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In our ongoing series #WomenThatDid, ENTITY profiles inspirational and famous women in history whose impact on our world can still be felt today. If you have a suggestion for a historical powerhouse you would like to see featured, tweet us with the hashtag #WomenThatDid.
NAME: Mercy Otis Warren
LIFETIME: September 14, 1728 – October 19, 1814
WHAT SHE IS KNOWN FOR: Mercy Otis Warren, one of the famous women in history, was a political writer and propagandist during the American Revolution. Few men and fewer women had the education to write on politics; Mercy was the exception to the rule. In the year leading up to the war she published poems attacking royal rule in Massachusetts.
WHY WE LOVE HER: Mercy’s father was an outspoken critic of British rule in the colonies, and because of this she was “raised in the midst of revolutionary ideals.” She had no formal education, but was tutored alongside her brothers and her father encouraged this. She married James Warren on November 14, 1754. Their letters attest to their mutual respect and enduring bond. They had five sons. Together they actively participated in revolutionary political life. Mercy argued, “Every domestic enjoyment depends on the unimpaired possession of civil and religious liberty.” Her circle included Abigail and John Adams, Martha Washington, and Hannah Winthrop. John Adams became her literary mentor.
FUN FACT: Before 1790, Warren’s works were published anonymously, and her collection of poems attacking British rule was thought to be written by a man. However when an original copy was found in the attic of her grandson in 1790, the papers were then attributed to Mercy. After 1790 she published a collection of poems under her own name, unusual for this time, and in 1805, she published the earliest histories of the American Revolution, becoming the first woman to do so – and earning her spot as one of the famous women in history.
