Ethel Snowden

Ethel Snowden, Viscountess Snowden, born Ethel Annakin (8 September 1881 – 22 February 1951), was a British socialist, human rights activist, and feminist politician. From a middle-class background, she became a Christian Socialist through a radical preacher and initially promoted temperance and teetotalism in the slums of Liverpool. She aligned to the Fabian Society and later the Independent Labour Party, earning an income by lecturing in Britain and abroad. Snowden was one of the leading campaigners for women's suffrage before the First World War, then founding The Women's Peace Crusade to oppose the war and call for a negotiated peace. After a visit to the Soviet Union she developed a strong criticism of its system, which made her unpopular when relayed to the left-wing in Britain.

Snowden married the prominent Labour Party politician and future Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Snowden. She rose up the social scale in the 1920s, much to her pleasure, and she welcomed appointment as a Governor of the BBC and as a Director of the Royal Opera House. Although her husband received a Viscountcy, money became tight and she led the way in caring for him; after his death, she resumed temperance campaigning as well as journalism. She tended to be a controversial public speaker, who would fill with enthusiasm for a project and pursue it to the disregard of anything that stood in her way; it was said of her that "tact or discretion were foreign to her nature".

Ethel Annakin was the daughter of Richard Annakin, a building contractor. Her father also became involved in politics and later served as Alderman of Harrogate, becoming Mayor of the town in 1930–31. She is described by Philip Snowden's biographer Colin Cross as a "woman of strong will and striking good looks". She trained as a teacher at Edge Hill College in Liverpool, and while there joined the congregation of radical preacher Rev Dr C.F. Aked; after listening to his sermon on "Can a Man be a Christian on £1 a week?" she became a socialist and joined with Aked's social work in the slums of Liverpool promoting teetotalism. She also joined the Fabian Society.

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