Women's Lives in the Victoria Era ~ Changes That Came After the 1845 County Asylum Act

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During the Victorian era (1837 to 1901) the number of women versus that of men placed in asylums grew dramatically. The 1845 County Asylum Act made it mandatory for counties to provide care for "lunatics". By 1899 nearly 100,000 of these "lunatics" were in these asylums and workhouses in England and Wales. Women often outnumbered men by 50% to 67% in specific asylums. Asylums that once held 100-200 patients grew to hold over 1,000. The reason for a woman's commitment ranged from breaking social norms, emotionalism, menopause, disobedience and post-birth distress. Women sometimes faced longer stays than men, some never left. Doctors diagnosed "female insanity" a lot and the treatment sometimes included gynecological surgeries such as clitoridectomies or, by the 19th century, the removal of ovaries and uterus. This was because the medical field at that time believed that much of a women's problems arose from child baring and reproductive issues. These asylums were frequently overcrowded, and this led to the use of sedatives like chloral hydrate or chloroform and even physical restraints which included straightjackets. Husbands could have a unruly wife committed in asylums without any court proceedings. The formal diagnosis of "hysteria" did not end until 1980.