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550:(President of the Royal Aero Club) says can be found, so that Great Britain can take part in the race for the Schneider trophy." The gift gave Lady Houston an opportunity to attack the Labour government, with the declaration "Every true Briton would rather sell his last shirt than admit that England could not afford to defend herself."
447:. When Sir Robert showed her his will, Lady Houston reportedly tore it up, telling him that £1,000,000 (equivalent to £68 million in 2023) was insufficient. By the time of their marriage Sir Robert was an invalid who suffered from bouts of depression and believed that he was being poisoned. He died aboard
640:
were strong leaders who pulled their countries, Italy and
Germany, round from a state of decay, she wanted a strong British leader to emulate them. She admired the stance of both Hitler and Mussolini against Soviet Russia, believing that its political ambitions presented the greatest threat to the
390:
she strongly supported the war effort, for example by sending matches to soldiers serving overseas, the boxes labelled 'A Match for Our
Matchless Troops from Lady Byron', and her 'Give Him Socks' campaign. Byron died on 30 March 1917. Later that year Lucy was appointed
574:
I alone have dared to point out the dire need for air defence of London. You have muzzled others who have deplored this shameful neglect. You have treated my patriotic gesture with a contempt such as no other government would have been guilty of toward a
522:
held the view that there was no advantage as aircraft development would continue whether or not the UK competed. The
Ministry forbade the use of the aircraft that competed in the 1929 race; forbade RAF pilots of the
606:; "Your achievement has thrilled me through, oh brave men of my heart... If this does not make the Government sit up, nothing will ... Sleep well and feel proud of yourselves, as we all are ...
531:. The Royal Aero Club sent a statement to the Cabinet on 22 January 1931, offering to raise £100,000, if the Government would rescind the Air Ministry's decrees on planes, pilots and policing.
546:. One newspaper sent a telegram to MacDonald stating that, "To prevent the socialist government from being spoilsports, Lady Houston will be responsible for all extra expenses beyond what Sir
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in 1933 at the age of 76, she threw herself in a frenzy of activity as a newspaper proprietor determined to alert
Britain to the weakness of its political leaders and the dangers of
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on 14 January 1895 after a long separation. After a dramatic proposal on her part, she remarried on 1 March 1901, to the retiring and previously confirmed
339:). Gretton died in 1882 and left her a legacy of £6,000 per year, an enormous sum (equivalent to £788,000 in 2023), much to the disgust of his family.
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infiltration of
Britain. Frustrated by what she saw as the weakness of Ramsay MacDonald and then Stanley Baldwin as Prime Ministers she tried to push
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Fanny Lucy
Radmall was the fourth daughter of Thomas Radmall, a woollen warehouseman and draper, and Maria Isabella Clark. She was born at 13 Lower
527:
who were trained to fly these seaplanes, to take part; and said that it would not police the race course in 1931 in the busy shipping lanes in the
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730:
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Lady
Houston was now England's second richest woman. Although not liable to pay death duties on Houston's estate she negotiated personally with
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At the age of sixteen, she took up with a wealthy man twice her age, Frederick "Freddy" Gretton, whose family were co-owners of the
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for the purposes of tax avoidance, and the couple divided their time between
England, Jersey, and Houston's luxurious yacht,
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Lady
Houston gave generously to British aviation. In 1931, she donated £100,000 (equivalent to £7 million in 2023) to
429:
as "a hard, ruthless, unpleasant bachelor." Nevertheless, Lucy Byron chased him for seven years, seeing off his old friend
347:
Now set up in life, she wanted a stage career. However, only three weeks in to her first stage role in a production by the
273:
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in early
December 1936, she was a semi-invalid who spent most of her time in bed, from where she edited and ran the
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newspaper, Wednesday, 24 October 1934, p. 3. "Brave Men Of My Heart" telegram by Lady Houston to Mr CWA Scott.
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on 14 April 1926, leaving his widow roughly £5.5 million (equivalent to £376 million in 2023).
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502:'s entry for the 1931 race for the trophy was hindered by political opposition. On 15 January 1931, the
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In 1932, she offered to give £200,000 (equivalent to £15 million in 2023) to strengthen the
535:
243:
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She funded disruptive campaigns against the National Government at nine by-elections in 1933.
