Emma Robarts (died 1 May 1877) was a British

Christian activist The relationship between Christianity and politics is a historically complex subject and a frequent source of disagreement throughout the history of Christianity, as well as in modern politics between the Christian right and Christian left. There ...

who formed a group known as the Prayer Union. The organisation combined in 1877 with an organisation created by

Mary Jane Kinnaird Mary Kinnaird or Mary Jane Kinnaird, Lady Kinnaird; Mary Jane Hoare (1816–1888) was an English philanthropist and co-founder of the Young Women's Christian Association. Kinnaird has one Women's College and a girls' High School in Pakistan and ...

to form the

Young Women's Christian Association The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

History

Robarts was the daughter of Nathaniel Robarts, a London woollen draper, and was one of six daughters, five of whom remained unmarried and lived together in Barnet, Hertfordshire. In 1855 she decided to form a group who could pray for other women. The first group consisted of 23 Christian women who met in

Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) * Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

. The idea of offering prayers was popular and within four years there were brackets throughout the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. Robarts intended to appeal to all classes of women in order that their combined prayers could provide for the "eternal salvation" of other young women. The group had initially called themselves the "Young Women's Christian Association" echoing the YMCA which had been formed in 1844, however in 1855 they settled on the name of the "Prayer Union". By 1872 there were 130 branches in Britain supplying bible study, group prayer and social events. There were a few places where women could stay.Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA), 1855-1995
Warwick University, Retrieved 31 May 2017 Robarts met

who had also created an organisation in 1855 to provide accommodation for nurses travelling to and from the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

but which had widened its base to provide housing for Christian women.Jane Garnett, ‘Kinnaird , Mary Jane, Lady Kinnaird (1816–1888)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, May 200
accessed 31 May 2017
/ref> They merged their organisations to form what would become the

. The founding date of the

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

has been given as 1876 or 1877. Kinnaird and Robarts had met in 1876 and an agreement was made in January 1877. Robarts died on 1 May 1877 before the merger was announced at the end of the year that created " The London Young Women's Institute Union and Christian Association".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robarts, Emma 1877 deaths People from the London Borough of Barnet Evangelists YWCA leaders Christianity and women