Thomas Gisbourne (1758 - 1846) was an Anglican minister and one of the Clapham Sect, who fought for the abolition of the slave trade in England. He was a close friend of William Wilberforce and Hannah More.

Born in 1758, Thomas was the son of John Gisborne and Anne Bateman. He was educated at Harrow and entered St John's College, Cambridge in 1776, where he became the first Chancellor's medallist in 1780. He was curate of Barton-under-Needwood, 1783; prebendary of Durham, 1823 and 1826; he married Mary Babington in 1784, his brother-in-law being Thomas Babington.

He wrote about the role of women, particularly in An Enquiry into the Duties of the Female Sex, (1797), where he argued that women's subordinate nature is innate. He commended the traditional feminine virtues and the domestic role for women. Law, politics and government, scholarship, philosophy, navigation and war all "demand the efforts of a mind endued with the powers of close and comprehensive reasoning, and of intense and continued application" and are thus best left to men.

In spite of this, he shared the view that women should not conceal their intellectual abilities, and that parents should never force their daughters into marriage.

Published Works

Principles of Moral Philosophy, (1789)
Walks in a Forest, (1794)
An Enquiry into the Duties of the Female Sex, (1797)
A Familiar Survey of the Christian Religion and of History, (1810)
Sermons Volume 1, (1814)