Katherine Laird Cox
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Katherine Laird "Ka" Cox (1887 – 23 May 1938), the daughter of a British
socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
stockbroker and his wife, was a Fabian and graduate of
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
. There, she met
Rupert Brooke Rupert Chawner Brooke (3 August 1887 – 23 April 1915The date of Brooke's death and burial under the Julian calendar that applied in Greece at the time was 10 April. The Julian calendar was 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar.) was an En ...
, becoming his lover, and was a member of his Neo-Pagans. She was also a friend of
Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer and one of the most influential 20th-century modernist authors. She helped to pioneer the use of stream of consciousness narration as a literary device. Vir ...
and the
Bloomsbury Group The Bloomsbury Group was a group of associated British writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in the early 20th century. Among the people involved in the group were Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes, E. M. Forster, Vanessa Bell, a ...
. During
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
she worked with the Serbian Relief Fund, assisting
refugees A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
in
Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...
. After the war, she married the Labour politician Will Arnold-Forster, and became the first woman
magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...
in
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
. She and her husband were instrumental in founding
Gordonstoun School Gordonstoun School ( ) is an elite co-educational private school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. Two generations of British royalty were educated at Gordonstoun, including Prince Philip and his son King Charles III. Musician Davi ...
in Scotland in 1934. Her sudden death at the age of 51 fuelled speculation of involvement in the
occult The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mysti ...
.


Early life

Katherine Laird Cox, known as "Ka", was the daughter of Henry Fisher Cox and his wife, Jane Thompson Laird. Cox was a wealthy stockbroker and Fabian. Ka was raised in "Hook Hill", a house her father had built at Hook Heath, near
Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...
, Surrey in 1893. Ka was the second of three daughters, her sisters being Hester Laird Cox and Margaret Anna Laird Cox. Ka's mother, who had been in poor health, died in 1900 when Ka was only 13. Her father later remarried and had two further daughters, Winifred and Sydney, by his second wife Edith. Ka attended St. Felix School,
Southwold Southwold is a seaside town and civil parish on the North Sea, in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It lies at the mouth of the River Blyth, Suffolk, River Blyth in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths ...
in Suffolk, "a school where girls are treated like sensible creatures", then considered a feeder school for
Newnham College, Cambridge Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...
. Ka's father died suddenly on 19 January 1905, when she was 18, with an estate of £22,000, leaving her and her sisters financially independent. Ka was left in the slightly unusual position for a young woman of her class and time of now being free to live, travel, and love as she pleased. On her father's death, her stepmother sold "Hook Hill" and moved into a smaller house, further down the hill, called "Hook Hill Cottage" (1904), for a further ten years.