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refused. She hung a huge electric sign, "DOWN WITH MACDONALD THE TRAITOR", in the rigging of
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27:
British philanthropist, political activist, fascist sympathizer, and suffragette (1857–1936)
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8:
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359:. On 3 September 1883 they married but the relationship did not flourish and the couple
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the Cabinet vetoed RAF involvement and Government funding in a sporting event.
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with the £200,000 rejected by the Government; however, Mosley's publication,
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327:. She was his mistress for ten years. Gretton was a keen supporter of the
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292:" because of her support for its predecessor, the Supermarine seaplane.
625:, Winston Churchill, and ultimately from 1935 the new king, her friend
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and sailed round Great Britain. In a telegram to MacDonald, she wrote:
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594:. In October 1934 Lady Houston sent a cable to the winners of the
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suburb was across the Thames from the city, but now forms part of
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395:(DBE) for her creation of the Bluebirds' Nest, a rest home on
802:(2004). "Houston, Dame Fanny Lucy (1857–1936), adventuress".
352:
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for the first time. This was to show opposition to granting
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36:
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on 29 December 1936, aged 79, at her home, Byron Cottage,
371:. During their marriage, as Lady Byron, she was an active
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Adventuress, The Life and Loves of Lucy, Lady Houston
874:
Adventuress, The Life and Loves of Lucy, Lady Houston
316:. As a young woman, she was a professional dancer, a
731:"Astonishing Exploits of England's "Lady Bountiful""
629:, into the role of virtual dictator of the country.
375:who used her wealth to support the cause and stood
342:
1193:Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire
1134:
1110:
982:
436:Houston established residence at Beaufield House,
896:(Supplement). 24 August 1917. pp. 8794–8795.
406:
393:Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
251:; 8 April 1857 – 29 December 1936) was a British
1174:
969:who became Under-Secretary again in 1931 in the
948:"Schneider Trophy: Build-up to the 1931 Race. "
906:
798:
1091:, by Teresa Crompton (The History Press 2020)
1074:Lady Houston, DBE: The Woman Who Won the War
808:(online ed.). Oxford University Press.
586:, in which aircraft flew over the summit of
331:and owner of celebrated racehorses (such as
1104:Cartoon history – "Colonel Blimps' England"
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694:Lady Houston is depicted in the 1942 film
54:
1160:(includes another photo of Lady Houston)
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886:
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686:. She had no children and left no will.
678:, that she stopped eating and died of a
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355:with Theodore Francis Brinckman, son of
308:, the ninth child of ten children. This
212:
146:
805:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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584:Houston–Mount Everest flight expedition
534:Many newspapers backing the opposition
426:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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14:
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971:National Government created that year
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506:refused a last-minute request by the
266:Beginning in 1933, she published the
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232:Dame Fanny Lucy Houston, Lady Houston
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119:Aviation pioneer, newspaper publisher
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411:Her third and final marriage was to
259:sympathizer, political activist and
181:
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753:Almond, Peter (15 September 2010).
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357:Sir Theodore Brinckman, 2nd Baronet
24:
1100:(includes a photo of Lady Houston)
284:. She has been acknowledged as an
25:
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1080:
854:
641:power of Britain and its Empire.
510:for funds for an entry. With the
1218:People who died on hunger strike
967:Under-Secretary of State for Air
343:Marriages to Brinckman and Byron
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413:Sir Robert Houston, 1st Baronet
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197:Sir Robert Houston, 1st Baronet
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920:The British Journal of Nursing
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613:Following her purchase of the
516:Marshal of the Royal Air Force
423:. Houston is described in the
407:Marriage to Sir Robert Houston
13:
1:
1106:– includes several quotations
1060:. 9 April 1937. p. 2340.
711:
553:
369:George Byron, 9th Baron Byron
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166:George Byron, 9th Baron Byron
822:UK public library membership
644:She also considered funding
7:
1243:20th-century British people
1203:British publishers (people)
965:Conservative MP and former
494:, allowing them to win the
460:Chancellor of the Exchequer
415:, Member of Parliament for
10:
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1238:20th-century English women
632:In that she believed that
582:In 1933, she financed the
538:wanted to put pressure on
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399:for nurses serving on the
132:Theodore Francis Brinckman
1168:National Portrait Gallery
872:Crompton, Teresa (2020).
