Margaret Fell (1614-1702), a gentlewoman born in Lancashire, was a founding member and leader of the Quaker movement, a pamphleteer and political lobbyist on behalf of the Quakers, a key figure in establishing separate women’s meetings who in later life married George Fox, renowned as the founder of Quakerism. She is best known as the author of
Women’s Speaking Justified(1666), an early justification of the right of women to preach.
Margaret Askew was born at Marsh Grange, near Dalton, in Furness, Lancashire, in 1614. Her father, John Askew, was a gentleman of some standing in this remote and relatively poor county. In 1632 Margaret married a local gentleman, Thomas Fell (1598/9-1658), and moved to his nearby family home, Swarthmore Hall, which still stands today. They had nine
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Citation: Peters, Kate. "Margaret Fell". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 April 2015 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1497, accessed 22 November 2024.]
