Maria Deraismes (17 August 1828 – 6 February 1894) was a French author, Freemason, and major pioneering force for

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

Biography

Born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, Maria Deraismes grew up in

Pontoise Pontoise () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the " new town" of Cergy-Pontoise. Administration Pontoise is the official ''préfecture'' (capital) of the Val-d'Oise ''dépa ...

in the city's northwest outskirts. From a prosperous middle-class family, she was well educated and raised in a literary environment. She wrote several literary works and soon developed a reputation as a very capable communicator. She became active in promoting women's rights."Le Petit Parisien", Obituary, 7 February 1894
Gallica, accessed 23 October 2013 In 1866 a feminist group called the ''Société pour la Revendication du Droit des Femmes'' began to meet at the house of

André Léo André — sometimes transliterated as Andre — is the French and Portuguese form of the name Andrew, and is now also used in the English-speaking world. It used in France, Quebec, Canada and other French-speaking countries. It is a variation o ...

. Members included

Paule Minck Paule Mink (born Adèle Paulina Mekarska; 1839–1901) was a French feminist and socialist revolutionary of Polish descent. She participated in the Paris Commune and in the First International. Her pseudonym is also sometimes spelled Minck. Early ...

Louise Michel Louise Michel (; 29 May 1830 – 9 January 1905) was a teacher and important figure in the Paris Commune. Following her penal transportation to New Caledonia she embraced anarchism. When returning to France she emerged as an important French a ...

Eliska Vincent Eliska Vincent (née Eliska Girard 1841–1914) was a Utopian socialist and militant feminist in France. She argued that women had lost civil rights that existed in the Middle Ages, and these should be restored. In the late 1880s and 1890s she was ...

Élie Reclus Élie Reclus (; 1827–1904) was a French ethnographer and anarchist. Élie Reclus was the oldest of five brothers, born to a Protestant minister and his wife. His middle three brothers, including the well known anarchist Élisée Reclus, all b ...

and his wife Noémie, Mme

Jules Simon Jules François Simon (; 31 December 1814 – 8 June 1896) was a French statesman and philosopher, and one of the leaders of the Moderate Republicans in the Third French Republic. Biography Simon was born at Lorient. His father was a linen-dra ...

and

Caroline de Barrau Caroline de Barrau (1828–88) was a wealthy French educationalist, feminist, author and philanthropist. She became interested in the education of girls, created a school in Paris where her daughter was taught, and encouraged her daughter and other ...

. Maria Deraismes was persuaded to participate. Because of the broad range of opinions, the group decided to focus on the subject of improving girls' education. In 1870 Deraismes founded '' L'Association pour le droit des femmes'' with

Léon Richer Léon-Pierre Richer (1824 – 25 June 1911) was a French free-thinker, freemason, journalist and feminist who worked closely with Maria Deraismes during the early years of the feminist movement in Paris. He edited '' Le Droit des femmes'' (''Women ...

. She helped fund Richer's paper ''

Le Droit des femmes ''Le Droit des femmes'' (''Women's Rights'') was a French feminist journal that appeared from 1869 to 1891. It was founded and edited by Léon Richer, and in the early days supported financially by Maria Deraismes. The newspaper supported many wome ...

''. Following the ouster of

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

, Deraismes understood the new politics of the day meant a more

moderate Moderate is an ideological category which designates a rejection of radical or extreme views, especially in regard to politics and religion. A moderate is considered someone occupying any mainstream position avoiding extreme views. In American ...

approach under the Third Republic in order for feminism to survive and not be marginalized by the new breed of male power brokers emerging at the time. Deraismes's work brought her recognition in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and she became an influence upon

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

activist

Elizabeth Cady Stanton Elizabeth Cady Stanton (November 12, 1815 – October 26, 1902) was an American writer and activist who was a leader of the women's rights movement in the U.S. during the mid- to late-19th century. She was the main force behind the 1848 Seneca ...

, who met her in Paris in 1882. Maria Deraismes was initiated into

Freemasonry Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

on 14 January 1882, when it was still rare for a woman to be admitted into that Fraternity. She joined "Les Libres Penseurs" Lodge, of

Pecq Pecq (; pcd, Pècq; wa, Pêk) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country ...

