Louisa Martindale (feminist)
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Louisa Martindale, née Spicer (25 June 1839 – 15 March 1914) was a British
Life
Martindale was born in
She founded the Ray Lodge Mission Station in Woodford Green in 1865.
Her interest in women's rights dated from 1867. She spoke in Spicer's Monmouth constituency on issues such as the aforementioned admission of women into county councils, wrote lectures on the rights of women and related topics, and supported women's right to preach.[1] In 1904, she attended (with her daughter Hilda) the International Congress of Women in Berlin, where she met Susan B. Anthony; she was a member of the executive committee of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies, and a vice-president of the Central Society.[3] Not just content with political action, Martindale engaged in a practical manner to improve the situation of women. In the 1880s, she opened her house for shop girls on alternate Saturdays, and took a number of underprivileged young women under her wing, among whom was Margaret Bondfield, later the first female Cabinet member of the United Kingdom.[3][4][5]
Personal life
In 1871, she married William Martindale, who was a merchant. Their marriage was short-lived; he died only a few years later. One of their children was Louisa who was a suffragist and surgeon. Another was Hilda, a civil servant and author.[3][6][7] A third daughter died in infancy.[1] After her husband's death in around 1874, Louisa travelled with her young daughters around England and Europe, eventually settling in Brighton. In 1903, she moved to Horsted Keynes in Sussex, where she built a Congregational church.[1]
Death
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Martindale died from pneumonia in Horsted Keynes on 15 March 1914, aged 74.[1]
Legacy
Louisa Martindale's legacy is by now well-recognised. The history of her work in Horsted Keynes, as a founder of the Congregationalist "Free Church" there, as a community leader, and as an advocate of women's religious rights, is maintained in the Martindale Centre, in the heart of the village.[8]
Perhaps her legacy is best symbolized by her brother James Spicer's great-granddaughter,
References
- ^ doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/56459. Retrieved 17 December 2008. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/48204. Retrieved 18 December 2008. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ ISBN 978-0-415-23926-4.
- ISBN 978-0-7876-2542-9.
- ^ Martindale, Hilda (1944). From One Generation to Another, 1839–1944: A Book of Memoirs. George Allen & Unwin. pp. 34, 35, 172.
- ISBN 978-1-135-35534-0.
- ^ John Simkin. "Louisa Martindale". Spartacus Educational.
- ^ Philpot, Chris (2008). "The Martindale Centre described in 1909". HorstedKeynes.com. Retrieved 19 December 2008.
- ^ "Harman made equalities secretary". BBC. 26 July 2007. Retrieved 19 December 2008.
Further reading
- Banks, O. The Biographical Dictionary of British Feminists. Vol. 2. New York: New York UP, 1990. ISBN 978-0-8147-1146-0.
- Levine, Philippa. Victorian Feminism, 1850–1900. Gainesville: UP of Florida, 1989. ISBN 978-0-8130-1321-3.
- Levine, Philippa. Feminist Lives in Victorian England: Private Roles and Public Commitment. Figueroa, 2004. ISBN 978-0-9727625-9-5.
- Martindale, Hilda. From One Generation to Another. London: George Allen & Unwin, 1944.
- ISBN 978-0-8369-8030-1.
- Martindale, Louisa. A Woman Surgeon. London: Gollancz, 1951.
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