Caroline Middleton DeCamp Benn (13 October 1926 – 22 November 2000), formerly Viscountess Stansgate, was an educationalist and writer, and wife of the British
Labour politician
Tony Benn (formerly 2nd Viscount Stansgate).
Biography
Benn was born Caroline Middleton DeCamp in
Cincinnati, Ohio, the eldest daughter of Anne Hetherington (''née'' Graydon) and James Milton DeCamp, a Cincinnati lawyer.
"Caroline Benn. Obituary"
''The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'', 24 November 2000. Retrieved 10 January 2021. Educated at Vassar College
Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely followi ...
(BA, 1946) and the University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44, ...
(BA, 1948), she travelled to the United Kingdom in 1948 to study at Oxford University and voted for Henry Wallace, the Progressive Party candidate in that year's American Presidential election. She gained an English MA on Jacobean drama (specifically on the masques of Inigo Jones) at University College London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = � ...
in 1951.
She met Benn over tea at Worcester College, Oxford, in 1949, and just nine days later he proposed to her on a park bench in the city. Later, he bought the bench from Oxford City Council
Oxford City Council is the lower-tier local government authority for the city of Oxford in England, providing such services as leisure centres and parking. Social Services, Education and Highways services (amongst others) are provided by Oxfo ...
and installed it in the garden of their house in Holland Park. In June 1999, on their golden wedding anniversary
A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date a wedding took place. Couples may take the occasion to celebrate their relationship, either privately or with a larger party. Special celebrations and gifts are often given for particular ann ...
, she put on the red striped dress she had worn that night. She had four children – Stephen, Hilary, Melissa
Melissa is a female given name. The name comes from the Greek word μέλισσα (''mélissa''), "bee", which in turn comes from μέλι (''meli''), "honey". In Hittite, ''melit'' signifies "honey".
''Melissa'' also refers to the plant '' ...
and Joshua – and ten grandchildren.
Benn devoted her life to comprehensive education
Comprehensive may refer to:
* Comprehensive layout, the page layout of a proposed design as initially presented by the designer to a client.
*Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged appr ...
and was co-founder of the Campaign for Comprehensive Education. She sent her own children to Holland Park School
Holland Park School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form in Holland Park, London, England. In 2013, it has attained academy status. Opened in 1958, the school became the flagship for comprehensive education, and at one time had ove ...
, one of the first comprehensive schools
A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...
in the country. In 1970, she wrote alongside Professor Brian Simon
Brian Simon (26 March 1915 – 17 January 2002) was an English educationist and historian. A leading member of the Communist Party of Great Britain, his histories reflected a Marxian interpretation.
Background and early life
The younger son of ...
, ''Halfway There'' – the definitive study of the progress of comprehensive reform in the UK. This was followed up in 1997 with ''Thirty Years On'', which she co-wrote with Professor Clyde Chitty. Her widely respected and authoritative biography of the Labour founder Keir Hardie was published in 1992.
As well as writing extensively about education, Benn held a number of other positions: She was a member of the Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) was an ad hoc local education authority for the City of London and the 12 Inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990. The authority was reconstituted as a directly elected body corpor ...
from 1970–77, an ILEA Governor at Imperial College London, a tutor at the Open University, a lecturer at Kensington and Hammersmith Further Education College from 1970–96, a governor of Holland Park School
Holland Park School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form in Holland Park, London, England. In 2013, it has attained academy status. Opened in 1958, the school became the flagship for comprehensive education, and at one time had ove ...
for thirty-five years (serving thirteen of those as chair of the governors), and president of the Socialist Education Association.
Benn played an important role in her husband's political career. She was popular with his colleagues and her views were respected. She is personally credited with having suggested the title of the Labour Party manifesto for the 1964 general election; she proposed ''The New Britain'', and it eventually became ''Let's Go With Labour for the New Britain''. She supported her husband's proposals in the 1980s for Labour's leadership and direction. However, she was also able to provide constructive criticism throughout his political career, such as his 1998 ITN documentary.
Benn was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 1996, having been unwell for about a year, but fought the illness for several further years. She became increasingly frail during 2000, having developed spinal metastases
Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spread from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, the ...
, and died at Charing Cross
Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...
Hospital, London, on 22 November 2000.
''A Tribute to Caroline Benn: Education and Democracy'', edited by her daughter and Clyde Chitty, was published in 2004, featuring essays on her life and on educational reform and her life's work.
Publications
* ''Comprehensive School Reform and the 1945 Labour Government'' (1980), History Workshop Journal
* ''Lion in a Den of Daniels'' (1962), a novel
* ''Halfway There: Report on the British Comprehensive School Reform'' (1970), with Professor Brian Simon
* ''Higher Education For Everyone'' (1982)
* ''Keir Hardie: A Biography'' (1992)
* ''Thirty Years On'' (1997), with Professor Clyde Chitty
References
External links
Tribute to Caroline Benn
Caroline Benn
at Google Books
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benn, Caroline
1926 births
2000 deaths
20th-century American women writers
Academics of the Open University
Alumni of the University of Oxford
Alumni of University College London
American emigrants to England
Caroline
Caroline may refer to:
People
*Caroline (given name), a feminine given name
* J. C. Caroline (born 1933), American college and National Football League player
* Jordan Caroline (born 1996), American (men's) basketball player
Places Antarctica
* ...
Comprehensive education
Deaths from cancer in England
Deaths from breast cancer
English educational theorists
People associated with Imperial College London
Writers from Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati alumni
Vassar College alumni
Stansgate
Tony Benn