Susan Lawrence
Encyclopedia
Arabella Susan Lawrence was a British
Labour Party
politician, one of the first female Labour MPs.
Lawrence was the youngest daughter of Nathaniel Lawrence, a wealthy solicitor, and Laura Bacon, daughter of Sir James Bacon
, a bankruptcy judge and Vice-Chancellor. She was educated in London
and at Newnham College, Cambridge
. Originally a Conservative
, she was a member of the London County Council
1910 - 1912, but after coming under the influence of the trades unionist Mary Macarthur she was converted to socialism and rejoined the council as a Labour member from 1913 - 1927, becoming deputy chairman of the LCC 1925-26. She joined the Fabian Society
and became close to Sidney Webb and especially to his wife Beatrice Webb
. During the First World War she principally worked to improve the conditions of women factory workers.
As a member of the local council in Poplar, London
1919 - 1924, led at the time by George Lansbury
, Lawrence was part of the Labour group that defied central government and refused to set a rate, arguing that the poverty in the area meant that the poor were being asked to pay for the poor. Lawrence was imprisoned for five weeks in Holloway Prison
in 1921, but ultimately she and her fellow councillors' campaign succeeded, in that government passed a law to equalise Poor Law
rates.
Lawrence first stood, unsuccessfully, for Parliament
at Camberwell North West
at a by-election
in 1920, but won East Ham North
in the 1923 election
which saw the first Labour government take office in the January of the following year. She was one of the first three female Labour MPs, alongside Dorothy Jewson
and Margaret Bondfield
, and was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary
to the President of the Board of Education. The minority government lasted only nine months; following the Zinoviev letter
, the Labour Party lost the election of October 1924
and Lawrence was personally defeated. However, the Conservative victor, Charles Williamson Crook
, died only 18 months later and Lawrence was easily re-elected at a by-election in April 1926.
Susan Lawrence was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health
in the second minority Labour Government elected in 1929. She was also the chair of the Labour Party Conference in Llandudno
in 1930 - the first woman to hold the position. Like the vast majority of Labour MPs in Parliament, she refused to take part in Ramsay MacDonald
's National Government in the summer of 1931 and she lost her seat in the 1931 general election
never again to be a Member of Parliament.
Maintaining her work in the Labour Party, Lawrence was a member of the National Executive until 1941 and devoted much of her time to working with the blind for the remainder of her life. The detective novelist Cyril Hare
and General
Sir George Giffard
were among her nephews. Lucy Norton, the translator of the writings of Louis de Rouvroy, Duc de Saint-Simon
, and Lesley Lewis, art historian and author of "The Private Life of a Country House", were among her nieces.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, one of the first female Labour MPs.
Lawrence was the youngest daughter of Nathaniel Lawrence, a wealthy solicitor, and Laura Bacon, daughter of Sir James Bacon
James Bacon (judge)
Sir James Bacon was a British bankruptcy judge and a Vice-Chancellor of the Court of Chancery, and a member of the Privy Council....
, a bankruptcy judge and Vice-Chancellor. She was educated in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and at Newnham College, Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. Originally a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, she was a member of the London County Council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
1910 - 1912, but after coming under the influence of the trades unionist Mary Macarthur she was converted to socialism and rejoined the council as a Labour member from 1913 - 1927, becoming deputy chairman of the LCC 1925-26. She joined the Fabian Society
Fabian Society
The Fabian Society is a British socialist movement, whose purpose is to advance the principles of democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist, rather than revolutionary, means. It is best known for its initial ground-breaking work beginning late in the 19th century and continuing up to World...
and became close to Sidney Webb and especially to his wife Beatrice Webb
Beatrice Webb
Martha Beatrice Webb, Lady Passfield was an English sociologist, economist, socialist and social reformer. Although her husband became Baron Passfield in 1929, she refused to be known as Lady Passfield...
. During the First World War she principally worked to improve the conditions of women factory workers.
As a member of the local council in Poplar, London
Poplar, London
Poplar is a historic, mainly residential area of the East End of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is about east of Charing Cross. Historically a hamlet in the parish of Stepney, Middlesex, in 1817 Poplar became a civil parish. In 1855 the Poplar District of the Metropolis was...
