The First Feminist? Olympe de Gouges

When: March 4, 2026

Where: Virtual, United Kingdom

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One of the most infamous women in history, Olympe de Gouges, was a gifted author, feminist and political chameleon. Her revolutionary writing and activities during the French Revolution caught the attention of people throughout France and the world.

Although her early life is shrouded in mystery, her writing brought her admiration and notoriety as one of the original thinkers and writers during the French Revolution. Her work titled “The Declaration of Rights of Women” became a blueprint for feminist thinking in France and the wider world.

As an advocate for the French Revolution, she later became disillusioned with the lack of recognition for the rights of women. Her later sympathy with the former Royal family did not go unnoticed by the authorities and she suffered the fate of many during the Reign of Terror with her life cut short on the guillotine.

Join noted historian Sam Dobbie, for this online exploration of the life and works of this unique woman. Through an exploration of de Gouges’ most famous works “The Three Urns” and “The Declaration of the Rights of Women” we will discover why Olympe de Gouges is such an important figure and ultimately why she was deemed to be a political threat, sealing her fateful appointment with the guillotine in 1793.

Tutor: Sam Dobbie

Sam Dobbie graduated with a PhD history from the University of Glasgow. Her specialism is women’s political agency in eighteenth-century revolutionary Paris. However, she also has interests in France in the long nineteenth-century more broadly. She has worked as a PhD student tutor at the University of Glasgow, teaching on courses such as History 2A: The Social and Cultural History of Europe, 1500-2000, France: Nation, Revolution and Empire, 1789-1914 and Becoming an Historian. She has also taught on the Glasgow Caledonian module The Rise of Western Societies, 1789-1914 and provided temporary teaching cover for the University of Exeter on France and Empire, 1756-1830.

This is a five week online course which will be hosted on Zoom.

Wednesday evenings 18.30 - 20.30 for five weeks from Wednesday 4th March to 1st April

Lifelong Learning Dundee is a not for profit provider of education courses for adults of all ages.

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