A Short History of Queer Women

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Firstly, the positive(s?) because, despite my later reservations, I do have positive things (or, really, one positive thing) to say about this book. It covers a vast span of history and, as such, touches on a lot of people, and eras of history in more general at times. This is a major reason why I went with a 2-star review at least initially (by the time you read this, I might have reconsidered): it’s very informative and, as a starting point, gave me a lot of names to research (and a lot of other sources to read too). It didn’t just touch upon the more famous names, but plenty more lesser known ones too. (I have, by the way, listed them all at the end of this review in the spoiler tags, so if you want to know who to look up, but you don’t want to read this book, then they’re there.)

i had the pleasure of meeting Kirsty in person for a pride event Max Minerva’s hosted last month— and i can confirm she is just as lively, funny, and flirty as she is in the book. I really enjoyed reading this book as I found it was a great introduction to queer history and it was told in an accessible and entertaining way. I think hearing Kirsty talk about her intentions with the book really helped to shape my reading experience before I went into the book, not thinking it would cover the vast history of queer women’s lives, but rather would be a small selection of certain stories which Kirsty has been researching since her MA. Without having much space, she aimed to tell intersectional stories to show queer women have always been around.

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Marie may not have been interested in her husband, but she was most certainly into the ladies, and at one time was caught drooling over English writer Mary Robinson’s tits. The incident was later reported in Mary’s memoirs: “She appeared to survey, with peculiar attention, a miniature of the Prince of Wales, which Mrs. Robinson wore on her bosom …”

Just so you know, even though you never asked, I’m Team Sarah, but I think that might have something to do with the fact that Rachel Weisz played her in the movie. Marie and Louis were hardly love’s young dream, and initially got together to form a political alliance between France and Marie’s home country, Austria. The pair were utterly ill-suited. Louis was painfully shy, indecisive and cold. On the other hand, Marie was lavish, outgoing and extremely shallow. They were so uninterested in one another that it took them a whopping seven years to consummate their marriage. As my first foray into learning about queer female history, this book was a flop, I'd advice anyone who wants to learn more about this topic to try literally any other book than this one - and specifically one written by an actual reputable academic or similar who understands the value and importance of REFERENCING. Let me wrap up here then (not least because this is starting to feel less like a book review and more like an essay) and leave you with this, the list of names mentioned in the book and one final point. If the job of a nonfiction book is to make you think, this has certainly done that.

Table of Contents

Yolande was dubbed the most beautiful woman in France. Marie showed her affection by paying Yolande’s debts, moving her into a massive apartment in Versailles and eventually making Yolande’s husband a duke and therefore Yolande a duchess. This encouraged the French media to pipe up again, releasing thousands of pamphlets depicting the two in a range of sexual positions. It’s stuffed full of glorious titbits of info, meticulously researched, deliciously contextualised and done with real flair and humour. Who says lesbians can’t be funny? Here we have much proof, along with excellent historical insights into lives lived fully openly and loving without fear, and Loehr shared the stories of some wild women who lived and loved with urgent, stunning brilliance. A Short History of Queer Women is definitely going to end up on my list of most disappointing reads of 2023 and I'm so sad about that. Sure, lesbianism as a ‘concept’ did not exist in the past, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t use it to refer to certain women. (...) We must also remember that gender theory is a modern tradition, and that applying it to a society that did not function as such is just, well… (...) a bit daft. But it was the nineteen-year-old widow Marie Thérèse Louise of Savoy who was Marie’s personal favourite. Marie was so charmed by Marie Thérèse Louise that she regularly showered her with gifts and made her the superintendent of the royal household, which sounds more like a punishment than anything else.

As we submerge into the depths of winter, it’s only natural that we look for some warm, cosy comfort, and what’s better than snuggling up in a big blanket with some hot tea and a variety of interesting queer books? Kirsty Loehr comes to Bristol to discuss her book A Short History of Queer Women, with Noreen Masud (A Flat Place).Given Loehr’s propensity for labelling AFAB non-women as women, you might be wondering about the reverse: does she recognise the existence of trans women in the past? The answer would be no, at least not up until the Stonewall riots, when she brings up Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. Perhaps this is unsurprising.