`Women
have won their political independence. Now is the time for them to achieve
their economic freedom too.'



This was the great rallying cry of the
pioneers who, in 1919, created the Women's Engineering Society. Spearheaded by
Katharine and Rachel Parsons, a powerful mother and daughter duo, and Caroline
Haslett, whose mission was to liberate women from domestic drudgery, it was the
world's first professional organisation dedicated to the campaign for women's rights.



Magnificent
Women and their Revolutionary Machines tells the
stories of the women at the heart of this group - from their success in fanning
the flames of a social revolution to their significant achievements in
engineering and technology. It centres on the parallel but contrasting lives of
the two main protagonists, Rachel Parsons and Caroline Haslett - one born to
privilege and riches whose life ended in dramatic tragedy; the other who rose
from humble roots to become the leading professional woman of her age and
mistress of the thrilling new power of the twentieth century: electricity.



In this fascinating book, acclaimed
biographer Henrietta Heald also illuminates the era in which the society was
founded. From the moment when women in Britain were allowed to vote for the
first time, and to stand for Parliament, she charts the changing attitudes to
women's rights both in society and in the workplace.