Inga-Stina Robson, Baroness Robson of Kiddington (''née'' Arvidsson; 20 August 1919 – 9 February 1999), often known as Stina Robson, was an

Anglo Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from, the Angles, England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term '' Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people ...

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

political activist. Born to a wealthy family in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

as Inga-Stina Arvidsson, she attended Ölinska Girls' School before becoming a secretary in the Swedish

Ministry for Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateralism, bilateral, and multilateralism, multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citi ...

' office in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where she met

Lawrence Robson Sir Lawrence William Robson, FCA, (8 August 1904 – 24 August 1982) was a British accountant and Liberal Party activist. Born in Norton-on-Tees, Robson studied at Stockton Grammar School and the Royal Academy of Music before becoming an accoun ...

, an accountant, and the two married in 1940. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, she worked as a translator for the British Ministry of Information.Inga-Stina Robson profile
by Duncan Sutherland, ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

''; accessed 20 March 2014. Robson settled at

Kiddington Hall Kiddington Hall is a large Grade II listed manor house located in Kiddington, near Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. History Kiddington Hall was built in 1673, and in the 18th century "Capability" Brown laid out the gardens. The Reverend Thomas ...

near

Woodstock, Oxfordshire Woodstock is a market town and civil parish, north-west of Oxford in West Oxfordshire in the county of Oxfordshire, England. The 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 3,100. Blenheim Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is next to Wo ...

, and worked on her husband's unsuccessful candidature for the

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 ...

Banbury Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...

at the 1950 general election. Their house was used as a conference centre and was popular for Liberal Party events. In the run-up to the 1955 general election, Lawrence was the Liberals' prospective candidate in

Eye Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conv ...

, but he was appointed to a government commission and withdrew, leaving Inga-Stina to fight the seat, although she was not successful. Later the same year, she became a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

. Robson stood again in Eye at the 1959 general election, then in

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

and

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

. Although she never came close to election to

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

, she was elected to

Chipping Norton Chipping Norton is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Banbury and north-west of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the civil parish population as ...

Rural District Council Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the Ad ...

. In 1968, Robson became President of the

Women's Liberal Federation The Women's Liberal Federation was an organisation that was part of the Liberal Party in the United Kingdom. History The Women's Liberal Federation (WLF) was formed on the initiative of Sophia Fry, who in 1886 called a meeting at her house of fi ...

, standing down in 1970 when she was elected

President of the Liberal Party This is a list of people who served as President of the British Liberal Party. The Liberal Party merged into the Liberal Democrats in 1988. The post was established in 1877 as President of the National Liberal Federation. In 1936, this body was r ...

. As president, she opposed radicalism and, in particular, the policies advocated by the

National League of Young Liberals National League of Young Liberals (NLYL), often just called the Young Liberals, was the youth wing of the British Liberal Party. It was in existence from 1903 to 1990. Together with the party's student wing, the Union of Liberal Students (ULS), the ...

. She was created Baroness Robson of Kiddington, of

Kiddington Kiddington is a village on the River Glyme in the civil parish of Kiddington with Asterleigh about southeast of Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. The village is just north of the A44 road between Woodstock and Chipping Norton. Manor The toponym ...

in the County of Oxfordshire on 14 May 1974, becoming the Liberals' spokesperson on agriculture and the environment in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

. In 1982, she succeeded her husband as Chair of the

National Liberal Club The National Liberal Club (NLC) is a London private members' club, open to both men and women. It was established by William Ewart Gladstone in 1882 to provide club facilities for Liberal Party campaigners among the newly enlarged electorate f ...

, and also as Chair of the

Anglo-Swedish Society Founded in the aftermath of the First World War, the Anglo-Swedish Society was established to foster greater understanding and friendship between Britain and Sweden. The continued strong bond between these two nations has allowed the Society to ...

. She joined the Liberal Democrats, successors of the Liberal Party, and in 1988, she chaired a panel investigating fraud in the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. She stood down as a magistrate in 1989, by which time she was the longest-serving magistrate in the country. In 1993, she became the party spokesperson on health. Lady Robson was the Chairman of the charity Attend (then National Association of Leagues of Hospital Friends) from 1986 to 1994. When she retired in 1994, she was honored as vice president; a position she would hold from 1995 to 1998.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robson of Kiddington, Inga-Stina Robson, Baroness 1919 births 1999 deaths Councillors in Oxfordshire Liberal Democrats (UK) life peers Liberal Party (UK) life peers Presidents of the Liberal Party (UK) Swedish emigrants to the United Kingdom 20th-century British women politicians Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Politicians from Stockholm Liberal Party (UK) councillors 20th-century British civil servants Swedish civil servants Women councillors in England Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II