Cambridge, Neo-Pagans and Bloomsbury

In 1906, Ka first encountered the
Bloomsbury Group The Bloomsbury Group was a group of associated British writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in the early 20th century. Among the people involved in the group were Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes, E. M. Forster, Vanessa Bell, a ...
, attending some of
Vanessa Bell Vanessa Bell (née Stephen; 30 May 1879 – 7 April 1961) was an English painter and interior designer, a member of the Bloomsbury Group and the sister of Virginia Woolf (née Stephen). Early life and education Vanessa Stephen was the eld ...
's ''Friday Club''
fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creativity, creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function ...
discussions at
Gordon Square Gordon Square is a public park square in Bloomsbury, London, England. It is part of the Bedford Estate and was designed as one of a pair with the nearby Tavistock Square. It is owned by the University of London. History and buildings The sq ...
. She frequently posed for
Duncan Grant Duncan James Corrowr Grant (21 January 1885 – 8 May 1978) was a Scottish painter and designer of textiles, pottery, theatre sets, and costumes. He was a member of the Bloomsbury Group. His father was Bartle Grant, a "poverty-stricken" major ...
, and one of his portraits of her was submitted to
Roger Fry Roger Eliot Fry (14 December 1866 – 9 September 1934) was an English painter and art critic, critic, and a member of the Bloomsbury Group. Establishing his reputation as a scholar of the Old Masters, he became an advocate of more recent ...
's second
Post-Impressionist Post-Impressionism (also spelled Postimpressionism) was a predominantly French art movement that developed roughly between 1886 and 1905, from the last Impressionist exhibition to the birth of Fauvism. Post-Impressionism emerged as a reaction a ...
exhibition in 1912. Ka was described as having a sweet nature and while not conventionally pretty, having a fresh clear-skinned appearance that was appealing. She was said to be an
aesthete Aestheticism (also known as the aesthetic movement) was an art movement in the late 19th century that valued the appearance of literature, music, fonts and the arts over their functions. According to Aestheticism, art should be produced to b ...
, wearing
diaphanous In the field of optics, transparency (also called pellucidity or diaphaneity) is the physical property of allowing light to pass through the material without appreciable scattering of light. On a macroscopic scale (one in which the dimensions a ...
clothing with Peter Pan collars, "a miracle of poise, maturity and charm", who appealed equally to women and men. She made her own clothes, and Gwen Darwin describes her "standing on the very edge of the cliff, her crimson skirt whirling in the wind, her head tied up in a blue handkerchief, and the gulls screaming below". Other accounts describe her as the "lumpy, lovable Ka Cox, who was motherly and very sexy...a heroine who goes through reversals of fortune".


