History of Feminism - 17th Century: Nonconformism, Protectorate and Restoration

The 17th century saw the development of many nonconformist sects, such as the Quakers, which allowed more freedom of expression to women than the established religions.

Noted feminist writers on religion and spirituality included Rachel Speght, Katherine Evans, Sarah Chevers, Margaret Fell, a founding member of the Quakers, and Sarah Blackborow This tendency continued in the prominence of some female ministers and writers such as Mary Mollineux and Barbara Blaugdone in the early decades of Quakerism. 

In general, though, women who preached or expressed opinions on religion were in danger of being suspected of lunacy or witchcraft, and many, like Anne Askew, who was burned at the stake for heresy, died "for their implicit or explicit challenge to the patriarchal order".

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In France and England, feminist ideas were attributes of heterodoxy, rather than orthodoxy. Religious egalitarianism, carried over into gender equality, and therefore had political implications. Leveller women mounted large-scale public demonstrations and petitions for equal rights, although dismissed by the authorities of the day.

Seventeenth-century France also saw the rise of salons, cultural gathering places of the upper-class intelligentsia, which were run by women and in which they participated as artists. But while women were granted salon membership, they stayed in the background, writing "but not for [publication]". Despite the limited role played by women in the salons, Jean-Jacques Rousseau thought them a "threat to the 'natural' dominance of men".

The liberalisation of social values and secularisation of the English Restoration provided new opportunities for women in the arts, an opportunity that women used to advance their cause.

In continental Europe, important feminist writers included Marguerite de Navarre, Marie de Gournay, and Anna Maria van Schurman who mounted attacks on misogyny and promoted the education of women.

By the end of the seventeenth century women's voices were becoming increasingly heard at least by educated women.