What Aid? Certainly Not “Women’s Aid”: Social Work and Abused Wives in Scotland, c1850-1950
Annmarie Hughes, University of Glasgow
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Summary
– Victorian era: politicians would say low levels of divorce, domestic abuse and family breakdown
- Far from reality
- Rural areas had no. of single parent families comparable or higher than today
- Victims of domestic abuse
- Single parents struggled to survive
- Social services only got involved if a woman was not supported (aliment)
- Even with a legal separation still a dependent of the husband
– Agenda
- Created more harm
- Created more family breakdown
– Content
- 1992-1996 Experiences at marriage between the wars in Scotland
- No help, no shelters, no aid, little support available from family members
- 3-3,500 men prosecuted for an assault by a husband on a wife
- 1900, 5,000 husbands prosecuted
- Still masks the real figures
- Scottish press portrayed women as the provokers
- Bad wives, bad reputations
- Women also relevant for fear of retaliation
- Insulted in court
- Stalked by husband; most men unlikely to receive a custodial sentence
- Arrested with breach of the peace not assault
- Could not pay by installment of fine so men had to go to jail unable to pay
- Installment of fine instituted after WWII
- Fines were burdens on wives
- Puts women off
- Fines were burdens on wives
- Probation sentence introduced in early 20th c.
- Women could always get a legal separation on the ground of cruelty
- But majority separated informally or lived with another man due to strict cruelty clauses
- Sustained, life threatening, cumulative
- Recognised mental abuse and economic harm and third party harm and sexual abuse (but not rape (1980)
- But majority separated informally or lived with another man due to strict cruelty clauses
- Criminal Evidence Act allowed wives to be witnesses in a Civil Court
- Clive argues cost of divorce not as expensive in Scotland but a woman would need at least £10 to initiate a legal separation (usually £50-100)
- Even more when contested
- Some parishes just refused to help women
- Did not want to break up the family
– 20th Century
- 1907 Sheriff Court Act
- Allowed women to go to any court to get a separation à led to an increase in number of women seeking separation orders (majority cruelty cases)
- Call for establishment of family courts
- Family quarrels
- Not to undermine institution of marriage
- Societies to assist families
- Parish councils and SPCC (1880’s)
- Assistance for deserted women (including husbands who drank)
- SPCC—did not want to break up the home but prevent families from harming the community
- Wanted to reunite families
- Pledge signing
- Wanted to reunite families
- Churches also involved in family problems
- Also forced families to reconcile as the only way they would assist
- Dealt mostly with economic abuse
- 19th century equivalent of child support agency (20th c)
- Many women were experiencing poverty which effected the children and then agencies got involved, but still hoped for reconciliation
- Deserted, abused women were seen as burdens on the society and their children were thought to become prostitutes and vagabonds
- These organizations would not support divorce and thought working-class women should expect violence in their marriage
- Parish councils and SPCC (1880’s)
- No divorce led to an increase in one-parent families
- Lack of financial support led to more family breakdown