Rupert Brooke and the Neo-Pagans

Later in 1906, Ka went up to
Newnham College, Cambridge Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...
, where she read history, graduating in 1910. There, she joined the
Fabian Society The Fabian Society () is a History of the socialist movement in the United Kingdom, British socialist organisation whose purpose is to advance the principles of social democracy and democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist effort in ...
, which at that time admitted members from the women's colleges and was one of the few places at the university that men and women could meet on equal terms, and which espoused
women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...
and
feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
. At Cambridge, she was considered one of the emancipated "new women". She became the second treasurer of the Cambridge Fabian Society, succeeding
Amber Reeves Amber Blanco White (' Reeves; 1 July 1887 – 26 December 1981) was a New Zealand-born British feminist writer and scholar. Early life Reeves was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, the eldest of three children of Fabian feminist Maud Pember R ...
(co-founder of the society in 1905), where she met
Rupert Brooke Rupert Chawner Brooke (3 August 1887 – 23 April 1915The date of Brooke's death and burial under the Julian calendar that applied in Greece at the time was 10 April. The Julian calendar was 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar.) was an En ...
(1887–1915). Brooke, who had also gone up to Cambridge (
King's Kings or King's may refer to: *Kings: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations. *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'', an 11th-century epic Persia ...
) to read classics in 1906, was a member of the steering committee of the Fabians and President (1909–1910). Brooke was also a member of the
Cambridge Apostles The Cambridge Apostles (also known as the Conversazione Society) is an intellectual society at the University of Cambridge founded in 1820 by George Tomlinson, a Cambridge student who became the first Bishop of Gibraltar. History Student ...
, and after graduating in 1909 had taken up residence in nearby
Grantchester Grantchester () is a village and civil parish on the River Cam or Granta (river), Granta in South Cambridgeshire, England. It lies about south of Cambridge. Name The village of Grantchester is listed in the 1086 Domesday Book as ''Granteset ...
, switching to English Literature and continuing his association with the university, working on a dissertation. In 1910 he had become engaged to
Noël Olivier Hon. Noël Olivier Richards (25 December 1892 – 11 April 1969) was an English medical doctor. She was born on Christmas Day 1892, hence her name, as the daughter of Sydney Olivier, 1st Baron Olivier and Margaret Cox. A cousin was the actor Sir ...
, but broke it off the following year, although continuing the relationship. Ka became part of Brooke's circle, which also included Jacques Raverat and Gwen Darwin, a group that coalesced around him from 1908 till his death in 1915, and which later came to be dubbed the Neo-Pagans. The membership of this group was drawn largely from the two societies in which men and women mixed, the Fabian Society and the Marlowe Dramatic Society (founded by Brooke). Another unifying feature was that many of them had been to school at
Bedales Bedales School is a coeducational boarding and day public school, in the village of Steep, near the market town of Petersfield in Hampshire, England. It was founded in 1893 by Amy Garrett Badley and John Haden Badley in reaction to the li ...
, a progressive
co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...
institution that emphasised the outdoor life. One of the Neo-Pagan rules was comradely chastity "We don’t copulate without marriage" (Brooke), which turned out to be difficult to sustain. The group started to form in early 1908, when Rupert Brooke began putting together a production of Milton's ''
Comus In Greek mythology, Comus (; , ''Kōmos'') is the god of festivity, revels and nocturnal dalliances. Cup-bearer of the god Dionysus, he was represented as a winged youth or a child-like satyr. His mythology occurs only in later antiquity. Duri ...
'' for performance in July. Ka, together with a number of other young women, were drawn in to work on the costumes, while Brooke started to draw up rules, such as asking them to forswear engagement or marriage for six months. Initially Ka formed a relationship with Raverat, and in 1908 they had begun conducting a courtship by correspondence, due to Raverat's ill health obliging him to recuperate in
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. By June 1910, he decided he was in love with her, proposing to her on a number of occasions but she constantly offered only friendship in exchange. Eventually he suggested a
triangular A triangle is a polygon with three corners and three sides, one of the basic shapes in geometry. The corners, also called ''vertices'', are zero-dimensional points while the sides connecting them, also called ''edges'', are one-dimensional ...
