Beatrix Maud Palmer, Countess of Selborne (11 April 1858 – 27 April 1950) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

political and women's rights activist.

Early life

Born in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

as Beatrix Maud Gascoyne-Cecil, she was the eldest child of future Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, and his wife, the former

Georgina Alderson Georgina Charlotte Gascoyne-Cecil, Marchioness of Salisbury, (; 1827 – 20 November 1899) was the wife of British Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury. The eldest daughter of a judge, her lack of wealth and socia ...

. Maud was not formally educated, but acquired an interest in conservatism and political affairs through her family and the local

Primrose League The Primrose League was an organisation for spreading Conservative principles in Great Britain. It was founded in 1883. At a late point in its existence, its declared aims (published in the ''Primrose League Gazette'', vol. 83, no. 2, March/April ...

Politics

At the 1885 general election, her husband

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, then Viscount Woolmer, was elected as a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

Member of Parliament, and while Maud remained a staunch Conservative Party supporter, she gradually won William to her views, as he first joined the

Liberal Unionist Party The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

split, then later became associated with the far right of the Conservative Party. From 1905, William held various senior posts in

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 ...

, and Maud moved with him, associating herself with various local charities. They returned to the UK in 1910, and she became president of the

Conservative and Unionist Women's Franchise Association The Conservative and Unionist Women's Franchise Association (CUWFA) was a British women's suffrage organisation open to members of the Conservative and Unionist Party. Formed in 1908 by members of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies, ...

. In this role, she toured the country, speaking in support of

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 ...

. While she initially only supported votes for wealthy single women, she later also supported the enfranchisement of married women, arguing that most married women were conservative. She stood down in 1913, and once

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 ...

started, focused instead on promoting patriotism. After the end of the war, the countess was less active, but became a Justice of the Peace in Hampshire, and served as president of the National Council of Women of Great Britain & Ireland in 1920/21.

Marriage and family

In 1883, Maud married William Palmer, Viscount Wolmer. They had three sons and one daughter. * Lady Mabel Laura Georgiana Palmer (6 October 1884 – 15 July 1958); married

Charles Grey, 5th Earl Grey Charles Robert Grey, 5th Earl Grey DL (15 December 1879 – 2 April 1963), styled Viscount Howick between 1894 and 1917, was a British nobleman, the son of Albert Grey, 4th Earl Grey. Grey was born in London in 1879 and was the son of th ...

, and had two daughters. * Roundell Cecil Palmer, 3rd Earl of Selborne (15 April 1887 – 3 September 1971); married, firstly, Hon. Grace Ridley in 1910; had issue. Married, secondly, Valerie Irene Josephine Margaret de Thomka de Thomkahaza in 1966; no issue. * Hon. Robert Stafford Arthur Palmer (26 September 1888 – 21 January 1916) * Hon. William Jocelyn ''Lewis'' Palmer (15 September 1894 – 6 June 1971); married Hon. Dorothy Cicely Sybil Loder in 1922 and had two children. Their eldest son, Roundell, eventually succeeded his father in the earldom as the 3rd Earl of Selborne. Their second son, the Hon. Robert Palmer, was a captain in the Hampshire Regiment and was killed on active service in 1916. Their daughter, Lady Mabel Laura Georgiana Palmer, became Countess Grey as the wife of

. William succeeded as Earl of Selborne in 1895, and Maud therefore became Countess of Selborne.

Legacy

Her name and picture (and those of 58 other women's suffrage supporters) are on the

plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...

of the

statue of Millicent Fawcett The statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square, London, honours the British suffragist leader and social campaigner Dame Millicent Fawcett. It was made in 2018 by Gillian Wearing. Following a campaign and petition by the activist Caroli ...

Parliament Square Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London, England. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and ...

, London, unveiled in 2018. There is a place called Lady Selborne near

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

that was bulldozed away during the apartheid era. Reparations have seen some of the historic occupants reclaiming their land despite local opposition. Many however have taken compensation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Palmer, Maud 1858 births 1950 deaths English suffragists Maud People from Marylebone Presidents of the National Council of Women of Great Britain Daughters of British marquesses

Selborne Selborne is a village in Hampshire, England, south of Alton, and just within the northern boundary of the South Downs National Park. The village receives visitors because of its links with the naturalist Revd. Gilbert White, a pioneer of bi ...

19th-century English nobility 20th-century English nobility 19th-century English women 20th-century English women Wives of knights Children of Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury