Early feminism: England, from 1792 onward

Although there were earlier antecedents, I would personally place the origins of modern feminism in 1792 England with the publication of "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman" by Mary Wollstonecraft. This is doubtless arbitrary, but it seems to me that this was about the time and place that modern feminist ideas began, particularly because within the next generation there were several other authors following up on these ideas rather than one notable author every few generations as had been more common previously. Besides, something seems right about the grandmother of modern feminism also being the mother of the author of "Frankenstein". ;-)

We could just call her the grandmother of monsters. ;-)

In any case, the raising of the age of consent in the latter part of the 19th century has several origins, but the early feminist movement and certain varieties of Christian moralism were certainly the major influences. So I do agree that this was about attacking men for being men in the name of protecting a false feminine virtue, and as such was definitely more about matriarchy than a fictional patriarchy which simply did not exist in England at that time. England at that time had a reputation in Europe for listening to its women too much, even as the U.S. had the same reputation in England, and Europe had the same reputation in the rest of the world.

However it is also important to recognize that this result probably would not have happened without the advent of certain varieties of Christian moralism about the same time. But it is the combination of the two which seems to have been so disastrous. Without feminists advocating a false sense of inherent feminine virtue, Christian moralists would have placed at least half the blame for what they called sins on the females involved, but without that variety of Christian moralist these might not have been called sins at all, or at the very least considered somewhat unimportant sins.