ABSTRACT
The radical campaigner, Margracia Loudon, published her Philanthropic Economy in 1835 in which she attempted to apply a theoretical framework to women’s benevolent activities. She began with a ‘Statement of Theory,’ defining philanthropic economy as ‘a disposition of things based on the principle of goodwill to all, thus necessarily including equal justice, and active benevolence.’ 1 This attempt to apply an intellectual structure to the extensive charitable activities of middle-class women was not unusual. Loudon’s tract is a significant example of a vast literature published in the nineteenth century by a range of women with quite different political and ideological views, who were all seeking to theorise their involvement in charitable activities.
