Margaret Haig Thomas Mamwlad

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-Like many Welsh people

-over the years...

-..I've mapped out

-a career in London.

-A century ago...

-..a woman in the world of business,

-arts or politics was a rare sight.

-Women didn't even have

-the right to vote.

-One Welsh lady

-wanted to change this.

-A prominent figure in the struggle

-for equality for women...

-..was Margaret Haig Thomas.

-She inherited the title

-of Viscountess Rhondda...

-..and fought to follow her father

-into the House of Lords.

-This remarkable woman

-made a massive impact...

-..to ensure women

-had the right to do everything...

-..that we take for granted.

-She paid a high price for it.

-She was the only woman

-who went to prison in Wales...

-..for her rebellious acts in Wales.

-She should be a familiar figure...

-..but she isn't,

-not even for historians.

-She had a prolific career

-as a pioneering journalist...

-..a powerful businesswoman

-and the Mrs Pankhurst of Wales.

-She survived the worst

-maritime disaster of the Great War.

-Her life was fascinating,

-fruitful and colourful.

-MOTHERLAND

-WITH FFION HAGUE

-I'm amazed by the lack of attention

-Margaret Haig Thomas has received.

-She fought relentlessly for equality

-for women, benefits for families...

-..and for women

-to sit the House of Lords.

-In 2012,

-this portrait of her was unveiled.

-Finally, Margaret had made

-her mark at Westminster...

-..more than 50 years

-following her death.

-Margaret was raised in Llanwern

-on the edge of Newport.

-She was the only child

-of the industrialist, D A Thomas.

-Her father was the protege

-of Lloyd George.

-He owned coalmines in the Rhondda

-and was a Liberal MP in Merthyr.

-Her mother, Sybil, was a descendent

-of General Douglas Haig.

-Their home was nestled

-on this hillside.

-The building no longer exists, but

-this is where she spent her youth.

-She learnt noble customs

-from her mother...

-..and business skills

-from her father.

-Margaret was an only child.

-She kept herself amused

-by reading and writing.

-She enjoyed climbing trees

-and behaved like a tomboy.

-Margaret was also shy and insecure.

-As the result of being mentored

-by her father...

-..she gained confidence

-and was introduced to public life.

-At election time,

-she would be involved.

-She was taken along to encourage

-people to vote for her father.

-Her mother

-was also active in politics.

-She was president of the Aberdare

-Women's Liberal Association...

-..and played

-quite an important role.

-Aged 15, Margaret was sent

-to St Leonard's School in Scotland.

-It was a key period in her life.

-It was an innovative school.

-There was an emphasis

-on how to shape an individual.

-They read extensively and covered

-a wide spectrum of subjects.

-More importantly for Margaret,

-she felt liberated.

-Margaret refers to it

-as the happiest time of her life.

-She learnt that being a girl

-wasn't an excuse to fail...

-..but there were expectations

-for a girl of Margaret's calibre.

-She would soon face the social whirl

-that was the London Season.

-It was three months

-of debutant balls and parties.

-Why was it important for Margaret

-to follow the Season?

-She was born into

-an upper middle class family...

-..and was expected to marry.

-He had to be a member of the

-aristocracy and be very wealthy.

-The best place to find him

-was at the Season.

-How did Margaret embrace

-the London Season?

-Initially,

-she showed great enthusiasm.

-She was excited about the attire,

-meeting a husband and new friends.

-However, she became disheartened

-because she was very shy...

-..and struggled

-with the opposite sex.

-Margaret faced another problem.

-Fashion was changing.

-The portrayal of the perfect woman

-in the magazines was very specific.

-Women had to have a small silhouette

-and a tiny waist.

-Margaret didn't fit

-this image of an ideal body.

-She was a tall girl...

-..and the stays she wore

-were very uncomfortable.

-Did she find a husband?

-Margaret attended

-the Season three times.

-She was too embarrassed to go again

-as she failed in finding a husband.

-She was under pressure to marry,

-yet Margaret had her own ideas.

-Studying at Somerville College in

-Oxford left her feeling uninspired.

-I get the impression

-that Margaret was a little lost.

-She lacked any direction

-in her life.

-Several months later in 1901,

-everything changed for Margaret.

-On 10 July, the flags were flying...

-..there was a red carpet and ribbons

-leading to the church.

-Margaret had found a husband.

-She came to Christchurch to marry

-her neighbour, Humphrey Mackworth.

-They moved to a new home

-near Llanwern.

-It was a wedding gift

-from her parents.

-She said,

-"we were an oddly assorted couple."

-He was 20 years her senior and

-was leader of the hunt at Llangybi.

-She preferred to read and be quiet.

-He thought it was very rude to read

-whilst others were in the room.

-Despite their differences,

-marriage gave her some independence.

-Margaret was happy.

-This was primarily due to

-a new course in life...

-..that would give her a purpose.

-She campaigned for women's rights.

-Life was changing for women in terms

-of education and marital rights.

-However, women were still

-denied the right to vote.

-It sparked a national campaign.

-Margaret led a restrictive,

-middle class lifestyle...

-..which lacked any direction.

