Midwives, Society and Childbirth is the first book to examine midwives' lives and work in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries on a national and international scale. Focusing on six countries from Europe, the approach is interdisciplinary with the studies written by a diverse team of social, medical and midwifery historians, sociologists, and those with experience in delivering childbirth services. Questioning for the first time many conventional historical assumptions, this book is fundamental to a better understanding of the effect on midwives of the unprecedented progress of science in general and obstetric science in particular from the late nineteenth century. The contributors challenge the traditional bleak picture of midwives' decline in the face of institutional obstetrics, medical technology, and the growing power of the medical profession, while stressing the importance of regional influences and locality. Dr Anne Marie Rafferty, Philadelphia, Dr Hilary Marland, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, Dr Irvine Louden, Oxfordshire, Joan Mottram, Wellcome Unit for the History of Medic

'This book will be of interest to anyone working in the field and to students undertaking courses in womens studies or social/medical history.' - Edith Hillan, Nursing Times, November 1997

'It is essential reading for every midwife, student midwife, midwifery manager and educationalist.' - Jane Podkolinski, Midwifery Digest, December 1997

Hilary Marland, Anne Marie Rafferty