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I.THEPREGNANCIESANDCONFINEMENTS
thatsheushouldnotonlybehiswifebutintheeighthmonthofmypreg-
nancy,onthissameday,thisyear!IwashappyonthatdaywhenIsaw
him,buthowfarhappierIamnow!”63
Foraninexperiencedwoman,thefrstsignsofpregnancywerenot
easytodetect.DrPyeChavasse’sAdvicetoaWifeontheManagementofher
ownHealth.AndontheTreatmentofsomeoftheComplaintsIncidentaltoPreg-
nancy,Labour,andSuckling(1844)gavethesignsofpregnancy,inorderof
appearance,as:uceasingtobeunwell”(i.e.menstruate);morningsickness,
painfulandenlargedbreasts;uquickening”(whichwouldnothavebeen
feltuntilthenineteenthweek);anincreaseinweight.Thatmeantthat-
relyingsolelyuponthisbook-nowomancouldbecertainshewaspreg-
nantuntiltheffthmonth.64InthecaseofQueenVictoriaitisdiffcultto
judgewhomighthavebeenheradvisoronthesematters.TheDuchessof
Kentwashardlyonspeakingtermswithherdaughter,BaronessLehzen
wasanagedspinster,andtheQueen’shalf-sisterFeodora-alreadyan
experiencedmother-wastoofaraway.
BytheendofApril1840,itwasobviousthattheQueenwasexpect-
ingachild.Sheherself,followingtheevolutioninterminology,wrote
ofubeinginaninterestingcondition”65ratherthanbeingupregnant”66or
uwithchild”.Indeed,asearlyas1791acorrespondentintheGentleman’s
Magazinestated:
Allourmothersandgrandmothers,usedinduecourseof
timetobecomewithchildorasShakespearehasit,round
wombed67…butitisverywellknownthatnofemale,above
thedegreeofchambermaidorlaundress,hasbeenwith
childthesetenyearspast…norissheeverbroughttobed,
ordelivered,butmerelyattheendofninemonths,hasan
accouchementantecedenttowhichsheinformsherfriends
thatatacertaintimeshewillbeconfned.68
In1818,LadySusanO’Briannotedhowthelanguagehadchangedsince
1760:uNoonecansaytbreeding’ortwithchild’ortlying-in’withoutbeing
thoughtindelicate.tInthefamilyway’69and‘confnement’70havetaken
theirplace.”
71
Withtime,FrencheuphemismsreplacedEnglishexpressions,
sothewomanbecameenceinte72orenduredagrossesse,73afterwhichshe
eitherhadafaussecoucheoranaccouchement.
74
QueenVictoria,whentalk-
ingaboutothers,sometimesusedthewordtaccouchement’
75
ortlying-in’,
76
butwhentalkingaboutherselforherdaughtersusuallyusedthephrases
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