Economic history has been written by men, for men and about men, giving the impression that – until recently – the economy was “just for men”. This lecture rescues from obscurity the many female producers, bankers, and economic revolutionaries who, over the course of human history, have transformed our economic fortunes. It reveals how as women’s economic opportunities have ebbed and flowed, so too have the fortunes of nations, providing a fresh perspective on the “rise and fall” of civilisations and illuminating our own prospects for the future.

This lecture was recorded by Dr Victoria Bateman on the 6th of November 2025 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London

Dr Victoria Bateman is an economic historian and author of books including Economica: A Global History of Women, Wealth and Power (Headline Press, August 2025), Naked Feminism: Breaking the Cult of Female Modesty (Polity, 2023) and The Sex Factor: How Women made the West Rich (Polity, 2019). She has twenty years’ experience teaching economics and economic history at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the Royal Society of Arts.

Victoria was resident economic historian for BBC Radio 4’s “Understand: the economy” and has written for Bloomberg, Times Higher Education, The Guardian, CapX and The Telegraph, offering longer-form perspectives on history and the economy. In addition to her writing, Victoria works behind the scenes as a historical consultant for period dramas.

The transcript of the lecture is available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/women-economy

Gresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham College's mission, please consider making a donation: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/get-involved/support-us/make-donation/donate-today

Website: https://gresham.ac.uk
X: https://x.com/GreshamCollege
Facebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollege
Instagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollege
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/greshamcollege.bsky.social
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@greshamcollege
Support Us: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/get-involved/support-us/make-donation/donate-today

Support the show