Peggy Cripps facts for kids

Enid Margaret "Peggy" Appiah (born Cripps) was a British author who wrote books for children. She was also known for her kindness (philanthropy) and for being part of important social circles (socialite). She was awarded the MBE for her work. Peggy was the daughter of Sir Stafford Cripps and Dame Isobel Cripps. She married Ghanaian lawyer and political leader Nana Joe Appiah.

Peggy Appiah's Early Life

Enid Margaret Cripps, the youngest of four children, was born on May 21, 1921, at a place called Goodfellows in Gloucestershire, England. Her parents, Stafford Cripps and Isobel (whose maiden name was Swithinbank), lived nearby in Filkins, Oxfordshire.

The family had just moved into Goodfellows, a large house built in the Cotswold style. This home was where Peggy grew up. Her parents' close friend, the architect Sir Lawrence Weaver, helped a lot with its design. After Sir Lawrence and his wife died, their two sons, Purcell and Toby, came to live with the Cripps family. Peggy always thought of them as her brothers.

Growing Up in the Countryside

Peggy spent most of her childhood exploring the English countryside. She was cared for by her mother and her beloved nanny, Elsie Lawrence. With her sister Theresa, she collected wild flowers, fruits, and mushrooms from the fields and woods around her father's 500-acre farm. Peggy and her sister were part of the British Wildflower Society. They learned to identify many plants by both their common and Latin names. This love for plants later helped her when she moved to Ghana and studied its local plants. Her family shared this love for nature. Her brother, Sir John Cripps, not only farmed but also edited a magazine called The Countryman.

Her Family's Background

Peggy's family on her father's side had lived in Gloucestershire for a long time. They were a well-known, upper-middle-class family. They even said they were direct descendants of William the Conqueror! Her grandfather, Lord Parmoor, was a lawyer who became a noble in 1914. He was part of an important legal committee. Other family members were also involved in politics. For example, her great-aunt Beatrice was married to Sidney Webb, a key figure in the Labour Government.

The Cripps family were also very religious Anglicans. Lord Parmoor was a church lawyer and even wrote a book about church law. Peggy's father, Stafford Cripps, was said to be the first non-clergyman to preach in St Paul's Cathedral. When Peggy was preparing for her confirmation, she had some questions about the Church of England's beliefs. Her father arranged for her to talk with William Temple, who was then the Archbishop of York. Peggy loved to tell how the Archbishop agreed that some of the beliefs were indeed "very difficult!"

Peggy's Education and Travels

Peggy had a typical education for a young woman of her time. She first attended a day school at Queen's College and then a boarding school called Maltman's Green. Through her parents' connections, she learned about the world beyond England. In 1938, she and her family spent several months in Jamaica. That same year, Jawaharlal Nehru, a leader from India, visited their home with his daughter Indira. Peggy's father had been writing to Nehru about how democracy was developing in British colonies.

Working During Wartime

After school, Peggy planned to go to Edinburgh University. But first, she went to Florence, Italy, to study art history. However, World War II was starting, and she had to quickly return to England. She decided not to go to Edinburgh University. Instead, she enrolled in a secretarial college that had moved to Dorset to avoid bombings in London. This way, she could start working right away.

Once she finished her training, Peggy joined her father in Moscow, Russia, where he was the British Ambassador. She worked as a secretary at the embassy. Getting to Moscow was an adventure! Since the direct route went through German-occupied Europe, Peggy, her mother, and sister Theresa traveled through Canada, Japan, and China before crossing the Soviet Union by train.

In Moscow, Peggy made friends with the daughters of other ambassadors. In 1941, at just 20 years old, she was left in charge of evacuating the British Embassy as Germany was about to invade Russia. Later, she worked as a secretary in the consular department in Teheran, Iran. She also worked for a Brigadier when the British Army took over the Iranian railway system.

In 1942, Peggy returned to England with her father, who had been visiting India. They flew through the Middle East, landing on Lake Galilee in Israel and the Nile River in Egypt. There, she saw the famous pyramids. This was her first time in Africa! For the rest of the war, she worked for the Ministry of Information, using her knowledge of the Russian language. As her father became more involved in politics, the family moved to a smaller house in Gloucestershire.

Art Studies and Recovery

After the war, Peggy felt very stressed. She had given up her university place to help during the war. Now, she had experience but no formal degree for the work she was doing. She went to Switzerland to recover at a clinic in Zurich. She spent a summer in Lugano studying painting. Then, she returned to London to study art full-time at the Anglo-French Art Centre. She also painted in a small studio and attended art classes.

