Nannie Florence Dryhurst (born Hannah Anne Robinson; 17 June 1856–1930) was an Irish writer, translator, activist and nationalist.

Personal life

Hannah Anne Robinson was born on 17 June 1856 in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

to Alexander Robinson and Emily Egan. Her father was a dyer. She was known as Nannie to her sisters and she decided to change her name to Nannie Florence in honour of a young friend who had died. As a result she was known variously (and following her marriage) as N.F. Dryhurst, Nannie, Nora and Florence Dryhurst. After the death of her own father Dryhurst took a position as a governess as she spoke fluent

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and Irish as well as having considerable skill as an artist. She worked first in Ireland and then 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 ...

. She looked after a doctor's daughter, Nellie Tenison, and through them she may have met the Dryhurst family. In 1882 she became engaged to British Museum official Alfred Robert Dryhurst and married him in August 1884. Their first daughter Norah was born in 1885 and the second, Sylvia in 1888.

Anarchy

Dryhurst soon got involved with an anarchist group and wrote regularly for the

Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...

newspaper. She was friends with

Charlotte Wilson Charlotte Mary Wilson (6 May 1854, Kemerton, Worcestershire – 28 April 1944, Irvington-on-Hudson, New York) was an English Fabian and anarchist who co-founded '' Freedom'' newspaper in 1886 with Peter Kropotkin, and edited, published, ...

and acted as editor when Wilson was away and in the early 1890s she took over as editor completely for some time. She also worked as a translator for

Peter Kropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (; russian: link=no, Пётр Алексе́евич Кропо́ткин ; 9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist, socialist, revolutionary, historian, scientist, philosopher, and activis ...

's works. Dryhurst spent time teaching with Wilson,

Agnes Henry Agnes or Agness may refer to: People *Agnes (name), the given name, and a list of people named Agnes or Agness * Wilfrid Marcel Agnès (1920–2008), Canadian diplomat Places *Agnes, Georgia, United States, a ghost town *Agnes, Missouri, United ...

, and Cyril Bell at the International School set up in Fitzroy Square in London by Louise Michel. Dryhurst gave active support to Spanish refugees fleeing repression and gave money to support the colony at Clousden Hill from 1895 to 1902.

Nationalist

Dryhurst supported a number of different countries attempting to gain independence. She became secretary of the Nationalities and Subject Races Committee and used her writing in working towards Irish Independence. She wrote for various Irish newspapers and assisted with the creation of

The Irish Citizen ''The Irish Citizen'' was founded in 1912 as the newspaper by the Irish Women's Franchise League. Its first editors were Francis Sheehy-Skeffington the writer, pacifist and suffragist, and James Cousins, James H. Cousins'The "Irish Citizen", 1912 ...

. A friend of

W.B. Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

, she appeared in his play ''The Land of Heart’s Desire'' in June 1904. She spoke

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

having learned it from Varlam Cherkezov, a close associate of Kropotkin. In 1906 she was a member of the Georgian Relief Committee and travelled to the country. She spoke at an international conference at

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

in support of Georgia. She was also a supporter of Indian independence. It was through Dryhurst that the Gifford sisters got their connection to the Irish independence movement. She introduced Muriel Gifford to

Thomas McDonagh Thomas Stanislaus MacDonagh ( ga, Tomás Anéislis Mac Donnchadha; 1 February 1878 – 3 May 1916) was an Irish political activist, poet, playwright, educationalist and revolutionary leader. He was one of the seven leaders of the Easter Rising ...

and Grace Gifford to James Plunkett. After the executions of 15 leaders of the

Easter Rising The Easter Rising ( ga, Éirí Amach na Cásca), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the a ...

in Dublin, Dryhurst spent her time campaigning unsuccessfully for the reprieve of

Roger Casement Roger David Casement ( ga, Ruairí Dáithí Mac Easmainn; 1 September 1864 – 3 August 1916), known as Sir Roger Casement, CMG, between 1911 and 1916, was a diplomat and Irish nationalist executed by the United Kingdom for treason during Worl ...

. Not all her activities were purely political. Dryhurst was a neighbour of Martin Shaw and on her suggestion he founded the

Purcell Operatic Society The Purcell Operatic Society was a short-lived but influential London opera company devoted to the production of stage works by Henry Purcell and his contemporaries. It was founded in 1899 by the composer Martin Shaw and folded in 1902. Its stag ...

in 1899. She became the Society's secretary. He rented accommodation near her and through her friends they found talented amateurs to put on their productions. Dryhurst had a long affair with Henry Nevinson, a journalist she met in 1892. The affair ended in 1912. Dryhurst died in 1930. Her papers are kept in the Irish National Library.

Bibliography

Translator

*Researches in the history of economics *The great French Revolution, 1789-1793

Author

*Nationalities and subjects races report of conference held in Caxton hall