalArchivesUK in Kew. We, the Principal Investigator @drjenniferaston.bsky.social and Senior Research Assistant @dianeranyard.bsky.social spent 5 days at the archives. So why were we there? (1/9)
Image Description: The National Archives, Kew. Alt Text: This image is a photograph of the outside of The National Archives at Kew. The building is made of beige brickwork, large glass windows and grey roofs and canopies. In front of the building is a pond filled with water and railings around. At the front of the picture is a walkway with patterns in the stonework, including a circle. Image Description: The Book Launch for Dr Jessamy Carlson’s Approved Schools for Girls in England, 1933-1973. Alt Text: The image is a photograph that shows the inside of a lecture theatre. The focal point is a big screen that has a presentation visible. It says APPROVED SCHOOLS FOR GIRLS IN ENGLAND, 1933-1973 in a dark bold font, on a primarily yellow background with a white shape in the centre. In front of the screen are two chairs and a table with books on. The view is taken from the audience, and it is possible to see some of the chairs and attendees looking on. Image Description: A photograph of a trolley filled with J 77 box files. Alt Text: This image is a photograph of the inside of the National Archives reading room, and there are two trollies loaded with J 77 box files. One trolley is green, and the other is red. Both have three shelves that have multiple brown box files on them. Image Description: Photograph of the inside of a box file at the archives with a stack of divorce case files inside. Alt Text: This image is a photograph of a rectangular box file made of brown heavy cardboard, which is sat on a desktop made of light wood. The box file is open with the lid removed, inside the box is a pile of J 77 divorce case files. On top you can see the front cover of a J 77 file for Jane and Henry Alexander Mawson that has the number 6916 handwritten in black ink at the top.
February 18, 2025 at 9:04 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
As it’s Sexual Abuse and Sexual Violence Awareness Week we’re resharing a blog written in collaboration with our project partner #WelshWomensAid #ITSNOTOK #domesticabuse #LegalHistory tinyurl.com/4y85uy3t
Finding the Words: Descriptions of Domestic Abuse in the Victorian Divorce Court  - A New Methodological Approach to the History of Divorce, 1857-1923
Content Note: Please be aware that this blog post contains descriptions of abuse that readers may find distressing. If Lucy’s story resonates, you can find relevant links and contact details for organisations who can offer advice and support at the end of this blog post.  While this blog does explore a divorce case from the […]
tinyurl.com
February 7, 2025 at 8:46 AM
divorcehistory.bsky.social
Find out what we've been working on recently in our latest blog 'New Year, New Stage of the Project! Our visit to #TheNationalArchives, Kew' hosting.northumbria.ac.uk/divorce_hist... #archives #divorce #Ancestry #legalhistory #genealogy #familyhistory #history
Image Description: The National Archives, Kew. Alt Text: This image is a photograph of the outside of The National Archives at Kew. The building is made of beige brickwork, large glass windows and grey roofs and canopies. In front of the building is a pond filled with water and railings around. At the front of the picture is a walkway with patterns in the stonework, including a circle.
January 31, 2025 at 9:17 AM