During this time, she stayed very close to her parents, even though her father was extremely busy with politics. After the Labour Party won the 1945 election, her father became President of the Board of Trade. He worked on talks with Indian independence leaders like Gandhi and Nehru. In 1947, he became Chancellor of the Exchequer, helping Britain recover after the war and create the modern welfare state.

In 1942, Peggy's mother, Lady Cripps, started a campaign to raise money for people in China who were suffering from the Japanese invasion, floods, and famine. Six years later, the Chinese government invited Lady Cripps to visit and see how the money was used. Peggy went along with her mother. They stayed with General and Madame Chiang Kai-shek and visited other areas, where Peggy met Chou En Lai and Madame Mao. On their way back, they traveled through Burma and India.

Peggy's Engagement

Because of her travels and her family's friendships with people like the Nehrus, Peggy knew many people from different countries. She understood life outside England much better than most people her age. This experience, along with her strong Christian beliefs, made her want to work for peace and understanding between different groups of people. In the late 1940s, she started working for an organization called Racial Unity. She also became active in the Youth Department of the World Council of Churches (WCC).

It was through her work for Racial Unity that she met Joseph Emmanuel Appiah in 1952. Joe was the President of the West African Students' Union. Their friendship quickly grew, and in January 1952, Joe proposed, and Peggy accepted!

However, Peggy's father, Stafford Cripps, was very ill at the time. He was in a clinic in Zurich. Because of his illness, Peggy's mother decided to keep the engagement a secret. After her father passed away, tradition meant the engagement couldn't be announced for another year. In the meantime, Peggy's mother suggested she visit the Gold Coast (which is now Ghana) by herself. She traveled by steamship to see the country where her future husband lived.

Life in Ghana

To Peggy's surprise, Joe was already in Kumasi, Ghana, when she arrived. He had flown back urgently because his granduncle had passed away. Joe was going to take his place as a leader of the nobility of the Ashanti people. Peggy traveled to Kumasi on Christmas Eve 1952. She was reunited with Joe and met his family for the first time on Christmas Day. On New Year's Eve, she attended a church service that would later be the location of her own funeral more than fifty years later. She also visited the campus of what is now Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Years later, at 84, she received an honorary degree from this university.

Making a Home in Ghana

On her first trip to Africa, Peggy traveled widely across the Gold Coast. There was a lot of talk about why she was there. Since her engagement wasn't public, she couldn't explain the real reason. She told the Daily Graphic newspaper that as part of a political family, she was interested in the people of the Gold Coast and their progress. With Joe's family, she met many important Ghanaians, including the Asantehene (the King of the Ashanti people) and leaders of the independence movement like Kwame Nkrumah.

When Peggy and Joe's engagement was announced in 1953, it caused a stir around the world. Their wedding in June 1953 in London was front-page news in Britain, Ghana, and many other countries. It was a major social event! George Padmore, a West Indian leader who supported Pan-Africanism (the idea of a united Africa), was the best man. Many important people attended, including politicians and ambassadors. A Jamaican newspaper noted the mix of "top-hatted British aristocrats" and "ex-Cabinet Ministers." But the real highlight was the beautiful kente cloth worn by the groom and his family.

Peggy and Joe Appiah spent their honeymoon in France. Then they returned to England, where Joe finished his law studies. In May 1954, their first child, Kwame Anthony Appiah, was born. In November, the young family moved to the Gold Coast to start their new life. While Joe built his law career and began his political life, Peggy focused on their growing family. Their daughters Ama was born in 1955, Adwoa in 1960, and Abena in 1962. Peggy also worked as a secretary and legal assistant in Joe's law office, supporting him just as she had supported her father. She learned to wear traditional Ghanaian cloth and got to know her husband's family well. They built their home in Kumasi.

For over 30 years, starting in the late 1950s, Peggy Appiah opened her large library at home to neighborhood children. They could come and read children's books, and as they got older, novels and poetry. She had many books from the Heinemann African Writers Series. Traders often visited her house, bringing her goldweights they had found. Peggy also helped many young people with their education and well-being, treating them like part of her own family.

Peggy's Role in Politics and Community

After Joe Appiah was elected to Parliament in 1956, before Ghana became independent, Peggy Appiah continued to provide a stable home for him. It was a place where he could relax from his political work and be with his family. Peggy joined St. George's Church in Kumasi. She also worked with Dr. Alex Kyerematen to develop the Cultural Center in Kumasi. She served on the Children's Home Committee, helped a home for the needy, and later became a supporter of the Ghana National Association for the Blind.

