Little Sisters of Charity

An offshoot of the Association for the Betterment of the Homeless. They appeared in the wake of the wars, and the end of the ABH, devoted, explicitly, to protecting women. They gained the sanction of the Reformed Church, thus were a genuine religious order, with all the rights pertaining thereto. They had large houses in the Quarter and Peterborough, and were very active in helping poor women in the Quarter and Peterborough and Southbridge. They were not judgmental, and were sometimes aggressive. They made a point of protecting prostitutes, as well as unmarried mothers, runaways, poor girls, the most vulnerable in town. They defended lesbians, and this became a common invective used against them, that they were themselves lesbians. They did good works, but also provided protection. They were a militant organization, in practice if not name - many of them were veterans of the troubles, and they attracted a lot of adventurers, looking for a chance to fight for the good. They were fairly successful at this - they kept the thieves guild honest, and even got along with them mosty fo the time; they served as a significant bulwark against religious orders devoted to oppressing women, such as the Legion or Justice or the Magdalene Society.

History

The Little Sisters of Charity were founded in the early 17th century by women devoted to protecting women from the reactionary religious groups that had sprung up during the Troubles. They qewre built on the ruins of the Association fo the Betterment fo the Homeless - most of their leaders had been part of that organization. They had served well in the Troubles and several of them had friends in high places - this allowed them to organize and win sanction as a religious order of the Reformed ChurchWomen needed protecting in those days. This group was built on the ruin of the ABH, and was led by many of the people who had been in the older organization. They had friends in high places, and they were able to convince the Reformed Church to grant them official sanction as a religious order.
This was important. The church militant had never looked favorably on women - the kinds of aggressive puritan military organizations that appeared during the Troubles and after posed as much threat to women as the more conventional dangers, thieves guilds, randy adventurers and the like. The Troubles created a crisis for women in Waynesburg. Women had gained many rights and privileges in the 16th century, but the chaos of the wars proved an excuse for patriarchal groups to try to reverse those gains. In the 80s and 90s, women were able to attend St. Peter's University openly; they attended St, Michael's unofficially, but in some numbers. This sparked a reaction, but before the war the reaction was fairly limited. Small but rabid organizations trying to return to traditional ways - troublesome, but a bit of a laughingstock, especially in the Quarter. But the wars brought on general collapse, and the reactionaries saw their chance. They took over St. Michael's. The Legion of Justice took over St. Vincent’s. The Inquisition grew powerful. Religious authorities were either reactionary themselves or intimidated by them. The Universalists cracked down on everything - magic, women in authority, homosexuality, everything. The wizard’s guild grew powerful, and it was a vicious, repressive force, banning women from its ranks, actively suppressing women who practiced or studied magic. The universities, the guilds, the government, all grew more oppressive, less open to women in power. Even the Reformed churches tried to rein things in. It was bad.
The Little Sisters fought against it. They weren't alone, but they had the sanction fo the Reformed Church, and that gave them power. They were also heroes of the Troubles - many of their leaders had played a major role int he wars, on the winning side. They were known for fighting for justice and the downtrodden, and they continued that. The Sisters defined themselves as protectors of women who needed protectors, and as defenders of the rights of women generally.

Founding Date

1601

Alternative Names

Sisters, LSC

Parent Organization

Reformed Church

Location

Waynesburg