Madeline Margaret Daniell (née Carter) (19 May 1832 – 21 April 1906) was a Scottish educationalist and campaigner for women's rights to higher education.

Biography

Daniell was born on 19 May 1832 in Secrole,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

to Helen Gray and Major Henry Carter, of the Bengali native infantry. She was educated at the Edinburgh Institution for the Education of Young Ladies before going on to finishing school in Europe. She married cavalry officer Charles Astell Daniell on 13 November 1851 and together they had a son. Her husband died at

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

on 24 November 1855. After her husband's death, she returned to Scotland where she helped establish the Edinburgh Ladies' Educational Association (ELEA), an organisation that provided post-school education for women. In 1866, she hosted the Association's first executive committee meeting at her home on Inverleith Terrace, becoming honorary secretary from 1866 to 1869. In the early years of the Association its president,

Mary Crudelius Mary Crudelius (née McLean) (23 February 1839 – 24 July 1877) was a British campaigner for women's education who lived in Leith, Edinburgh in the 1860s and 1870s, and was a supporter of women's suffrage. She was a founder of the Edinburgh ...

, was often in poor health and Daniell undertook much of the work. In its first year, the Association ran lectures for women on English literature given by the University of Edinburgh's Professor David Masson, and later held classes in

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

and mental philosophy. Daniell attended many of the Association's classes. Daniell left Edinburgh for St Andrews in 1870, to care for her mother. She played a part in the founding of St. Leonard's School for Girls, a school that provided high-quality education to girls and young women prior to their attending university. She was one of the two founding secretaries of the St Andrews School for Girls Company, which established the School. After her mother's death, Daniell moved to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

where she became involved in charity work for impoverished women. While in London she met the philosopher, writer and poet

Constance Naden Constance Caroline Woodhill Naden (24 January 185823 December 1889) was an English writer, poet and philosopher. She studied, wrote and lectured on philosophy and science, alongside publishing two volumes of poetry. Several collected works wer ...

, and in 1887 travelled with her through

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

and India. On their return, Daniell lived at Naden's house at Gloucester Square until Naden died in 1889. Daniell wrote the memoir in Naden's posthumous book ''Induction and Deduction''. After Naden's death Daniell moved to

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Iris ...

where she was again involved in organisations supporting women's rights including

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

, the

Women's Local Government Society The Women's Local Government Society was a British campaign group which aimed to get women into local government. Its initial focus was on county councils but its remit later covered other local government roles such as school boards. History The ...

, the Southport University Extension Society and the Women's Liberal Association. Daniell died on 21 April 1906 at her home on Ashburton Road,

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea is not a separate town as all of Portsea Island's s ...

after a long, paralysing illness.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daniell, Madelin 1832 births 1906 deaths Education in Scotland Women of the Victorian era People from Edinburgh