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In the mid-1800s, a secret society, mainly of women, called the Order of Meonia met at Biddulph Grange, a Victorian mansion in Staffordshire, north-central England. Its purpose was to promote female equality in the most extraordinary way – by using mysticism. Remarkably, the group was founded when a seven-year-old girl, Mary Ann Heath, experienced visions after entering a 1500-year-old burial mound on the edge of the Biddulph estate and found an ancient relic, a small stone heart called the Heart of the Rose said to have the power to alter fate. It was believed to have been fashioned by a mythological Greek queen who ruled the land of Meonia in Turkey and was obtained by the British Celts over 2000 years ago. (Meonia is pronounced me-on-eye-a – A as in cat.)

Mary’s family, the Heaths, and the owners of Biddulph Grange, the Batemans - neighbors and wealthy Staffordshire industrialists - began the group by creating a series of ancient replica shrines in the gardens surrounding the house: an Egyptian tomb, a Chinese sanctuary, a Celtic glen, and a Roman temple. Here, they conducted mystical ceremonies hoping to improve matters for women worldwide. When the group was established in 1851, women in almost every country had virtually no rights - to own property, vote, hold positions of power, or run a business. And, even in so-called democratic countries, husbands were legally entitled to beat their wives.