marriage with Darwin, but although Darwin initially gave the matter serious consideration, both women eventually rejected the idea, Darwin requesting Ka to discontinue the relationship. Through 1910, Brooke was becoming increasingly frustrated with the way Noël was keeping him at arm's length and thinking increasingly about Ka. By 1911, Brooke had decided he was in love with Ka, who was increasingly pushing Raverat in the direction of Darwin, and Ka and Brooke became involved. She made his clothes for him but like many of the women in Brooke's life resisted a physical relationship, initially but eventually she yielded to him by March 1912. Raverat, noting Ka's progressive attachment to Brooke, and her refusal of his own proposal, became engaged to Darwin. Some light on this complex relationship is provided in Gwen Darwin's unfinished novel (started in 1916 and set in 1906) in which she depicts Ka as a character named Barbara. Brooke wrote incessantly to Ka, who provided him with both existential passion and a calming domestic presence. "When I shut my eyes and whisper your name over, I can feel your hands and face and hair above and about me" (26 January 1912). Her involvement with Brooke placed her in a further complicated series of triangular relationships, with Brooke's simultaneous attachment to both Noël Olivier and her sister
Brynhild Olivier Brynhild Olivier (20 May 1887 – 13 January 1935) was one of four sisters noted for their progressive ideas, beauty and associations with both Rupert Brooke and his Cambridge University, Cambridge circle of Neo-pagans, as well as the Bloomsbur ...
(Bryn), and Cox with
Henry Lamb Henry Taylor Lamb (21 June 1883 – 8 October 1960) was an Australian-born British painter. A follower of Augustus John, Lamb was a founder member of the Camden Town Group in 1911 and of the London Group in 1913. Early life Henry Lamb was bo ...
, who was in turn involved with
Lytton Strachey Giles Lytton Strachey (; 1 March 1880 – 21 January 1932) was an English writer and critic. A founding member of the Bloomsbury Group and author of ''Eminent Victorians'', he established a new form of biography in which psychology, psychologic ...
. After Christmas 1911, Brooke travelled to
Lulworth Lulworth is the popular name for an area on the coast of Dorset, South West England notable for its castle and cove. However, there is no actual place or feature called simply "Lulworth", the villages are East and West Lulworth and the coastal f ...
in Dorset to be with Ka and her friends, including Henry Lamb. On being told about Lamb, Brooke proposed to Ka, but she refused him and told him she loved Lamb. The breakup between Cox and Brooke is thought to have contributed to Brooke's breakdown in January 1912. However Ka and Brooke were together again by the end of the month, living in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
during February. They continued to see each other and in late 1912 she was pregnant and had a
miscarriage Miscarriage, also known in medical terms as a spontaneous abortion, is an end to pregnancy resulting in the loss and expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the womb before it can fetal viability, survive independently. Miscarriage before 6 weeks ...
, or possibly
stillbirth Stillbirth is typically defined as fetus, fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without vital signs, signs of life. A stillbirth can often result in the feeling of guilt (emotio ...
. Ka contemplated marriage, but both Lamb and Brooke were turning elsewhere, Brooke continuing to pursue both Noël and Bryn, but was firmly resisted. There were at least five other women in Brooke's life at this time, Phyllis Gardner, like Gwen Darwin, an art student at the
Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...
, the actress
Cathleen Nesbitt Cathleen Nesbitt (born Kathleen Mary Nesbitt; 24 November 18882 August 1982) was an English actress. Early life and education Kathleen Mary Nesbitt was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, England, in 1888. She was of Welsh and Irish descent.Before ...
, Elizabeth van Rysselberghe, daughter of the Belgian artist
Théo van Rysselberghe Théophile "Théo" van Rysselberghe (23 November 1862 – 13 December 1926) was a Belgian Neo-impressionism, neo-impressionist Painting, painter, who played a pivotal role in the European art scene at the turn of the twentieth century. Bi ...
, Lady Eileen Wellesley, daughter of the 4th Duke of Wellington, and during 1913 a Tahitian woman named Taatamata. After Brooke enlisted on 15 September 1914 following the outbreak of World War I, he continued to appeal to Ka's motherly side (rather than his own mother), constantly requesting equipment and the comforts of home. Like the others, Ka continued to receive correspondence from Brooke right up to his death, the last letter poignantly beginning "I suppose you’re about the best I can do in the way of a widow" (10 March 1915). By the time of her fourth year at Newnham, her social work projects meant she spent increasing amounts of time in London, staying at the flat she shared with her sister Hester in Petty France,
Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...
, which in turn became a gathering place for Neo-Pagans. Although she had aspirations to become a writer, she was also trying to put her socialism into practice by, as Raverat put it "burying herself in the slums". On leaving Newnham in 1910, Ka divided her time between London and the family cottage in
Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...
("Hook Hill Cottage"), where Rupert Brooke was a frequent visitor. Cottage life enabled her to pursue the
Simple Life Simple living refers to practices that promote simplicity in one's lifestyle. Common practices of simple living include reducing the number of possessions one owns, depending less on technology and services, and spending less money. In addition t ...
, favoured by the Neo-Pagans, on her own.


