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39-427: Despard may refer to: Charlotte Despard , British suffragette and Sinn Féin activist Edward Marcus Despard , Irish-born British colonel turned revolutionary George Despard , character John Despard 1745–1829, British General Despard, West Virginia Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with

78-684: A finishing school in London. With two of her sisters, she travelled in Germany and Paris (there in 1870 at the start of the Franco-Prussian War ). The same year, she married businessman Maximilian Carden Despard, and travelled with him across his business interests in Asia, including India. He died at sea in 1890; they had no children. Despard wore black for most of the rest of her days. Despard's first novel, Chaste as Ice, Pure as Snow

117-607: A 'tireless and popular leader.. a striking figure with her thin sharp features and grimly tight lips' In 1907, Despard was one of the women who formed the Women's Freedom League (WFL) whose motto was ' Dare to be Free ', after disagreements over the autocratic way in which the WSPU was run. She was an active Catholic and on Ash Wednesday in 1907, she went with others to the House of Commons and got arrested. In establishing WFL, Despard

156-417: A Catholic priest who called women 'the basic force of the world' but noted that women 'still did not have the equality with men that there should be as regards the right to work', and went on to condemn slums and poverty (quoting Lenin ) and condemned fascism and hatred. She urged women to act to help 'realise the worth of the human being, take life out of bondage all over the world." She died, aged 95, after

195-467: A decade after these schools had closed, mostly by the end of the 20th century, public relations and image consultancy firms started to appear in London offering largely 1- or 2-day finishing courses and social skills at commercial rate fees which were proportionately far higher that those charged by the schools. The old finishing schools were stand-alone organizations that lasted 15–50 years and were often family run. Curricula varied between schools based on

234-708: A fall at her new house, Nead-na-Gaoithe , Whitehead , County Antrim , near Belfast in November 1939. She was buried in the Republican Plot at Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin. On death, she was described as someone who "brought home to English people an understanding of what womenhood could be capable of when inspired by fiery ardour for what it truly believed to be a great cause for humanity". Sylvia Pankhurst remembered her "fine spirit" and said of Despard "She

273-419: A health clinic, soup kitchen for the unemployed, and youth and working men's clubs in this slum area. Vere Hinton, the ward of Despard, and a Mrs M Wells, nee Peters, were interviewed about Despard's involvement in this work, including at the local school, and the role of 'Despard House', as part of Brian Harrison 's Suffrage Interviews project, titled Oral evidence on the suffragette and suffragist movements:

312-484: A preparation for entry into society. The name reflects the fact that it follows ordinary school and is intended to complete a young woman's education by providing classes primarily on deportment , etiquette , and other non-academic subjects. The school may offer an intensive course, or a one-year programme. In the United States, a finishing school is sometimes called a charm school . Graeme Donald claims that

351-594: A revival of the finishing school, although the business model was radically altered. In the early 20th century, Switzerland was known for its private finishing schools. Most operated in the French-speaking cantons near Lake Geneva . The country was favoured by parents and guardians because of its reputation as a healthful environment, its multi-lingual and cosmopolitan aura, and the country's political stability. The finishing schools that made Switzerland renowned for such institutions included: About

390-509: The 1918 General Election when then aged 74; however, her anti-war views were unpopular with the public and she was defeated. She was a vegetarian and anti-vivisectionist . She was associated with London Vegetarian Society , becoming president in 1918 and vice-president in 1931, She supported the Save the Children charity and Indian independence movement. Despard was a board member of

429-805: The Communist Party of Great Britain . Despard was imprisoned four times for her suffragette activism, and she continued campaigning for women's rights, poverty relief and world peace into her 90s. Charlotte French was born on 15 June 1844 in Edinburgh and lived as a child in Edinburgh and Campbeltown in Scotland and from around 1850 in England at Ripple, Kent , her father was Irish Captain John Tracy William French of

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468-492: The Royal Navy (who died in 1855) and her mother Margaret French, née Eccles (died suffering from insanity in 1865). She was educated by a series of governesses and intermittently at private school, but complained in later life that her schooling was 'slipshod' and 'inferior'. Despard was always dubious of authority and ran away from home at the age of 10 getting a train to London "to become a servant". After her father died,

507-714: The Social Democratic Federation and the Independent Labour Party . In 1906 she joined the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies and later was imprisoned four times for activism on women's franchise, twice in Holloway gaol . She had become frustrated with the lack of progress from NUWSS and she joined the more radical Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). She became one of their recognised orators and described as

546-531: The 1960s, many of these schools have closed as a result of financial difficulties. These stemmed from changing societal norms, which made it easier for women to pursue academic and professional paths. The Finishing School , a 2004 novel by Scottish author Muriel Spark , concerns 'College Sunrise', a present-day finishing school in Ouchy on the banks of Lake Geneva near Lausanne in Switzerland. Unlike