1919 - 1924, led at the time by George Lansbury
George Lansbury
George Lansbury was a British politician, socialist, Christian pacifist and newspaper editor. He was a Member of Parliament from 1910 to 1912 and from 1922 to 1940, and leader of the Labour Party from 1932 to 1935....
, Lawrence was part of the Labour group that defied central government and refused to set a rate, arguing that the poverty in the area meant that the poor were being asked to pay for the poor. Lawrence was imprisoned for five weeks in Holloway Prison
Holloway (HM Prison)
HM Prison Holloway is a closed category prison for adult women and Young Offenders, located in the Holloway area of the London Borough of Islington, in north and Inner London, England...
in 1921, but ultimately she and her fellow councillors' campaign succeeded, in that government passed a law to equalise Poor Law
Poor Law
The English Poor Laws were a system of poor relief which existed in England and Wales that developed out of late-medieval and Tudor-era laws before being codified in 1587–98...
rates.
Lawrence first stood, unsuccessfully, for Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
at Camberwell North West
Camberwell North West (UK Parliament constituency)
Camberwell North West was a borough constituency located in the Metropolitan Borough of Camberwell, in South London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.The constituency was created...
at a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
in 1920, but won East Ham North
East Ham North (UK Parliament constituency)
East Ham North was a parliamentary constituency centred on the East Ham district of London, which was in Essex until 1965. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.- History :The...
in the 1923 election
United Kingdom general election, 1923
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
which saw the first Labour government take office in the January of the following year. She was one of the first three female Labour MPs, alongside Dorothy Jewson
Dorothy Jewson
Dorothy Jewson was a British teacher, trade union organiser, Labour Party politician, and one of her party's first female Members of Parliament....
and Margaret Bondfield
Margaret Bondfield
Margaret Grace Bondfield was an English Labour politician and feminist, the first woman Cabinet minister in the United Kingdom and one of the first three female Labour MPs...
, and was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary is a role given to a United Kingdom Member of Parliament by a senior minister in government or shadow minister to act as their contact for the House of Commons; this role is junior to that of Parliamentary Under-Secretary, which is a ministerial post, salaried by...
to the President of the Board of Education. The minority government lasted only nine months; following the Zinoviev letter
Zinoviev Letter
The "Zinoviev Letter" refers to a controversial document published by the British press in 1924, allegedly sent from the Communist International in Moscow to the Communist Party of Great Britain...
, the Labour Party lost the election of October 1924
United Kingdom general election, 1924
- Seats summary :- References :* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* - External links :* * *...
and Lawrence was personally defeated. However, the Conservative victor, Charles Williamson Crook
Charles Williamson Crook
-External links:...
, died only 18 months later and Lawrence was easily re-elected at a by-election in April 1926.
Susan Lawrence was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health
Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health
The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health was a junior ministerial office in the United Kingdom Government.The Ministry of Health was created in 1919 as a reconstruction of the Local Government Board...
in the second minority Labour Government elected in 1929. She was also the chair of the Labour Party Conference in Llandudno
Llandudno
Llandudno is a seaside resort and town in Conwy County Borough, Wales. In the 2001 UK census it had a population of 20,090 including that of Penrhyn Bay and Penrhynside, which are within the Llandudno Community...
in 1930 - the first woman to hold the position. Like the vast majority of Labour MPs in Parliament, she refused to take part in Ramsay MacDonald
Ramsay MacDonald
James Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
's National Government in the summer of 1931 and she lost her seat in the 1931 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...
never again to be a Member of Parliament.
Maintaining her work in the Labour Party, Lawrence was a member of the National Executive until 1941 and devoted much of her time to working with the blind for the remainder of her life. The detective novelist Cyril Hare
Cyril Hare
Cyril Hare, the pseudonym of Alfred Alexander Gordon Clark was an English judge and crime writer.- Life and work :...
and General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Sir George Giffard
George Giffard
General Sir George Giffard GCB DSO was a British military officer, who had a distinguished career in command of African troops in World War I, rising to command an Army Group in South East Asia in World War II.-Early career:...
were among her nephews. Lucy Norton, the translator of the writings of Louis de Rouvroy, Duc de Saint-Simon
Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon
Louis de Rouvroy commonly known as Saint-Simon was a French soldier, diplomatist and writer of memoirs, was born in Paris...
, and Lesley Lewis, art historian and author of "The Private Life of a Country House", were among her nieces.