Dr Hilda Mary Adela Buckmaster BSc. (January 1897 – April 1993), was a British academic and

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

politician. She was notably and unusually a naval officer in both World Wars.

Background

Hilda Buckmaster was born in

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

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 ...

in 1897. She was the daughter of Charles Alexander Buckmaster and Lucy Ormerod Mar. She was the niece of Stanley Buckmaster, who served in the Liberal Government led by

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928), generally known as H. H. Asquith, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom f ...

. She was educated before the first world war at

Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls Haberdashers' Girls' School is an independent day school in Elstree, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as "Habs" (or "Habs Girls" to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Boys' School). The school was founded in 1875 by the Wo ...

Acton Acton may refer to: Places Antarctica * Mount Acton Australia * Acton, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Acton, Tasmania, a suburb of Burnie * Acton Park, Tasmania, a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania, formerly known as Acton Canada ...

. After the war in 1919 she continued her studies at the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

. In 1922 while researching for her doctorate in International Relations, she was chosen by

David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during t ...

's government to travel to Germany as a British commissioner to study municipal affairs. She was involved in the founding of the National Union of Students holding a number of honorary posts.Jews and other foreigners: Manchester and the rescue of the victims of European Fascism 1933–40 by Bill Williams She was also involved in sport, representing the LSE Women's Hockey XI in the 1923–24 season. In 1924 she graduated in Public Administration. She took a post-graduate course in international relations in 1930.

Professional career

In 1914 at the age of seventeen Buckmaster volunteered with the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

. In 1917 she joined the newly formed

Women's Royal Navy Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in 1939 at the ...

, working as a motor mechanic. After graduating she spent 18 months in eastern Poland with the Quaker Relief Service, 1925–26. She worked as a deck hand on the SS Panape, a sailing ship trading between Australia and Finland. In 1936 she was appointed warden of the Women's Student Hall, at

Manchester University , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

. In 1938, having made contact with Rose Bluhm, the wife of a Jewish mathematics teacher living in Breslau (now Wrocław in Poland), Buckmaster ensured that Bluhm's son Michael was able to attend

Dartington Hall Dartington Hall in Dartington, near Totnes, Devon, England, is an historic house and country estate of dating from medieval times. The group of late 14th century buildings are Grade I listed; described in Pevsner's Buildings of England as "on ...

in Devon. She also enabled Michael Bluhm's friend Karl Wolfgang Plessner, later known as "Tony," the son of a Jewish doctor in Breslau, to attend

Bury Grammar School (The key that opens sacred doors) , established = , type = Independent day schoolGrammar school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Headmaster , head ...

. Buckmaster, who, in Plessner's memory, identified herself by a "white handkerchief tied around her arm," met Plessner at the Manchester train station in late January 1939 and drove him to his Jewish guarantors in Bury. At the outbreak of war in 1939 she was called up by the Admiralty to serve in the WRNS as a Third Officer. She was promoted to Chief Officer. In 1946 she was appointed secretary of Crosby Hall, hostel for women undergraduates of

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree- ...

. She was assistant secretary to the North Islington Infant Welfare Centre. She emigrated to Canada in 1954 and became a Canadian citizen in 1955. Following a request from the Canadian Government, Queen Elizabeth II awarded her with a silver medal for outstanding service to her country.

Political career

In the early 1930s Buckmaster became active in politics with the Liberal Party. She was also active with the

League of Nations Union The League of Nations Union (LNU) was an organization formed in October 1918 in Great Britain to promote international justice, collective security and a permanent peace between nations based upon the ideals of the League of Nations. The League of N ...

serving for three years as the Essex Organiser. She was Liberal candidate for the

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the River Blackwater, Essex, Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea ...

division of

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

at the 1935 General Election. Following a move to Manchester she was selected as Liberal prospective parliamentary candidate for Manchester Rusholme for the general election expected to take place in 1939/1940. Due to the outbreak of war, the election was postponed. She remained prospective candidate for Rusholme up until early May 1945 before she switched to contest the

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of London a ...

division of

. In 1949 she was a Liberal candidate for North Stanley ward in the

Chelsea Metropolitan Borough Council The Metropolitan Borough of Chelsea was a metropolitan borough of the County of London between 1900 and 1965. It was created by the London Government Act 1899 from most of the ancient parish of Chelsea. It was amalgamated in 1965 under the Lond ...

elections. She was Liberal candidate for the Holborn and St. Pancras South division of London at the 1950 General Election. She did not stand for parliament again.British parliamentary election results 1950–1983, Craig, F.W.S.

Electoral record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buckmaster, Hilda Mary Adela 1897 births 1993 deaths Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates People educated at Haberdashers' Girls' School Alumni of the London School of Economics Royal Navy personnel of World War I Royal Navy personnel of World War II Women's Royal Naval Service officers

Hilda Hilda is one of several female given names derived from the name ''Hild'', formed from Old Norse , meaning 'battle'. Hild, a Nordic-German Bellona, was a Valkyrie who conveyed fallen warriors to Valhalla. Warfare was often called Hild's Game. Th ...