History Society – Review of Meeting

Review of 17 October meeting of Audlem and District History Society

The Great Miss Lydia Becker

At our October meeting Joanna Williams gave a fascinating talk about a figure whom she convincingly argued deserves much greater recognition. 'The Great Miss Lydia Becker', the title of her talk, introduced a woman who devoted much of her life to the cause of women's suffrage.

Lydia Becker was born in 1827 into a comfortable, middle-class family. However, the attitudes and conventions of the time denied her the formal education enjoyed by her brothers. The early death of her mother also saw her having to take on much of the responsibility for bringing up her many younger siblings.

Despite her lack of formal education and time-consuming domestic duties, through her own private studies she became a significant amateur botanist who was supported and encouraged by Charles Darwin and John Leigh, Manchester's first medical officer for health.

She became engaged in political activity in her thirties after attending a lecture on women's suffrage. Subsequently, she worked tirelessly as an advocate for women's right to vote for the rest of her life, lobbying politicians, addressing meetings, writing pamphlets and editing journals. One of her key achievements was in addressing the Tynwald, the government of the Isle of Man and persuading its (male only) members to allow women to vote as early as 1881.

Sadly, she died of diphtheria in 1890 and her ground-breaking, but relatively low key, work as a suffragist was overshadowed by the much higher profile activities of the suffragettes, notably in the person of Emmeline Pankhurst.

As the author of the book 'The Great Miss Lydia Becker' (Pen and Sword Books, 2022), Joanna Williams brought an expert and detailed knowledge to her talk which was much appreciated by a large audience.