More women to be remembered with blue plaques

The woman described as the founding spirit of London’s famous Notting Hill Carnival, Claudia Jones, is among five women who will be remembered with a Blue Plaque as part of English Heritage’s project to include more women in their list of blue plaques. Plaques are also being unveiled for Emily Wilding Davison and Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, who were both suffragettes, Ada Salter, a former mayor, and the painter Marie Spartali Stillman.

Claudia Jones was born in Trinidad in 1915 and was known as a political activist, journalist and feminist. She came to the UK in 1955 after leaving America where she was imprisoned and deported for being a member of the Communist party and for campaigning for equal rights. While in the UK, she founded the West Indian Gazette, Britain’s first major Black newspaper and spoke at union meetings and peace rallies. She is credited with coming up with the idea of hosting a Caribbean festival to London with the first taking place at St Pancras town hall in 1959. It would later move to the streets of West London where it grew into the popular Notting Hill Carnival it is today. Claudia Jones passed away at the age of 49 and was buried at Highgate Cemetery in North London.

A plaque will be installed at her former home in Vauxhall.

Plaques are also being unveiled for Emily Wilding Davison and Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, who were both suffragettes and the painter Marie Spartali Stillman.

Emily Wilding Davison is one of the best known campaigners for women’s right to vote. She was repeatedly imprisoned and force fed while on hunger strike, a programme undertaken by many of the suffragettes. Emily Wilding Davison is perhaps most famous for being injured at the Derby in 1913 after running in front of the King’s horse.

Her plaque will be located at a house in Kensington, where she was living while studying.

Princess Sophia was the daughter of Maharajah Duleep Singh and was one of Queen Victoria’s godchildren. She was known to use her connections and royal titles to campaign for women’s rights. You will find her plaque at the house she lived in with her sisters near Hampton Court Palace.

Marie Spartali Stillman was known for modelling for several Pre-Raphaelite artists, including Rosetti and was also a painter herself, one of only a few female artists of her time. Her plaque will be placed in Clapham.

Finally, Ada Salter will receive a plaque at her former home in Southwark. She became the first Labour woman to be elected as mayor in Britain and served the Bermondsey area. By the end of her term, the area had a public health service and wash houses as well as projects in the works to build new housing and playgrounds.

Speaking about the plaques to reporters, William Whyte, the chair of English Heritage’s blue plaques panel, said: “From Emily Wilding Davison, who famously died for her cause, to Claudia Jones, whose lifelong struggle for social justice helped inspire the Notting Hill carnival, these are people who made a difference and it’s an honour to play a part in making sure that their contributions are remembered.”

A sixth new plaque will be unveiled for Yehudi Menuhin, one of the most famous violinists of the 20^th century. He founded two music schools and a plaque will be added for him at his Belgravia home.

English Heritage awards around 12 plaques a year to people of significant public standing. Since 2016, they have been searching for nominations for women throughout history after it was revealed that only 13% of the blue plaques in London were dedicated to women.