Maria Pognon née Rengnet (15 February 1844 – 17 April 1925) was a French journalist, editor, feminist, suffragist, pacifist and

freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, who is remembered for her success as a

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

activist in the late 19th century. From 1892 to 1903, she was president of the ''

Ligue Française pour le Droit des Femmes The Catholic League of France (), sometimes referred to by contemporary (and modern) Catholics as the Holy League (), was a major participant in the French Wars of Religion. The League, founded and led by Henry I, Duke of Guise, intended the erad ...

'', and was also a member of the pacifist association ''Société française pour l'arbitrage entre nations''. As a freemason, she was one of the 17 founders of the ''Loge du Droit humain'' (Human Rights Lodge), which was open to both men and women.

Biography

Born in

Honfleur Honfleur () is a commune in the Calvados department in northwestern France. It is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine across from Le Havre and very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie. The people that inhabit Hon ...

on 15 February 1844, Maria Rengnet was the daughter of Julien Rengnet, a slate mason. Brought up in a well-to-do family, in 1873 she married the architect Raymond Pognon, with whom she had a son and a daughter. Her husband died of typhoid in 1876. In 1880, she moved to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where she ran a high-class boarding house. In 1889, after attending the women's rights congress ''Congrès français et international du droit des femmes'', she became an avid member of the women's movement. From 1892, she was a leading figure in the French League for Women's Rights ''(Ligue Française pour le Droit des Femmes)'', becoming president two years later and remaining in the post until 1903. She proved to be an effective leader and public speaker, organizing and presiding the International Feminist Congress (''Congrès Feministe International'') in Paris in both 1882 and 1896 and, together with

Marguerite Durand Marguerite Durand (24 January 1864 – 16 March 1936) was a French stage actress, journalist, and a leading suffragette. She founded her own newspaper, and ran for election. She is also known for having a pet lion. The Bibliothèque Margueri ...

, the 1900 International Congress on the Status and Rights of Women (''Congrès international de la condition et des droits des femmes''), also held in Paris. In 1901, she was one of six women who established the

National Council of French Women The National Council of French Women (, CNFF) is a society formed in 1901 to promote women's rights. The first members were mainly prosperous women who believed in using non-violent means to obtain rights by presenting the justice of the cause. Iss ...

(''Conseil National des Femmes Françaises''). Pognon was also a keen writer, contributing some 70 articles to the women's journal '' La Fronde'' between 1897 and 1900. In 1893, she was one of the 17 women who founded the Droit Humain masonic lodge which was open to both men and women members. In 1905, suddenly becoming short of money, she and her daughter Mathilde joined her son in New Caledonia. Two years later, together with her daughter, she moved to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia, where she became active in the local women's organizations. She died in the Sydney suburb

Double Bay Double Bay is a harbourside eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia 4 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district. It is the administrative centre of the local government area of the Municipality o ...

on 17 April 1925.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pognon, Maria 1844 births 1925 deaths People from Honfleur French journalists French editors French women editors French women writers French feminists French women's rights activists French suffragists French pacifists French socialist feminists Pacifist feminists 20th-century French women

Biography

See also

References