Mary, Lady Bailey, (''née'' Westenra; 1 December 1890 – 29 July 1960) was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

aviator. She was known as one of the finest aviatrixes of her time, who '"personally guided a plane from England to the nether tip of South Africa and back"

Early life

Bailey was the only daughter of

Derrick Westenra, 5th Baron Rossmore Derrick Warner William Westenra, 5th Baron Rossmore (7 February 1853, Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland – 31 January 1921, Rossmore Park, County Monaghan, Ireland), known as The Hon. Derrick Westenra until March 1874, was an Anglo-Irish noble, sol ...

, of

Rossmore Castle Rossmore Castle, also known as Rossmore Park, was a castle on the outskirts of Monaghan in County Monaghan, Ireland. It was built in the Gothic style in 1827 and was the seat of the Barons Rossmore, but fell into disrepair in the 1940s when ...

County Monaghan County Monaghan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of Border Region, Border strategic planning area of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town ...

and his wife, Mittie (née Naylor). She had two brothers. She spent most of her childhood in Ireland where she was taught by governesses after running away from school in 1906. Adventurous from a young age, she apparently bought a motorbike in her youth and was gaining a reputation for speeding in cars by 1914.

Aviation

During the

First World War 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 ...

, Mary volunteered as an aviation mechanic and served in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, with the Women's Auxiliary Air Corps which provided female mechanics to the

Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...

. She was given flight instruction in 1926 by

Mary, Lady Heath Mary, Lady Heath (17 November 1896 – 9 May 1939) was an Irish aviator and sportswoman. Born Sophie Catherine Theresa Mary Peirce-Evans in Knockaderry, County Limerick, near the town of Newcastle West. She was one of the best-known women in t ...

(at the time Sophie Eliott-Lynn) at

Stag Lane Aerodrome Stag Lane Aerodrome was a private aerodrome between 1915 and 1933 in Edgware, north London, UK. History The land for an aerodrome was purchased by the London & Provincial Aviation Company (Warren and Smiles – Michael Geoffrey Smiles of Bonni ...

. She was awarded her

Royal Aero Club The Royal Aero Club (RAeC) is the national co-ordinating body for air sport in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1901 as the Aero Club of Great Britain, being granted the title of the "Royal Aero Club" in 1910. History The Aero Club was foun ...

certificate on 26 January 1927, and quickly started a sporting career. She became the first woman to fly across the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...

. On 5 July 1927, she set a world's altitude record of in a two-seater light aircraft category, flying a de Havilland DH.60 Cirrus II Moth, her passenger was Louise de Havilland, the wife of aircraft designer

Geoffrey de Havilland Captain (British Army and Royal Marines), Captain Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, (27 July 1882 – 21 May 1965) was an English aviation pioneer and aerospace engineer. De Havilland, The aircraft company he founded produced the de Havilland Mosquit ...

. Between 9 March and 30 April 1928, Bailey made an solo flight from

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

, flying a Cirrus-engined de Havilland DH.60 Cirrus Moth with an extra fuel tank which gave an endurance of about 10 hours. At about the same time (January to May 1928), Lady Heath was flying solo from Cape Town to the UK. She then made the journey back between September 1928 and 16 January 1929. The return journey involved flying across the

Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (, ; ) was a Belgian colonial empire, Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960 and became the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville). The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Repu ...

, then along the southern edge of the Sahara and up the west coast of Africa, then across Spain and France back home again. It was the longest solo flight and longest flight accomplished by a woman that far. This feat won her the 1929

Britannia Trophy The Britannia Trophy is a British award presented by the Royal Aero Club for aviators accomplishing the most meritorious performance in aviation during the previous year. In 1911 Horatio Barber, who was a founder member of the Royal Aero Club, wa ...

. In 1927 and 1928 she twice won the

Harmon Trophy The Harmon Trophy is a set of three international trophies, to be awarded annually to the world's outstanding aviator, aviatrix, and aeronaut (balloon or dirigible). A fourth trophy, the "National Trophy", was awarded from 1926 through 1938 in av ...

as the world's outstanding aviatrix. She also participated in the ''Challenge International de Tourisme'' 1929, which she completed off the contest, and ''Challenge International de Tourisme'' 1930, in which she took 31st place for 60 participants, being one of only two women. In 1930 she held a seat on the

Women's Engineering Society The Women's Engineering Society is a United Kingdom professional learned society and networking body for women engineers, scientists and technologists. It was the first professional body set up for women working in all areas of engineering, pred ...

Council. In 1931, she became a member of a group of female pioneers for science, the members of which shared her adventurous and determined spirit. That same year Bailey became the first woman in the United Kingdom to obtain a Certificate for Blind Flying. Bailey also attained the rank of Section Officer in the

Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were referred to as WAAFs (), was the female auxiliary of the British Royal Air Force during the World War II, Second World War. Established in 1939, WAAF numbers exceeded 181,000 at its peak ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Contributions to archaeology

Bailey was also able to use her talents for aviation to take aerial photographs of important archaeological sites. She was very likely the first woman to accomplish this during her work in February 1931 on the

Kharga Oasis The Kharga Oasis ( , ) ; , "Oasis of Hib", "Oasis of Psoi") is the southernmost of Egypt's five western oases. It is located in the Western Desert, about 200 km (125 miles) to the west of the Nile valley. "Kharga" or "El Kharga" is ...

project in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. Working closely with

Gertrude Caton-Thompson Gertrude Caton Thompson (1 February 1888 – 18 April 1985) was an English archaeologist at a time when participation by women in the discipline was uncommon. Much of her archaeological work was conducted in Egypt. However, she also worked on e ...

and

Elinor Wight Gardner Elinor Wight Gardner (24 September 1892, in Birmingham – 1980), a geology lecturer at Bedford College, London and research fellow at Lady Margaret Hall, is best known for her field surveys with Gertrude Caton–Thompson of the Kharga Oasis ...

, Bailey was able to take aerial photographs which presented an expansive overview of the archaeological site within just two weeks. These photographs accomplished what would have taken far longer to do on foot. In addition, there also revealed future excavation sites. Indeed, Lady Bailey's valuable contribution to the Kharga Oasis expedition was both innovative and impressive.

Honours

In 1930 Lady Bailey was appointed

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire 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 ...

(DBE) and awarded the Britannia trophy for meritorious performance in the air.

Family

She married the South African mining magnate, financier, and politician

Abe Bailey Sir Abraham Bailey, 1st Baronet (6 November 1864 – 10 August 1940), known as Abe Bailey, was a South African diamond and gold tycoon, politician, financier and cricketer. Early years Bailey's mother, Ann Drummond McEwan, was Scottish by bi ...

on 5 September 1911 at the age of 20. She was his second wife. They had five children including Sir Derrick Bailey, 3rd Bt. (15 August 1918 – 19 June 2009) a fighter pilot cricketeer and businessman and James R A Bailey (23 October 1919 – 29 February 2000) fighter pilot, writer and co-founder of ''Drum'' magazine.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Mary 1890 births 1960 deaths Place of death missing British aviation pioneers British aviators British women aviators British aviation record holders British women aviation record holders Irish women aviators Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Britannia Trophy winners Harmon Trophy winners Women's Auxiliary Air Force officers Women's Engineering Society

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

People from County Monaghan Daughters of barons Wives of baronets Wives of knights