19 May: Nancy Astor

Born on this date in 1879 was Nancy Astor, first woman to serve as a Member of Parliament in the British House of Commons. 10 things you might not know about her:

1. She was born in Danville, Virginia, USA. When she was born her family were quite poor, but her father was a railway entrepreneur who became quite wealthy by the time she was a teenager.
2. Her name at birth was Nancy Witcher Langhorne. She became Nancy Astor when she married for the second time in 1906. Her second husband was Waldorf Astor, later Viscount Astor. Her first, incidentally, was American socialite Robert Gould Shaw to whom she was married for six years.
3. It was Nancy who encouraged her husband to get involved in politics and he became the MP for Plymouth in 1910.
4. When Waldorf Astor’s father died, he inherited the title of Viscount which meant he had to take his seat in the House of Lords and give up being an MP. Nancy decided to stand for her husband’s seat. The constituency was by then known as Plymouth Sutton. She became the first ever British female MP on 1 December 1919, having gained more votes than both her major opponents combined.
5. She wasn’t, however, the first woman to be elected. A year earlier a woman called Constance Markievicz, a member of Sinn Fein, was elected to the House of Commons, but since she was in prison at the time and refused to take the oath and so was disqualified from ever taking her seat.
6. What kind of things did she support and campaign for? Welfare reforms and equal voting rights, in particular lowering the age at which women could vote from 30 to 21.
7. She was also responsible for the first private member’s bill by a woman to become an act of parliament. This was the act which raised the age at which a young person could drink in a pub or bar from 14 to 18.
8. She spent 26 years as an MP, being elected seven times. She retired in 1945. At the time, her popularity was waning because there were rumours of German sympathies. She was known to be anti-semitic and anti-Catholic.
9. She and her husband Waldorf were born on the same day – 19 May 1879.
10. She was opposed to Britain entering World War II, but nevertheless contributed to the war effort by running a hospital for Canadian soldiers.

MY LATEST BOOK!

Killing Me Softly

Sebastian Garrett is an assassin. It wasn’t his first choice of vocation, but nonetheless, he’s good at it, and can be relied upon to get the job done. He’s on top of his game.

Until he is contracted to kill Princess Helena of Galorvia. She is not just any princess. Sebastian doesn’t bargain on his intended victim being a super-heroine who gives as good as she gets. Only his own genetic variant power saves him from becoming the victim, instead of Helena. 

Fate has another surprise in store. Sebastian was not expecting to fall in love with her.

Available on Amazon:

Paperback

E-book