Virginia Woolf and Bloomsbury

Through Brooke's circle, Ka met
Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer and one of the most influential 20th-century modernist authors. She helped to pioneer the use of stream of consciousness narration as a literary device. Vir ...
(then Virginia Stephen), who was associated with the group during 1911 and 1912. The meeting took place at
Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, and public intellectual. He had influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, and various areas of analytic ...
's house near
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
on a weekend in January 1911, through a mutual friend,
Ray Costelloe Ray Strachey (born Rachel Pearsall Conn Costelloe; 4 June 188716 July 1940) was a British feminist politician, artist and writer. Early life Her father was Irish barrister Benjamin "Frank" Conn Costelloe, and her mother was art historian Mary ...
, niece of Alys Russell, Bertrand's wife. Also there was Ray's younger sister Karin Costelloe, who was to marry Virginia's younger brother
Adrian Stephen Adrian Leslie Stephen (27 October 1883 – 3 May 1948) was a member of the Bloomsbury Group, an author and psychoanalyst, and the younger brother of Thoby Stephen, Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell. He and his wife, Karin, became interested in t ...
, and Marjorie Strachey, sister of
Lytton Strachey Giles Lytton Strachey (; 1 March 1880 – 21 January 1932) was an English writer and critic. A founding member of the Bloomsbury Group and author of ''Eminent Victorians'', he established a new form of biography in which psychology, psychologic ...
, all of whom were Newnhamites. Virginia, who unlike her brothers, was deprived of a Cambridge education, was fascinated by these young women graduates. Both women had lost their parents at similar ages, and Virginia had an association with Newnham, her cousin
Katharine Stephen Katharine Stephen (26 February 1856 – 16 June 1924) was a British librarian and later principal of Newnham College at Cambridge University. Early life and family Katharine Stephen was born in 1856 in London, the daughter of Sir James Fitz ...
, being Librarian, Vice-Principal and then from 1911 Principal there, and having had to chaperone the Stephen sisters on their visits to Cambridge. After meeting Ka, who was five years her junior, Virginia described her as being in "the heart of young womanhood", "Miss Cox is one of the younger Newnhamites...She is a bright, intelligent, nice creature; who has, she says, very few emotions". Virginia and Ka soon became friends, with Ka frequently being summoned to help when Virginia became ill. She also became a
confidant The confidant ( or ; feminine: confidante, same pronunciation) is a character in a story whom a protagonist confides in and trusts. Confidants may be other principal characters, characters who command trust by virtue of their position such as ...
e and correspondent of Woolf, who bestowed on her the nickname "Bruin". The Stephen sisters dubbed Brooke and his energetic outdoors circle as " Neo-Pagans", Virginia at least seeing them as a viable rural alternative to Bloomsbury. A further connection between Woolf and Brooke was that her brother,
Adrian Stephen Adrian Leslie Stephen (27 October 1883 – 3 May 1948) was a member of the Bloomsbury Group, an author and psychoanalyst, and the younger brother of Thoby Stephen, Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell. He and his wife, Karin, became interested in t ...
, was among Noël Olivier's many suitors. Woolf thus created a brief connection between the two circles of Edwardian intellectuals, Bloomsbury and Neo-Pagan. Ka had planned to help share Virginia's house on
Brunswick Square Brunswick Square is a public garden and ancillary streets along two of its sides in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is overlooked by the School of Pharmacy and the Foundling Museum to the north; the Brunswick Centre to the we ...
in 1911, but abandoned this under pressure from Brooke who was turning against the Bloomsbury Group, partly because of Ka's attraction to Virginia, describing it as a "
bawdy house A brothel, strumpet house, bordello, bawdy house, ranch, house of ill repute, house of ill fame, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. For legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe t ...
", an appellation he shared with other Neo-Pagans. In 1913, Ka found Woolf unconscious from an overdose of
veronal Barbital (or barbitone), sold under the brand names Veronal for the pure acid and Medinal for the sodium salt, was the first commercially available barbiturate. It was used as a sleeping aid (hypnotic) from 1903 until the mid-1950s. The chemical ...
, and her prompt intervention saved her life. The two women gradually lost touch with each other after Ka married, and Virginia was rather critical of the match, which she deemed unromantic. Ka rightly sensed this, writing to Virginia "I feel you will probably not like Will". Ka was later to become the inspiration for Mary Datchett in Woolf's ''Night and Day'' (1919).