585-480: The Brian Harrison interviews. Despard lived above one of her welfare shops in one of poorest areas of Nine Elms during the week and she converted to Roman Catholicism . She worked with women and girls clubs. In 1894, she stood and was elected as a Poor Law Guardian for Lambeth poor law union , and remained until she retired from the board in 1903. Despard became good friends with Eleanor Marx and

624-711: The Earl of Ypres, but they were later reconciled. During the Irish War of Independence , together with Maud Gonne and others, she formed the Women's Prisoners' Defence League to support republican prisoners. She was classed as a dangerous subversive under the 1927 Public Safety Act by the Irish Free State government for her opposition to the Anglo-Irish Treaty and her house was occasionally raided by

663-567: The Ladies' Gallery in the Palace of Westminster ; and was one of those leading a " no taxation without representation " campaign, during which her household furniture was repeatedly seized in lieu of fines, along with Virginia Crawford , as she realised that the women's movement groups had to work together at times as well. She led the delegation at the Women's Coronation Procession (1911). In 1909, she met Mohandas Gandhi in London, in her role in

702-717: The Women's Freedom League. In 1912, at the seventh annual conference of WFL, she was pictured being greeted by Agnes Husband . The following September, she was with Agnes Husband again on the platform at Regent's Park . In 1914, she spoke along with Anna Munro and Georgiana Solomon at the WFL Hampstead branch 'at home', hosted by Myra Sadd Brown , raising funds for the Women's Suffrage National Aid Corps. which Despard had founded. From 1915 onward, she worked with Agnes Harben and others to maintain international women's movements representation in Britain. In 1919, she

741-650: The World Congress of Faiths in the 1930s. In 1908 Despard joined Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington , Margaret Cousins and other feminists to form the Irish Women's Franchise League . She urged members to boycott the 1911 Census and withhold taxes and provided financial support to workers during the 1913 Dublin lock-out . She settled in Dublin after World War I and was a supporter of Éamon de Valera , remaining bitterly critical of her brother, now Field Marshal

780-446: The aim of broadening the students horizons from formal schooling education. Through much of their history, American finishing schools emphasised social graces and de-emphasised scholarship : society encouraged a polished young lady to hide her intellectual prowess for fear of frightening away suitors. For instance, Miss Porter's School in 1843 advertised itself as Miss Porter's Finishing School for Young Ladies—even though its founder

819-704: The authorities. In 1930, Despard toured the Soviet Union to look at workers' conditions there. Impressed with what she saw, she joined the Communist Party of Great Britain . and became secretary of the Friends of Soviet Russia organisation. In 1933 her house in Dublin was burned down by an anti-communist mob. She met and was photographed with the Indian independence leader Subhas Chandra Bose when he visited Ireland in 1936. She remained actively political well into her 80s and 90s, giving anti-fascist speeches in

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858-603: The children from Bromley were transferred to The Cloisters , an open-air school dedicated to that cause in Letchworth . The School in Hartfield became an Open Air School , which closed in 1939. Unlike other suffragists, Despard refused as a pacifist to become involved in the British Army's recruitment campaign during World War I , a stance different from that of her family: her brother, Field Marshal John French,

897-399: The decline of the finishing schools worldwide. This decline can be attributed to the shifting conceptions of women's role in society, competition from more focused vocational or professional education routes, to succession issues within the typically family-run schools, and, sometimes, to commercial pressures driven by the high value of the properties that the schools occupied. The 1990s saw

936-495: The educational ladies' salons of the late 19th century led to the formal finishing institutions common in Switzerland around that time. At the schools' peak, thousands of wealthy young women were sent to one of the dozens of finishing schools available. The primary goals of such institutions were to teach students the skills necessary to attract a good husband, and to become interesting socialites and wives. The 1960s marked

975-661: The extent of what she meant by the words. Kate Harvey converted her house, Brackenhill , in Highland Road, Bromley , to a thirty-one-bed hospital, intended for wounded soldiers in World War I. However, refugee women and children were sent there instead. Despard and Harvey bought a 12-acre tract in Upper Hartfield , which they also called 'Brackenhill'. Harvey had become involved in Theosophy , as did Despard and

1014-564: The family settled in Edinburgh and later York . Despard's brother Sir John French became both a leading military commander during World War I and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland , putting them on opposing political sides in later life. She had five sisters; one, Katherine Harley , also a suffragist, served in the Scottish Women's Hospital during the World War I in France. Despard regretted her lack of education, although she did attend