When her husband was put in prison by Kwame Nkrumah in October 1961, Peggy refused to leave Ghana. A deportation order against her was canceled after a British newspaper published an article about her situation.

Around this time, her son Kwame became very ill. The next month, Queen Elizabeth II visited Ghana for the first time. While visiting the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi, the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, and President Nkrumah passed by Kwame's bed. Kwame had a picture of his parents on his bedside table. The Duke of Edinburgh, who had met Peggy Appiah before, turned back to send his regards. It is said that President Nkrumah was angry about this, as it was the husband of a foreign leader greeting the wife of a man Nkrumah had imprisoned. This anger was reportedly one reason why Kwame Appiah's doctor was deported.

Peggy was under a lot of stress because of her husband's imprisonment and her son's illness. She was also pregnant with her youngest child, Abena, who was very ill as a baby. Despite this, Peggy kept her home stable for her children. She quietly worked for her husband's release with help from her mother, Lady Cripps, who visited Joe in prison in 1962.

Lady Cripps returned to England with her sick grandson. Just before Christmas 1962, Joe was released from prison and allowed to practice law again. The difficult final years of the Nkrumah government ended in 1966 when Nkrumah was removed from power. In the years that followed, Peggy's children went to boarding schools and universities abroad. Her husband became active in Ghanaian politics again and served as an ambassador. Peggy mostly stayed in Kumasi, providing a stable home base for him. She also looked after the properties he had inherited. Even though her family was deeply involved in politics, Peggy herself wasn't very interested in party politics. She supported her husband, but her main contributions were through her wide range of social work.

Peggy learned Twi, the language of the Asante people. She became very interested in Akan art and folklore. She collected many goldweights, started collecting and translating proverbs, and learned Ananse stories, often from her husband. For three decades, visiting her house and seeing her goldweight collection was a highlight for visitors interested in Ashanti art.

From the mid-1960s, Peggy began publishing books of Ananse stories, retold for children. These books became well-known in Africa, England, America, and other English-speaking countries. Her first book was Ananse the Spider: Tales from an Ashanti Village in 1966, followed by Tales of an Ashanti Father. She also published Children of Ananse (1968), The Pineapple Child and Other Tales from Asante (1969), Why There are So Many Roads (1972), and Why the Hyena Does Not Care for Fish and Other Tales from the Ashanti Gold Weights (1977).

She also wrote a series of readers to help Ghanaian children learn English, including The Lost Earring and Yao and the Python. She published novels for children and adults, like Gift of the Mmoatia and Ring of Gold, and two books of poetry. Some of her works are used in schools in West Africa. Perhaps her most important book, which took her nearly 50 years to create, was Bu Me Bé: Proverbs of the Akan. This book, published in 2001, is a collection of more than 7,000 Twi proverbs.

In 1985, Peggy and Joe Appiah traveled to visit their friend Kamuzu Banda, the President of Malawi. They had known him when he lived in Ghana. They celebrated Malawi's twenty-first independence anniversary. They also visited their daughters, Abena in Zimbabwe and Ama in Angola. Later, they visited Ama in Norway, where Joe was diagnosed with the cancer that led to his death in 1990.

Life as a Widow

After Joe died in 1990, Peggy Appiah never thought about leaving Ghana. When people asked her when she was "going home," she would say she was already home. She moved into a smaller house built next to her daughter Abena's house. She continued to work for her church and study Akan folklore. She visited her children and grandchildren in the United States, Namibia, and Nigeria. Her children and six grandsons also visited her in Ghana.

Awards and Recognition

In 1996, Queen Elizabeth II awarded Peggy Appiah the MBE. This award was given "for services to UK/Ghanaian relations and community welfare," recognizing her efforts to improve ties between Britain and Ghana and help her community.

In 2005, she received an honorary degree from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

Peggy's Final Years

In 2001, Peggy Appiah visited England for the last time to celebrate her 80th birthday. She celebrated with her family, including her children, grandchildren, nephews, and nieces.

In her final years, as her movements became more limited, she remained the center of a large group of family and friends. Her caring housekeeper, Ma Rose, looked after her. As Peggy wrote in her autobiography, published in 1995: "I thank God for all He has given me and the happiness He has brought me."

Her Passing

Peggy Appiah passed away on February 11, 2006, at the age of 84. She died at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi. She was buried at Tafo cemetery in Kumasi, in a plot she had bought next to her husband's grave.