Marriage

After the war, Ka married William Arnold-Forster, a naval officer, in 1918 and they moved to
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, living in a large house called "The Eagle's Nest" at
Zennor Zennor (; (village) or (parish)) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish includes the villages of Zennor, Boswednack and Porthmeor and the hamlet of Treen. Zennor lies on the north coast, about no ...
, on the coast near St Ives. Initially they rented, then purchased the house in 1921, where her husband planted a garden that was considered remarkable. Her husband was active in the Labour Party, where he worked on international relations, publishing and speaking extensively on peace and disarmament. In 1920 she gave birth to their only son, the author and journalist
Mark Arnold-Forster Mark Arnold-Forster, DSO, DSC (16 April 1920 – 25 December 1981) was an English journalist and author. He is best remembered for his book ''The World at War'', which accompanied the 1973 television series of the same name. Early years H ...
(1920–1981).


Death

Ka died suddenly on 23 May 1938 while her husband was away on a peace mission in North America and her death has been surrounded by many myths and legends, largely involving
Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley ( ; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, novelist, mountaineer, and painter. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pr ...
and
witchcraft Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...
. Her estate at the time of her death was £6,427.


Work

In addition to her activities with the Fabian Society, Ka lectured at
Morley College Morley College is a specialist adult education and further education college in London, England. The college has three main campuses, one in Waterloo on the South Bank, and two in West London namely in North Kensington and in Chelsea, the ...
and worked actively for
women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...
together with her sister Hester. Hester had formed a branch of the
Women's Social and Political Union The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom founded in 1903. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership and p ...
in Woking in 1909, and was its secretary till 1913. Another local activist, and Bloomsbury member, was Ethel Smythe. She contributed to ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
''s " Country Diary" column. During the First World War, a Women's International Congress was held in April 1915 at
The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
, in the Netherlands, which was a
neutral Neutral or neutrality may refer to: Mathematics and natural science Biology * Neutral organisms, in ecology, those that obey the unified neutral theory of biodiversity Chemistry and physics * Neutralization (chemistry), a chemical reaction in ...
state. Ka was one of the 156 British delegates (the British General Committee), but all but three were prevented from crossing the North Sea by
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
. In January 1916, Ka answered a call for volunteers from the Serbian Relief Fund to work with refugees in
Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...
. She was awarded the MBE for this work, but declined it. Later she worked at the
Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...
, where she met her future husband, Lieutenant Commander William Arnold-Forster. In Germany in 1933 she worked for the release of
Kurt Hahn Kurt Matthias Robert Martin Hahn (5 June 1886 – 14 December 1974) was a German educator. He was decisive in founding Stiftung Louisenlund, Schule Schloss Salem, Gordonstoun, Outward Bound, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, and the first of the U ...
from the
Nazis Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
, and with her husband helped him establish
Gordonstoun School Gordonstoun School ( ) is an elite co-educational private school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. Two generations of British royalty were educated at Gordonstoun, including Prince Philip and his son King Charles III. Musician Davi ...
in 1934. In Cornwall, she became the first woman to be appointed as a
magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...
.


In popular culture

The circumstances of Ka's death have been the subject of a number of novels.


Notes


References


Bibliography


Books, theses and articles

* * * * * * * * * * ;Rupert Brooke * * ** * * ** * * * * ;Virginia Woolf * ** ''Vol. I: Virginia Stephen 1882 to 1912.'' London:
Hogarth Press The Hogarth Press is a book publishing Imprint (trade name), imprint of Penguin Random House that was founded as an independent company in 1917 by British authors Leonard Woolf and Virginia Woolf. It was named after their house in London Boro ...
. 1972. ** ''Vol. II: Virginia Woolf 1912 to 1941.'' London:
Hogarth Press The Hogarth Press is a book publishing Imprint (trade name), imprint of Penguin Random House that was founded as an independent company in 1917 by British authors Leonard Woolf and Virginia Woolf. It was named after their house in London Boro ...
. 1972. * * *
''excerpt - Chapter 1''
** * * * ''see also'' Night and Day
Complete text
* * **


Websites

* * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Katherine Laird Bloomsbury Group People educated at Saint Felix School Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge Members of the Fabian Society British socialist feminists 1887 births 1938 deaths