“Giving Security to the Youthful Years”: Raising Wards and Managing Noble Property

Guardianship meant hard work, worry, and responsibility for the women who, as single parents, raised their children, supervised their educations, and arranged their marriages and careers. In addition, female guardians managed noble estates, worked to increase the value of the family property, and defended children and property in times of crisis. This chapter argues that guardianship involved noble women in a wide variety of political and economic activities and conferred authority and responsibility on the noble widows who controlled their own property and that of their children, many of whom were the heirs to the family’s titles and estates.