Widows in the Court of Exchequer: Allowed Power and Legal Redress in England, 1620-1670

Whiteoak, Alice Elizabeth

Abstract

Within the rich and growing historiography of women and the law, the equity side of the Court of Exchequer is long overdue a detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis. In the same way as the Court of Chancery has become an appreciated avenue for female legal redress, so too should the Court of Exchequer. This thesis presents quantitative findings taken from a purpose-built database of 3,968 depositions, to show how the Court was used by men and women over a fifty-year period across England. Combining this with qualitative findings, nineteen cases involving widowed female litigants appearing as plaintiffs and defendants are critically analysed. Using court narratives found in bills of complaint, answers, and depositions, as well as decrees, orders and wills, this thesis examines the expression and practice of women’s legal identity in a patriarchal society and considers how their status as widows allowed them to protect, claim and manage what they had been left, despite their only qualification being that they had outlived a husband. These widows were drawn to the law out of necessity or choice and appeared as equals to all in the eyes of equity law. This thesis re-examines widowhood and the freedom of this life stage, arguing that not only was the independence of widowhood a contradiction of patriarchy, but it was an intentional contradiction. The allowed power that widows were given was not their own – it originated from their husband and served a purpose in patriarchal society. To think of widows as free obscures the influence of patriarchy, and yet their independence and proof of female capability were undeniable. This thesis therefore provides a nuanced approach to understandings of both widowhood and patriarchy in early modern England, and in doing so brings the Court of Exchequer to life.

Citation

Whiteoak, A. E. (2022). Widows in the Court of Exchequer: Allowed Power and Legal Redress in England, 1620-1670. (Thesis). University of Hull. https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4912648

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Nov 12, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 2, 2025
• Keywords: History
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4912648
• Additional Information: Department of History; University of Hull
• Award Date: Jun 1, 2022