Emily Hobhouse facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Emily Hobhouse
Emily Hobhouse photographed by Henry Walter Barnett in 1902
Born	(1860-04-09)9 April 1860 St Ive, Cornwall, England
Died	8 June 1926(1926-06-08) (aged 66) Kensington, London, England
Occupation	Welfare campaigner; humanitarian activist
Parent(s)	Reginald Hobhouse (father) Caroline Trelawny
Relatives	Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse (brother)

Emily Hobhouse (born April 9, 1860 – died June 8, 1926) was a British woman who worked to help others. She was a humanitarian activist, meaning she cared deeply about human well-being. She also believed in peace and was against war.

Emily Hobhouse is best known for showing the British public the terrible conditions inside the British concentration camps in South Africa. These camps held Boer and African civilians during the Second Boer War. She worked hard to improve life for the people in these camps.

Emily Hobhouse's Early Life

Emily Hobhouse was born in St Ive, a small town in Cornwall, England. Her father, Reginald Hobhouse, was a church leader. Her brother, Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse, also worked for peace and believed in helping society.

When Emily was 20, her mother passed away. For the next 14 years, Emily cared for her father, who was not well. After her father died in 1895, she traveled to Minnesota in the United States. There, she helped Cornish miners and their families.

Later, she moved to Mexico and tried to start a farm, but it didn't work out. She returned to England in 1898. Even though she never married, her special "wedding veil" is kept in South Africa. It is a symbol of her strong dedication to helping women.

Helping During the Second Boer War

The Second Boer War began in South Africa in October 1899. A British politician, Leonard Courtney, asked Emily Hobhouse to join a group called the South African Conciliation Committee. This group wanted to find peaceful solutions to the war.

Emily started a special fund called the Distress Fund for South African Women and Children. She sailed to the Cape Colony in December 1900 to make sure the aid reached those who needed it.

When she arrived, she learned about many concentration camps that the British army had set up. There were 45 camps in total. She got permission to visit the camps and bring supplies.

Terrible Conditions in the Camps

Emily Hobhouse was allowed to visit several British concentration camps and deliver aid. She wrote a detailed report about the awful conditions she saw. This report was given to the British government in June 1901.

Her report showed that the camps were very crowded and dirty. There was not enough food or medicine. Because of this neglect, many people died. In 18 months, over 26,000 people died in the camps. A shocking 24,000 of these were children under 16 years old. This meant about 50 children died every day.

After her report, the British government set up an official group, led by Millicent Fawcett, to check the camps. They confirmed that Emily's report was true. Later in 1901, conditions in some camps started to get better, but the damage had already been done.

Bloemfontein Camp's Struggles

What upset Emily Hobhouse the most was seeing the suffering of hungry children. Diseases like measles, bronchitis, pneumonia, and typhoid spread quickly in the camps. Many sick people, especially children, did not even have enough tents to shelter them.

When Emily asked for soap for the people, she was told it was a luxury. But she fought for it and managed to get soap listed as a necessity. She also got more tents and kettles for boiling drinking water.

Emily also visited other camps, including those at Norvalspont, Aliwal North, Springfontein, Kimberley, and Orange River.

After Her Report

When Emily Hobhouse returned to England, she faced strong criticism from the British government and some newspapers. However, she eventually succeeded in getting more money to help the Boer civilians. The British political leader, Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, even called the camp conditions "methods of barbarism."

The British government finally agreed to send the Fawcett Commission, led by Millicent Fawcett, to investigate Emily's claims. The commission confirmed everything Emily had said about the terrible conditions.

Emily tried to return to Cape Town in October 1901, but she was not allowed to land and was sent back to England. She felt she never truly received justice for her efforts. The next year, she wrote a book called The Brunt of the War and Where it Fell, sharing what she had seen in South Africa.

Helping South Africa Heal

After the war ended, Emily Hobhouse went back to South Africa. She felt it was her job to help heal the country and bring people together. She started a project to teach young women spinning, weaving, and lace making. This helped them earn a living in their homes.

Because of poor health, she had to return to England in 1908. She visited South Africa again in 1913 for the opening of the National Women's Monument in Bloemfontein. Her health was still not good, so her speech, which called for peace and goodwill, was read for her. It was greatly admired. During this visit, she met Mahatma Gandhi.

Later Life and World War I

Emily Hobhouse was strongly against the First World War. She protested loudly about it. In January 1915, she helped organize and publish the "Open Christmas Letter" to women in Germany and Austria.

After the war, she helped feed thousands of women and children every day in central Europe for over a year. People in South Africa gave a lot of money to support this effort.

South African Honorary Citizen

Emily Hobhouse became an honorary citizen of South Africa because of her amazing humanitarian work. Without her knowing, people in South Africa collected money to buy her a house in St Ives, Cornwall. Today, a special plaque is in that house, honoring her kindness and bravery during the Anglo-Boer War.

Death and Legacy

Emily Hobhouse died in Kensington, London, in 1926. Her ashes were placed in a special spot at the National Women's Monument in Bloemfontein, South Africa. She is remembered there as a true heroine.

Many things are named after Emily Hobhouse:

• The town of Hobhouse in South Africa.
• A submarine, the SAS Emily Hobhouse, was named after her in 1969.
• The oldest student residence at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein is named after her.
• There is a statue of her at the church in St Ive, Cornwall, where she was born.

Her story has also been told in films, including That Englishwoman: An Account of the Life of Emily Hobhouse (1990) and The King's Man (2021).

See also

• List of peace activists

Images for kids

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  Emily Hobhouse by Henry Walter Barnett