American Revolution | Part 2 | What Abigail Adams really meant by "Remember the ladies" (with Woody Holton)

Abigail Adams made a killing in war bonds (and possibly a bit of insider trading). She used John Adams' diplomatic posting to import luxury goods from France and resell them at an insane markup. She's the reason her civil servant husband, unlike many of the founding fathers, did not die in massive debt. But as a married woman, she could not own anything in her own name or keep the proceeds of her clever investments. Her famous "Remember the ladies" was not, her biographer Woody Holton argues, a call for women's right to vote. Rather it was a plea to free women from the tyranny of bad husbands and from having their fate decided by the lottery of marriage. Meet Abigail Adams, loving partner, flawed mother, financial capitalist and women's advocate.

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🇺🇸 "Abigail Adams: A Life" and "Liberty is Sweet" by Woody Holton
🇬🇧 "Liberty is Sweet" by Woody Holton. "Abigail Adams: A Life" is unavailable in the UK, but you can browse for other books on Women in the American Revolution.
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On this episode:

• Isabelle Roughol - Host
• Woody Holton - Guest

What do you think?

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• Email me: isa@broadhistory.com

Jump to: 

• (00:00) - AUDIO S2Ep2 Woody Holton
• (00:01) - Intro
• (02:22) - Woody Holton's path to Abigail Adams
• (04:18) - Abigail Adams, the capitalist
• (07:30) - John Adams's conservative attitude to money
• (09:35) - How Abigail sold imported goods from France
• (11:46) - Was Abigail guilty of insider trading?
• (12:43) - How a preacher's kid got to be so boldz
• (15:28) - Did the TV show get the Adams right?
• (17:56) - Phoebe Abdee and Abigail's ambivalent attitude to slavery
• (21:53) - Understanding Abigail's racism
• (24:52) - Golden Rule Contradictions
• (25:47) -
• (27:25) - Ad break
• (28:44) - "Remember the Ladies": Abigail's most famous letter
• (31:00) - Abigail was not a feminist
• (32:11) - "The vicious and the lawless"
• (35:50) - She was not advocating for political rights
• (37:19) - The disarming power of humour
• (38:32) - The mutual education of women
• (44:25) - The first First Lady in Washington
• (45:53) - What we don't like about Abigail
• (47:18) - The final will and testament of Abigail Adams
• (51:39) - Legacy and Farewell

Click here to view the episode transcript.