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Margaret Grace Bondfield ( 17th March, 1873- 16th June, 1953), an English politician and feminist was born in Chard, Somerset, the eleventh child of Anne Taylor and William Bondfield, a textiles worker with left-wing views.Bondfield began an apprenticeship at the age of 14 in a draper's shop in Brighton, where a customer, Louisa Martindale befriended her and lent her books on left-wing politics. In 1894 she moved to London and was elected to the Shop Assistants' Union district council.
In 1896 the Women's Industrial Council commissioned her to investigate the pay and conditions of shop workers, and she published a report on this in 1898. In 1898 she was elected assistant secretary of the Shop Assistants' Union and in 1908 became secretary of the Womens' Labour League .
In 1923 Bondfield was elected Labour Member of Parliament for Northampton and was appointed Minister of Labour by Ramsay MacDonald in 1929. This was the first time that a woman had been made a Cabinet Minister. She again stood for election in 1926, this time in the Wallsend constituency. She was defeated in the 1931 general electionA general election is an election in which all members of a given political body are up for election. The term is generally used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections. and despite standing at Wallsend in 1935, she never returned to the House of CommonsThe House of Commons is a component of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also includes the Sovereign and the House of Lords. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 659 members, who are known as "Members of Parliamen.
Between 1939Events January-June January 2 End of term for Frank Finley Merriam, 28th Governor of California. He is succeeded by Culbert Levy Olson. January 24 Earthquake kills 30. 000 in Chile about 50. 000 sq mi razed January 26 Falangists take Barcelona January 26 and 1945Events January January 5 The Soviet Union recognizes the new pro-Soviet government of Poland. January 7 British General Bernard Montgomery holds a press conference in which he claims credit for victory in the Battle of the Bulge. January 12 World War II: Bondfield was chair of the Womens' Group on Public Welfare .
Books by Margaret Bondfield
- Socialism for Shop Assistants (1909)
- The National Care of Maternity (1914)
- The Meaning of Trade (1928)
- Why Labour Fights (1941)
- Our Towns: A Close-up (1943)
- A Life's Work (1949)
Bondfield, Margaret
Bondfield, Margaret