1053-563: The likes of Trafalgar Square in the 1930s. She was also guest of honour at the Reading branch of the Women's Freedom League, of which she had been the first president, celebrating her 89th birthday, held in Anna Munro 's garden at Venturefair, Aldermaston It was reported that 'Mrs. Despard had lost but little of her youthful vigour, clarity of speech and clearness of vision'. In her speech, she said that much had been achieved and quoted

1092-555: The most famed of U.S. girls' finishing schools", but its last president chose to describe it as a liberal arts college, offering academics as rigorous as Barnard or Bryn Mawr . It closed in 1976. The term finishing school is occasionally used, or misused, in American parlance to refer to certain small women's colleges , primarily on the East Coast , that were once known for preparing their female students for marriage. Since

1131-506: The proprietor's philosophy, much like the British private school model of the 18th and 19th centuries. Some schools offered some O-level and A-level courses or recognised arts and languages certificates. They sometimes allowed pupils to retake a course they may not have passed at secondary school level. They often taught languages and commercially and/or domestically applicable skills, such as cooking, secretarial and later business studies with

1170-571: The title Despard . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Despard&oldid=983819226 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Disambiguation pages with surname-holder lists Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Charlotte Despard Charlotte Despard (née French ; 15 June 1844 – 10 November 1939)

1209-737: Was Chief of the Imperial General Staff of the British Army and commander of the British Expeditionary Force sent to Europe in August 1914, and their sister Katherine Harley served in the Scottish Women's Hospital in France. She was an active member of the Battersea Labour Party during the early decades of the 20th century. She was selected as the Labour candidate for Battersea North in

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1248-662: Was a delegate to the Second International , including to the fourth congress in London in 1896. She campaigned against the Boer War as a "wicked war of this Capitalistic government" and she toured the United Kingdom speaking against the use of conscription in the First World War , forming a pacifist organisation called the Women's Peace Crusade to oppose all war. Despard was a vocal supporter of

1287-407: Was a noted scholar offering a rigorous curriculum that educated the illustrious classicist Edith Hamilton . Today, with a new cultural climate and a different attitude to the role of women, the situation has reversed: Miss Porter's School downplays its origins as a finishing school, and emphasises the rigour of its academics. Likewise, Finch College on Manhattan's Upper East Side was "one of

1326-436: Was an Anglo-Irish suffragist , socialist, pacifist, Sinn Féin activist, and novelist. She was a founding member of the Women's Freedom League , the Women's Peace Crusade , and the Irish Women's Franchise League , and an activist in a wide range of political organizations over the course of her life, including among others the Women's Social and Political Union , Humanitarian League , Labour Party , Cumann na mBan , and

1365-523: Was joined by Teresa Billington-Greig , Bessie Drysdale , Edith How-Martyn , Alice Abadam , Marion Coates-Hansen , among others, as signatories to a letter to Emmeline Pankhurst explaining their disquiet on 14 September 1907. In 1911, when first imprisoned with Nina Boyle , Despard was furious when someone paid the fines, allowing them to be released right away; Boyle remarked upon her 'complete and absolute fearlessness'. Sylvia Pankhurst , imprisoned with Despard in 1907, remarked at her death that "She

1404-802: Was one of our most courageous and devoted social workers". In London, two streets are named after her, one in Battersea London, and another in Archway , Islington. At the end of the latter is the Charlotte Despard pub, named in her honour. Her name and picture (and those of 58 other women's suffrage supporters) are on the plinth of the statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square , London. Finishing school A finishing school focuses on teaching young women social graces and upper-class cultural rites as

1443-527: Was one of our most courageous and devoted social workers. When I was in prison with her in 1907, I was impressed by her truly magnificent courage". She was one of the imprisoned women who had a tree planted in the ' suffragettes' rest ' of the Blathwayts in Batheaston, Eagle House. Despard was closely identified with new passive resistance strategies including women chaining themselves to the gate of

1482-784: Was one of twenty British delegates to the Women's International League Congress in Zurich (12–17 May). She is pictured next to Helen Crawfurd from Glasgow. She kept in communication with other suffragists, such as Daisy Solomon . In 1928, Despard was one of the suffrage movement leaders at the celebratory breakfast for the passing of the Equal Franchise Bill . From 1912 to 1921, she worked with Kate Harvey , another pacifist feminist and tax resister, along with other prominent members like Sophia Duleep Singh . She wrote in her diary re Kate Harvey that "the anniversary of our love" began on 12 January 1912, though it remains unclear

1521-546: Was published in 1874. Over the next sixteen years, she wrote ten novels, three of which were never published. Outlawed: a Novel on the Women's Suffrage Question was written with her friend, Mabel Collins and published in 1908. Following her husband's death when she was 46, Despard was encouraged by friends to take up charitable work. She was shocked and radicalised by the levels of poverty in London and devoted her time and money to helping poor people in Battersea , including

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