, a small village to the west of Paris. A year later, she and Georges Martin organized a

Masonic lodge A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...

that allowed both men and women as members. From this co-masonic Lodge developed the Grande Loge Symbolique Ecossaise "Le Droit Humain", which grew into the International Order of Freemasonry

Le Droit Humain The International Order of Freemasonry ''Le Droit Humain'' is a global Masonic Order, membership of which is available to men and women on equal terms, regardless of nationality, religion or ethnicity. History The Order is founded on the an ...

With support of other

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

s such as

Hubertine Auclert Hubertine Auclert (; 10 April 1848 – 4 August 1914) was a leading French feminist and a campaigner for women's suffrage. Early life Born in the Allier ''département'' in the Auvergne area of France into a middle-class family, Hubertine Aucle ...

, Deraismes worked to achieve political emancipation for women. She stood as a symbolic candidate in the elections of 1885. On her death in 1894, Deraismes was interred in the

Montmartre Cemetery The Cemetery of Montmartre (french: link=no, Cimetière de Montmartre) is a cemetery in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France, that dates to the early 19th century. Officially known as the Cimetière du Nord, it is the third largest necropolis ...

. Her complete writings were published in 1895. Much information on her work can be found at the

Bibliothèque Marguerite Durand The Bibliothèque Marguerite Durand is a specialized public library run by the Paris municipal library system. History Created from a massive collection started in 1897 by journalist and activist Marguerite Durand. It was initially located at th ...

in Paris. To honor her memory, a street in

was named for her. In addition, a statue was erected in a small park, Square de Epinettes in the 17th arrondissement. The town square in St. Nazaire was also named in her honor.

Publications

Original editions

* ''Nos principes et nos mœurs'', Paris, Michel Lévy frères, 1868. * ''L’Ancien devant le nouveau'', Paris, Librairie nationale, 1869. * ''Lettre au clergé français'', Paris, Édouard Dentu, 1879. * ''Les Droits de l’enfant'', Paris, Édouard Dentu, 1887. * ''Épidémie naturaliste �mile Zola et la science, discours prononcé au profit d’une société pour l’enseignement en 1880par Maria Deraismes'', Paris, Édouard Dentu, 1888, . * ''Ève dans l’humanité'', Paris, L. Sauvaitre, 1891, . * ''Le Théâtre de M. Sardou'', conference held on 21 January 1875, at the salle des Capucines, Paris, Édouard Dentu, 1875, . * Ligue populaire contre l'abus de la vivisection : ''Discours prononcé par Mlle. Maria Deraismes, à la conférence donnée le 23 septembre 1883, au Théâtre des Nations'', Paris, A. Ghio, 1884, . * ''Œuvres complètes de Maria Deraismes'' ** Volume 1 : ''France et progrès ; Conférence sur la noblesse'', Paris, Félix Alcan, October 1895, . ** Volume 2 : ''Eve dans l'Humanité ; Le Droits de l'Enfant'', Paris, Félix Alcan, January 1896, . ** Volume 3 : ''Nos Principes et nos Mœurs ; L'ancien devant le Nouveau'', Paris, Félix Alcan, January 1897, . ** Volume 4 : ''Lettre au clergé français ; Polémique religieuse'', 1898.

Modern editions

* ''Éve dans l'humanité'', articles et conférences de Maria Deraismes, Préface d'Yvette Roudy, éd. Abeille et Castor, Angoulême, 2008. * ''Les Droits de L'enfant : conférence de Maria Deraismes'', Lyon, Éd. Mario Mella, 1999. * ''Ce que veulent les femmes, articles et discours de 1869 à 1894'', éd. Syros, 1980.

References

Sources

* * *

External links

*
The International Order of Freemasonry for Men and Women, LE DROIT HUMAIN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deraismes, Maria 1828 births 1894 deaths Writers from Paris French political writers French feminist writers French suffragists Burials at Montmartre Cemetery French Freemasons 19th-century French women writers Deraismes family