Giving birth but fearing death: Perceptions and precautions in Scotland in the early modern period.

It may often be assumed that, historically, women's awareness of the possibility of maternal or 'childbed' death made them fearful of childbirth. This paper considers, in historical terms, the perceptions of the childbearing woman in relation to maternal death, especially when approaching labour. It addresses and counters the view that has been advanced suggesting that the possibility of maternal death was not significant to the childbearing woman in the early modern period. To address the neglect of this topic in the literature on Scotland, the argument will be supported by documentary evidence from Scottish sources. This evidence shows that childbearing women responded to these anxieties by making appropriate preparations for labour, birth and the postnatal period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]