755:"Saviour of the Spitfire"
668:abdication of Edward VIII
650:British Union of Fascists
349:Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
123:
115:
107:
88:
62:
53:
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800:Davenport-Hines, Richard
661:
288:and "the saviour of the
1233:British hunger strikers
1198:British philanthropists
984:"People, Jan. 10, 1938"
610:. God bless you both."
910:, ed. (19 June 1915).
814:10.1093/ref:odnb/34015
577:
487:
1076:(Allan Wingate, 1958)
912:"The Bluebirds' Nest"
596:MacRobertson Air Race
592:independence to India
572:
483:, winner of the 1931
479:
438:Saint Saviour, Jersey
337:Stayers' Triple Crown
908:Bedford Fenwick, Mrs
876:. The History Press.
697:The First of the Few
560:British Armed Forces
274:National Governments
215:; died
184:; died
1213:People from Lambeth
1208:British suffragists
760:The Daily Telegraph
666:By the time of the
564:National Government
1223:English baronesses
1136:"Angel Repudiated"
1121:. 27 November 1933
1096:A life in aviation
1057:The London Gazette
955:on 25 October 2008
893:The London Gazette
739:. 7 February 1937.
736:Milwaukee Sentinel
690:In popular culture
600:Tom Campbell Black
536:Conservative Party
498:in that year. The
488:
381:Emmeline Pankhurst
320:known as "Poppy".
67:Fanny Lucy Radmall
1228:Wives of baronets
1145:. 25 January 1937
1112:"Lady & Lion"
993:. 10 January 1938
820:(Subscription or
544:Labour government
525:High Speed Flight
456:Winston Churchill
419:, and a shipping
229:
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102:, London, England
83:, London, England
16:(Redirected from
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706:Toni Edgar-Bruce
634:Benito Mussolini
540:Ramsay MacDonald
496:Schneider Trophy
485:Schneider Trophy
481:Supermarine S.6B
472:Schneider Trophy
466:Schneider Trophy
286:aviation pioneer
278:Ramsay MacDonald
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1147:. Retrieved
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1034:. Retrieved
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995:. Retrieved
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953:the original
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941:
929:. Retrieved
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844:. Retrieved
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769:. Retrieved
765:the original
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680:heart attack
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94:(1936-12-29)
77:8 April 1857
41:Lucy Houston
29:
18:Lady Houston
1188:1936 deaths
1183:1857 births
1149:14 November
1052:"No. 34387"
1036:14 November
931:14 November
927:(1420): 529
888:"No. 30250"
846:14 November
771:14 November
627:Edward VIII
492:Supermarine
386:During the
373:suffragette
318:chorus girl
1177:Categories
824:required.)
712:References
554:Later life
431:F.E. Smith
302:Kennington
296:Early life
261:suffragist
149:;
73:1857-04-08
1158:1931 race
619:Communist
1125:9 August
684:Highgate
648:and his
575:patriot.
442:SY
365:bachelor
361:divorced
290:Spitfire
100:Highgate
1166:in the
1030:FreeBMD
997:3 April
840:FreeBMD
568:Liberty
458:, then
449:Liberty
444:Liberty
421:magnate
333:Isonomy
306:Lambeth
304:Green,
257:fascist
249:Radmall
221:
205:
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139:
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124:Spouses
81:Lambeth
1164:Photos
818:
676:Moscow
562:. The
529:Solent
518:, Sir
353:eloped
351:, she
310:Surrey
211:
180:
153:
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1032:. ONS
915:(PDF)
842:. ONS
662:Death
219:)
207:(
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176:(
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141:(
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1151:2020
1142:Time
1127:2008
1118:Time
1038:2020
999:2011
990:Time
933:2020
848:2020
773:2020
636:and
602:and
379:for
377:bail
329:turf
280:and
217:1926
213:1924
186:1917
182:1901
155:1895
151:div.
147:1883
89:Died
63:Born
37:Dame
810:doi
542:'s
276:of
244:née
237:DBE
46:DBE
1179::
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1054:.
1028:.
987:.
925:54
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856:^
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383:.
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
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