The dangers of pregnancy & childbirth
Researching pregnancy in the Georgian/Regency era is no easy feat. Despite the number of large families, it wasn't a subject that was openly talked about. At the time, the chance of a woman dying during childbirth was 20% and the most common cause of death for women. So it is quite impressive that Mrs Cassandra Austen gave birth to eight children and lived to see them all grow up. Unfortunately two of Jane's brothers lost their wives in childbirth - Elizabeth Bridges, wife of Edward Knight, and Mary Gibson, wife of Frank Austen.
It was important for men to father sons so that they could inherit lands and wealth (if applicable). As we see in Pride and Prejudice, Mr and Mrs Bennet have five daughters and as such Mr Bennet's estate is entailed away to his distant cousin Mr Collins instead of his daughters.
It was frowned upon by the church to use any kind of birth control. Condoms did exist at the time. They were either made of linen soaked in a chemical solution or the lining of animal instestines. Though this was more commonly used in non-respectable establishments shall we say! Some couples did practice abstinence if they had too many children to feed and clothe. Female menstrual cycles were not fully understood at the time, but breastfeeding can cause lactatal amenorrhea (absence of periods), which meant that a woman couldn't get pregnant again quickly. Mrs Cassandra Austen breastfed her children for 6 to 8 months before sending them to a wet nurse in a nearby village. It was also a common belief that having sex whilst lactating would harm the mother.
Before giving birth, women would enter a "lying-in room", which the husband was commonly banned from entering. The room would be kept warm and dark, which they believed would prevent the risk of infection, which was common. It would vary the amount of lie in time that a woman would have before the birth, sometimes days or even weeks. She would be attended by midwives, but unlike today, they usually were not well trained.
Pain relief wasn't an option for women at the time, so a "natural" birth would be the only option available. Purging or bleeding were a common treatment at the time, but this could prove fatal for some mothers, particularly those that were anaemic. Intervention during childbirth became more common after Princess Charlotte, the daughter of the Prince Regent, died after a 50 hour labour and a stillbirth. Her doctor was blamed (who sadly later committed suicide) and the return of female midwives was called for.
In 1773, the use of forceps was introduced but after the death of Princess Charlotte, their use was more widely promoted as it was believed they could have saved her and her child. Caesarean sections did exist at the time, but because of the unhygenic conditions, overheated rooms and no anaesthetic, the mother would never survive. It was only performed to save the child when the mother was dead or dying already.
Sadly the rate of infant mortality was not good either. A staggering figure published in Domestic Medicine in 1784, showed that almost one half of children born in Great Britain died under the age of 12. The Austen's however had good genes as, excepting Jane who died when she was 41 and her eldest brother James who died aged 54, they all lived above the age of 70.
As commonly known, Jane never married and some believe that it was her fear of childbirth that prevented her from entering into it. However, this is unlikely for someone who believed in love. Reading about the terrible conditions at the time, I'm thankful that have the medical advancements that we do today!
