author
Sophia Jex-Blake
1840–1912
A determined doctor and reformer, she helped break open medical education for women in Britain. Her fight at Edinburgh became one of the best-known turning points in the long struggle for women’s access to universities and the professions.
1 Audiobook
Medical Women: Two Essays
by Sophia Jex-Blake
About the author
Born in Hastings, England, in 1840, Sophia Jex-Blake first worked in education before turning to medicine. She became a central figure in the campaign for women to study medicine at the University of Edinburgh, where she and six other students became known as the Edinburgh Seven.
The resistance they faced was fierce, but her efforts helped push forward wider change. She later qualified in medicine in Switzerland and was closely involved in founding the London School of Medicine for Women, one of the first institutions in Britain to train women doctors.
Jex-Blake did not stop at campaigning. In 1886 she founded the Edinburgh School of Medicine for Women and spent years working as a physician, teacher, and advocate. She died in 1912, but her name remains closely tied to the opening of medical education to women in Britain.