Yes you read the title correct. The first female member of Parliament in Great Britain was a Virginian. I have found that this is a great
hook to lure in students to the suffrage movement in both the US and UK. Nancy Langhorne Astor was born in Danville, VA and later moved with her family to Albemarle County. After marrying the wealthy politician Waldorf Astor after spending time in England she stepped into the world of politics. Eventually she ran for her husbands vacant seat in the House of Commons. On Nov. 28, 1919 she became the first female member of Parliament. The suffrage movement in the US is often considered tame as to that in Great Britain, but students often do not make the connection that the same progressive movements that they are familiar with in US history were also taking place around the world.
In the Fall of 2011 I developed a lesson on the Trans Atlantic Women's Suffrage Movement through the Teaching American History Grant. Click here to access the lesson kit with all materials including primary sources documents and other resources connecting the two movements.
Everyone should read "Five Sisters" by James Fox. It is the story of the five Langhorn sisters who grew up at Mirador in Greenwood, Va. Lady Astor is the middle sister of the group but she controled everyone in her family with her sharp tongue and money. If you like Downton Abby you will greatly enjoy this book
ReplyDeleteSorry to burst the Abermarle bubble, the first women elected to UK House of Commons was Countess Constance Markievicz who was elected in Dec 1918 for Sinn Fein. Like the other elected SF MP they refused to sit in Westminister and went to set their own parliament in Dublin (First Dail). Markievicz became the first female cabinet member as Minister for Labour the following year.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constance_Markievicz
Thank you John for the post. It is great to bring up the first female elected had more Irish ties than English. To clarify, I on purpose did not write elected. Nancy Astor was the first female sitting member of the House of Commons, which I feel is still an interesting achievement for an American.
ReplyDelete