Helen Archdale

Helen Archdale

Suffragist, militant feminist, and international feminist educated at St Andrews 1892-1894.

dr203@st-andrews.ac.uk

Organisation

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Helen Archdale

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Helen Archdale was a suffragist, militant feminist, and journalist educated at St. Leonard's School and the University of St. Andrews. She was born to Helen Evans and Alexander Russel, both supporters of women's education, on August 25, 1876 in Nenthorn, Berwick, and studied English Literature at United College 1892-1894, one of the first female students allowed at the university. In 1901, she married her husband Lieutenant Colonol Theodore Archdale and they moved together to India. Together they had two sons and a daughter, and Helen returned to Britain in 1908 and joined the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). She became one of the leaders of the women's suffrage movement, especially in Edinburgh where she headed the WSPU and staged a suffrage march in 1909. In 1911 she moved to London and became the prisoners' secretary for the WSPU, becoming estranged from her husband around 1913. During WWI, Archdale established a farm on which she provided training for female agricultural workers, while herself maintaining a close personal and professional relationship with Viscountess Margaret Rhondda. She was a founding memnber of the feminist Six Point Group, and after her position as editor of Time & Tide magazine (1920-1926), she became a member of Women's Rights Organizations in Geneva and the head of Equal Rights International (1926-1934). Disagreements within the movement lead to the fall of ERI, but Archdale later was a founding member of the Open Door Council and Open Door International. Her later endeavors were part of the pacifist, international feminist movement looking to promote equality particularly in the workplace, and she remained a member of several international organizations during the interwar period. Archdale died on December 8th, 1949 in London.

Archdale was the editor for two publications of the WSPU, Brittanica and The Suffragette. From 1920-1926, Archdale was the first editor of Time & Tide, a feminist political and literary review sponsored by Viscountess Margaret Rhondda. She remained a director of Time & Tide publishing company after she was forced out from her editorial role. She also submitted articles to several newspapers such as The Times, The Scotsman, and The Daily News.

Archdale had a a record as both a pacifist and militant suffragist, joining the WSPU which was considered a militant organization. In addition, she was arrested twice, first in 1909 in Dundee for disrupting a meeting with Winston Churchill. She was imprisoned along with Adela Pankhurst, Catherine Corbette, Maud Joachim, and Laura Evans. The women instituted a hunger strike, and instead of being forcibly fed went without food for four days until they were released. She was arrested again in 1911 for breaking windows in London. This time her hunger strike resulted in her being forcibly fed.