Olympe de Gouges (1748–93) was a French writer and social reformer known for her pamphlet Déclaration des droits de la femme et de la citoyenne (Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen), which was published in 1791 and challenged common ideas about women’s role as citizens. The pamphlet was modeled on the 1789 document Déclaration des droits de l’homme et du citoyen (Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the [Male] Citizen) and asserted that women are equal to men in society and, as such, are entitled to the same citizenship rights.
During the French Revolution, Gouges supported democratic ideals and wrote about many social issues, including abolition, divorce, maternity hospitals, and the rights of orphaned children and unmarried mothers. Later she published pamphlets accusing Maximilien Robespierre of tyranny and calling for a plebiscite to allow citizens to choose their own form of government. In 1793 she was executed during the Reign of Terror.