Courtesans

Across the 1700s and 1800s, a small number of women rose from poverty to considerable wealth, independence and power, and within that world they shaped their own lives and the lives of those around them. Men often ruined themselves trying to win a courtesan's attention, but what they sought was rarely only physical. She was prized for her conversation and wit at a time when few women received much schooling, and many courtesans were unusually well read and cultivated.

These women were highly accomplished and set the tone for fashion and society. Barred from the Court, they built their own parallel society, the demi-monde, which had its own ranks, manners and rules.