Margaret Ethel MacDonald (' Gladstone; 20 July 18708 September 1911) was a British

feminist 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 ...

social reformer Reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary movements which reject t ...

, and wife of Labour politician

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...

from 1896 until her death from blood poisoning in 1911.

Biography

Margaret Gladstone was born on 20 July 1870 in Kensington, London, to

John Hall Gladstone John Hall Gladstone FRS (7 March 1827 – 6 October 1902) was a British chemist. He served as President of the Physical Society between 1874 and 1876 and during 1877–1879 was President of the Chemical Society. Apart from chemistry, where o ...

, later

Fullerian Professor of Chemistry The Fullerian Chairs at the Royal Institution in London, England, were established by John 'Mad Jack' Fuller. Fullerian Professors of Chemistry * 1833 Michael Faraday * 1868 William Odling * 1874 John Hall Gladstone * 1877 James Dewar * 1923 Wi ...

at the

Royal Institution The Royal Institution of Great Britain (often the Royal Institution, Ri or RI) is an organisation for scientific education and research, based in the City of Westminster. It was founded in 1799 by the leading British scientists of the age, inc ...

, and his second wife Margaret (nee King), a niece of

Lord Kelvin William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin (26 June 182417 December 1907), was a British mathematician, Mathematical physics, mathematical physicist and engineer. Born in Belfast, he was the Professor of Natural Philosophy (Glasgow), professor of Natur ...

. Her mother died soon after she was born. She was educated both at home and at

Doreck College Chad Joseph Doreck (born November 19, 1978) is an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is the voice of Crackle for Rice Krispies, and was the voice of the supporting role of Brad on the Nickelodeon series, '' My Life as a Teenage Robot''. In 2 ...

Bayswater Bayswater is an area in the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

. Early in adulthood she was involved in voluntary

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

, including visits for the

Charity Organisation Society The Charity Organisation Societies were founded in England in 1869 following the ' Goschen Minute' that sought to severely restrict outdoor relief distributed by the Poor Law Guardians along the lines of the Elberfeld system. In the early 1870s, ...

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...

. Her half sister was Isabella Holmes, who later became a noted social reformer, and an expert on London's burial grounds. By 1890, Margaret was a keen socialist, influenced by the

Christian socialists Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe capitalism to be idolatr ...

and 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 ...

. In 1894, she joined the

Women's Industrial Council The Women's Industrial Council (WIC) was a British organisation active from 1894 to about 1917, promoting the interests of women at work. Federation The organisation originated as the Women's Trade Union Association, founded by Clementina Black i ...

, serving on several committees and organising the enquiry into home work in London, which was published in 1897. She met Ramsay MacDonald through this work in 1895 and they married in 1896. She was comfortably off, although not wealthy. This allowed them to indulge in foreign travel, visiting

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1897,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

in 1902,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in 1906, and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

several times. After her marriage she was concerned about the need for skilled work and training for women and played a key part in establishing the first

trade schools A vocational school (alternatively known as a trade school, or technical school), is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary or post-secondary education designed to provide vocational ...

for girls in 1904. She continued this work until 1910. She was a member of the

National Union of Women Workers 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 served on the executive of the

National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies The National Union of Women Suffrage Societies (NUWSS), also known as the ''suffragists'' (not to be confused with the suffragettes) was an organisation founded in 1897 of women's suffrage societies around the United Kingdom. In March 1919 it w ...

, and she was opposed to militant action. In 1906 she became involved in the formation of the

Women's Labour League The Women's Labour League (WLL) was a pressure organisation, founded in London in 1906, to promote the political representation of women in parliament and local bodies. The idea was first suggested by Mary Macpherson, a linguist and journalist wh ...

, serving as chair until her death in 1911.Cathy Hartley, ''A Historical Dictionary of British Women'', p. 316 The marriage to Ramsay MacDonald was a very happy one, and they had six children, including

Malcolm MacDonald Malcolm John MacDonald (17 August 1901 – 11 January 1981) was a British politician and diplomat. He was initially a Labour Party (UK), Labour Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP), but in 1931 followed his father ...

(1901–1981), who had a prominent career as a politician, colonial governor, and diplomat;

Ishbel MacDonald Ishbel Allan MacDonald (2 March 1903 – 20 June 1982) was the daughter of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Ramsay MacDonald and his wife Margaret MacDonald née Gladstone. Margaret's death in 1911 – a year after their son David had died ...

(1903–1982), official hostess to her father and

Sheila MacDonald Sheila Ramsay Lochhead (; 7 December 1910 – 22 July 1994) was a hostess, prison visitor and writer. In 1924 her widowed father, Ramsay MacDonald, became Britain's Prime Minister. Her sister Ishbel MacDonald, became his political hostess and t ...

who had political ambitions. After Margaret MacDonald's death on 8 September 1911, Ramsay MacDonald became

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister Advice (constitutional law), advises the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign on the exercise of much of the Royal prerogative ...

three times but did not remarry. Ishbel and Sheila served as his hostess at functions.

Monument

The '' Memorial to Margaret MacDonald'' was said to be designed by her husband, and sculpted by Richard Reginald Goulden. It was unveiled in 1914 in the garden of

Lincoln's Inn Fields Lincoln's Inn Fields is located in Holborn and is the List of city squares by size, largest public square in London. It was laid out in the 1630s under the initiative of the speculative builder and contractor William Newton, "the first in a ...

, London.

Biography

Monument

References

Further reading