-She claimed that this campaign

-gave her life a direction.

-It inspired her

-and gave her life some purpose.

-The Pankhursts and the Women's

-Social and Political Union...

-..were gaining momentum.

-Margaret was instantly drawn

-to their message.

-Their slogan was Deeds Not Words.

-They had grown tired

-of all the discussions.

-It was time for them

-to take direct action.

-They interrupted public meetings,

-heckled at speakers...

-..intruded hustings at elections and

-the National Eisteddfod of Wales.

-These protests occurred in London,

-Wrexham and Abergavenny.

-It was publicity for their cause.

-Margaret protested around Britain

-from Scotland to Hyde Park.

-With Mrs Pankhurst at her side,

-she became a prominent campaigner.

-Margaret took it a step further and

-wanted to do something more extreme.

-She decided the best action

-to take was to make a bomb.

-She visited the WSPU headquarters

-in London.

-She mixed chemicals in small vials

-in order to produce a bomb.

-She hid the bomb in the bushes

-for a week before the fateful day.

-She paced nervously

-up and down the street...

-..prior to planting the bomb

-inside a letterbox.

-Margaret was arrested

-and summoned to court at Usk...

-..where she was found guilty.

-She refused to pay bail

-but chose to make her stand.

-Margaret's husband pleaded with her

-to avoid prison...

-..but she refused and

-was thrown into this prison in Usk.

-Being sent to jail

-was a traumatic experience.

-They endured abhorrent conditions

-in dark, filthy cells.

-Many inmates took drastic action

-and went on a hunger strike.

-However, the prison officials

-force-fed them...

-..by inserting a thick rubber tube

-into their mouths or nostrils.

-Consequently,

-these women fell seriously ill.

-The government promptly took action

-by passing the Cat and Mouse Act.

-Having almost starved to death, the

-women were released to recover...

-..and re-arrested

-to complete the sentence.

-Margaret immediately

-went on a hunger strike.

-She didn't eat or drink

-for three days.

-When her health started to fail,

-she was released.

-She was under the impression

-that she would return to jail.

-Before making a full recovery,

-her fine was paid anonymously.

-We believe her husband

-paid the fine.

-Margaret's prison sentence

-had angered her in-laws...

-..and Humphrey was incensed when

-she decided to work for her father.

-It was completely inappropriate

-for his wife to work.

-She learnt about business

-from her father.

-She had

-an unofficial apprenticeship.

-Before that,

-he'd talk to her about business.

-For somebody

-in the late 19th century...

-..to take their daughter

-as a confidante...

-..and discussing ideas

-about business is rather unusual.

-Margaret learnt

-about her father's empire...

-..that extended to Mississippi,

-Pennsylvania and Canada.

-He showed his confidence

-in Margaret...

-..by taking her

-on a business trip in 1915.

-After the trip to New York, Margaret

-and her father returned to Wales...

-..on board the famous liner,

-the Lusitania.

-They set sail for the most

-traumatic experience of their lives.

-"My father and I came from luncheon

-and strolled to the lift on D-deck.

-"He said we should stay up on deck

-to see if we get our thrill.

-"I had no time to answer."

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-In May 1915, Margaret Haig Thomas

-and her father...

-..were travelling from America

-on the Lusitania.

-As the Irish coastline

-came into sight...

-..the cruise liner

-was torpedoed by a German submarine.

-"There was a dull thud.

-"Not very loud

-but unmistakeably an explosion.

-"My father walked over to look out

-of a porthole. I didn't wait."

-The liner was sinking fast.

-She removed her underskirts

-to jump overboard...

-..but the level of the water

-had reached her deck.

-Margaret jumped

-and plunged into the sea.

-She rose to the surface

-and was surrounded by debris.

-"Something was in my right hand

-and prevented me striking out.

-"It was a lifebelt

-I had been holding for my father.

-"I let it go."

-Margaret slipped

-into unconsciousness.

-At this point, the lifeboat

-was searching for passengers.

-She later said that she was

-very fortunate to be saved.

-"I was on a patrol steamer

-named the Bluebell...

-"..when a sailor asked

-if we lost anyone.

-"I remember the sudden sobering

-on answering.

-"I didn't know

-what had happened to my father.

-"We got into Queenstown Harbour

-about eleven.

-"A man told me that my father

-had been rescued...

-"..and was waiting

-at the other end of the gangway."

-The business trip

-and trauma on board the Lusitania...

-..strengthened her character.

-Margaret didn't want to stay

-in an unhappy marriage.

-In 1922,

-she divorced Humphrey Mackworth.

-Divorce was still very expensive,

-very unusual and quite shaming.

-She and Humphrey

-didn't have much in common.

-She told her friend and actress,

-Elizabeth Robins...

-.."He's a nice man

-but does nothing."

-It wasn't as shaming for Margaret

-as it might have been for others.

-She was in a position

-where she got on with her life.

-They went their separate ways.

-She didn't have another man

-in her life following her divorce...

-..but had close relationships

-with several women...

-..such as Helen Archdale

-from Time and Tide...

-..Winifred Holtby, the novelist,

-and Theodora Bosenkay.

