ABSTRACT
This short chapter sets out some of the major features of the regulatory, legal and demographic framework of the period that were crucial for the investment activity of women during the nineteenth century. Its aim is to provide a context for the studies that follow which trace the effects of this regime on various kinds of women’s investment behaviour in different parts of Great Britain. It concentrates on three key areas that led to increased opportunities for female investment: changes in company legislation; the Married Women’s Property Acts; and changes in the types of security available. We address each of these in turn.
