Edith Helen Major,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(15 February 1867 – 17 March 1951) was an Irish educationalist. She was Mistress of Girton College Cambridge from 1925 to 1931.

Early life and education

Major was born in

Lisburn Lisburn ( ; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with t ...

. Her uncle was Sir Robert McCall, a noted Irish barrister. She was educated at

Methodist College Belfast Methodist College Belfast (MCB), locally known as Methody, is a co-educational voluntary grammar school in Belfast, located at the foot of the Malone Road, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1865 by the Methodist Church in Ireland and is one of e ...

and

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college at Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status by the un ...

. She was one of the "

steamboat ladies "Steamboat ladies" was an informal nickname given to a number of female students (estimated at around 720 graduates) at the women's colleges of the Universities of both Oxford and Cambridge, who were awarded University of Dublin degrees at Trini ...

" who received a degree from

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

, because Cambridge was not yet granting women degrees, at the time.

Career

Major was a member of the faculty at

Blackheath High School Blackheath High School is a private day school for girls in Blackheath Village in southeast London, England. It was founded in 1880 as part of the Girls' Day School Trust; the Senior School occupied a purpose-built site in Wemyss Road for ov ...

from 1888 to 1900, and assistant mistress serving under Florence Gadesden. She was

Headmistress A headmaster/headmistress, head teacher, head, school administrator, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. Role While s ...

Putney High School Putney High School, GDST is an independent girls' day school in Putney, London. Often referred to as simply Putney, the school admits students from the ages 4–18. Founded in 1893 it is a member of the Girls' Day School Trust, a union of 26 ...

from 1900 to 1910; and Head Mistress of

King Edward VI High School for Girls King Edward VI High School for Girls (KEHS) is an all-girls public school (United Kingdom), public school located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England. It was founded in 1883 and occupies the same site as, and is twinned with the King Edward's Scho ...

from 1910 until 1925. After World War I she worked with Belgian refugees. Major succeeded Bertha Phillpotts as Mistress of Girton College, Cambridge, serving from 1925 until 1931. She was succeeded at Girton by Helen M. Wodehouse. Major was president of the National Federation of University Women, and president of the

National Council of Women of Great Britain The National Council of Women of Great Britain (NCWGB) exists to co-ordinate the voluntary efforts of women across Great Britain. Founded as the National Union of Women Workers, it said that it would "promote sympathy of thought and purpose amon ...

. She was president of the Association of Head Mistresses from 1919 to 1921. She was an active supporter of the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

. In 1931 Major became a Commander of the British Empire (CBE). She received an honorary

LL.D A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

. degree from

Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

in 1931.

Death and legacy

Major died in 1951, at the age of 84, in Antrim. Another former Girton head, Katharine Jex-Blake, died in the same month, and they were honored with a joint memorial service. Girton College has a painting of her by James Sleator.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Major, Edith Major 1867 births 1951 deaths People educated at Methodist College Belfast Irish women educators Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge Mistresses of Girton College, Cambridge People from Lisburn Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 19th-century Irish educators 20th-century Irish educators 19th-century Irish women educators 20th-century Irish women educators Steamboat ladies