Rathbone, Eleanor Florence (1872-1946), was a British social reformer. She was concerned with such varied problems as the treatment of widows under the Poor Law and the general welfare of women in the Commonwealth, particularly in India.
Eleanor Rathbone was born in London on May 12, 1872. She was educated at Oxford University. She undertook social work in Liverpool and became concerned about the plight of women. She campaigned to give women the vote, becoming parliamentary secretary to the Liverpool Women’s Suffrage Society in 1897. She was an independent member of Parliament from 1929 to 1946 and fought for the introduction of family allowances. During World War I (1914-1918), she worked tirelessly for refugees. Rathbone died on Jan. 2, 1946.