-There wasn't another man.

-By 1923, Margaret felt

-even more liberated than ever.

-She was a divorcee with money

-and a profession...

-..but she was faced

-with a challenge...

-..as women only answered the phone

-at the company's Cardiff Bay office.

-Women were unofficially

-involved in business.

-Wives would be behind the scenes.

-On the whole...

-..it was unusual for women

-to have such a prominent role.

-By 1919,

-she was chairing seven boards...

-..and sat on about

-33 different boards.

-She had more directorships than any

-other woman in the UK in the 1920s.

-Margaret was elected president of

-the Institute of Directors or IOD.

-This influential body...

-..continues to represent

-business directors today.

-Margaret was the first

-woman president and the only one.

-It's possible

-she was the only woman member.

-It's interesting

-that by the time she died in 1958...

-..there were 600 women members

-in the Institute.

-Things really changed

-during her lifetime.

-If women were good enough

-to work during the war...

-..they could work

-after the war too.

-However, the press thought a woman

-should be in the home.

-Her plan was to run a newspaper

-that treated women equally.

-Therefore,

-she launched Time and Tide.

-Time and Tide

-is one of her greatest achievements.

-What she wanted to do...

-..was give an opportunity

-for people to see...

-..what women had achieved

-and might achieve...

-..and to discuss

-the affairs of the day.

-When women won the right to vote

-in 1928...

-..the newspaper changed tact and

-became a leading literary journal.

-By the 1940s,

-it sold 40,000 copies a week.

-D J Morgan was chess editor

-of Time and Tide in the 1950s.

-He visited the magazine

-with his son, Lord K O Morgan.

-I met Margaret once in the 1950s.

-I recall my father

-speaking with Lady Rhondda.

-She was a lovely, dignified lady.

-The French would refer to her

-as a "grande dame".

-She was an important lady.

-David received a phone call

-from Margaret.

-There was a problem

-with one of his articles.

-Time and Tide

-had become a right-winged paper.

-Some readers had complained

-during the Cold War...

-..that there were too many sportsmen

-and games from Russia...

-..in my father's articles.

-It was quite humorous.

-Lady Rhondda had a lovely chat

-with my father.

-He didn't have a problem

-with the Russians.

-I asked my father

-if he changed his articles...

-..but he wouldn't do that.

-Margaret was a sincere employer.

-She wanted her staff to work hard

-but was also happy to reward them.

-If Margaret liked

-reading your article...

-..she'd reward you with

-half a dozen eggs from Llanwern.

-If your article was fantastic,

-she'd give you a dozen eggs.

-This is how

-she showed her appreciation.

-During this period, with the help

-of other influential women...

-..Margaret formed

-the Six Point Group.

-The Six Point Group

-was a pressure group...

-..that advocated social,

-economic, legal and equal rights...

-..whether it be

-legislating against child assault...

-..or advocating

-equal pay for teachers.

-It was to make sure that

-now some women had the vote...

-..there would also be an opportunity

-to have social and economic rights.

-Another campaign was the right for

-women to sit in the House of Lords.

-Her inherited title

-of Viscountess Rhondda...

-..didn't give her the right

-to a seat because she was a woman.

-It was incredibly strange because

-Margaret fought for women's rights.

-It was a bizarre situation.

-She wouldn't have

-the right to vote...

-..because she was meant to be

-a member of the House of Lords.

-She wouldn't benefit from it

-so it was a problem for her.

-Therefore,

-she campaigned for many years.

-Months before her death in 1958,

-the Life Peerages Act was passed.

-It permitted women

-to sit in the House of Lords.

-Women with inherited titles had

-to wait five years to follow suit.

-I, Baroness Morgan of Ely...

-It would have been interesting

-to be there 20 years ago.

-The House would have looked

-very different...

-..full of old men

-and only a handful of women.

-It's gradually changing...

-..and this is partly due

-to Margaret's campaign.

-People are showing more interest...

-..in the woman

-who transformed the House of Lords.

-She never had the chance

-to take her seat.

-She died a few months earlier.

-Margaret died at the age of 75

-in 1958.

-Tributes refer to her as one of

-Britain's most prominent women.

-She introduced women's rights

-to Wales...

-..and ensured that Welsh women

-took an active role in the campaign.

-She was a symbol of someone

-who offered support...

-..and would make a sacrifice

-on behalf of the campaign.

-Many of the rights

-that we take for granted today...

-..she helped to make possible.

-Through her work in Time and Tide...

-..she publicized and advertised

-what women could achieve...

-..and deserves

-to be better remembered.

-Her portrait now hangs

-in the House of Lords.

-Therefore, Margaret has got

-the recognition she deserves.

-She understood that women

-have just as much right...

-..as much experience

-and have as much to say as any man.

-Margaret was a unique person.

-She thrived in the business world,

-challenged social order...

-..and transformed

-the House of Lords.

-It takes a special character

-to fight against the system.

-Margaret's story is incredibly

-inspiring and I admire her greatly.

-The inscription on her grave

-is wearing away...

-..but we cannot let her story

-wither and die.

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