Sidney Mary Catherine Anne Farrar (17 April 1900 - 1987) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

settler in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

and the first woman elected to the

Legislative Council of Kenya The Legislative Council of Kenya (LegCo) was the legislature of Kenya between 1907 and 1963. It was modelled on the Westminster system. It began as a nominated, exclusively European institution and evolved into an electable legislature with unive ...

Early life

Farrar was born 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 ...

, to

Sidney Hobart-Hampden-Mercer-Henderson, 7th Earl of Buckinghamshire Sidney Carr Hobart-Hampden-Mercer-Henderson, 7th Earl of Buckinghamshire (14 March 1860 – 15 January 1930), styled Lord Hobart from 1875 to 1885, was a British Liberal politician. Life Buckinghamshire was the second but only surviving son of F ...

and his wife Georgiana. In 1924 she married Captain Thomas Innes Farrar, a war veteran, in London, and in 1926 they moved to a farm in Kenya, settling at Mau Summit. In 1934, Thomas died leaving Farrar alone with their son Thomas.

First Aid Nursing Yeomanry

During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

she joined the

First Aid Nursing Yeomanry The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (Princess Royal's Volunteer Corps) (FANY (PRVC)) is a British independent all-female registered charity formed in 1907 and active in both nursing and intelligence work during the World Wars. Its members wear a mili ...

and served in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

.Malcolm Page, King's African Rifles: A History, Pen and Sword, 30 Mar 2011, p.59 In 1932, she established the Kenyan branch of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry. Their role expanded as result of the

Second World War 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 ...

, and their name changed to the Women's Territorial Service. Farrar travelled to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

to recruit drivers, and by the end of 1940 the Kenya FANYs had approximately 700-800 members. Initially they were housed in various commandeered houses in

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...

and ran a despatch rider service between Nairobi and the

King's African Rifles The King's African Rifles (KAR) was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from Britain's various possessions in East Africa from 1902 until independence in the 1960s. It performed both military and internal security functions withi ...

camps in

Garissa Garissa ( so, Gaarrisa) is the capital of Garissa County, Kenya. It is situated in the former North Eastern Province. Geography The Tana River, which rises in Mount Kenya east of Nyeri, flows through the Garissa. The Bour-Algi Giraffe Sanctuar ...

. They also staffed the ambulances for casualties from Ethiopia. As the war progressed their role changed, and they took on additional duties such as catering and intelligence work, both in East Africa and abroad, including

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

and

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

. Farrar gained the rank of Major and was made an MBE for her war services in 1941. The FANYs were disbanded at the end of the war.

Politics

In 1937 she became the first woman elected to the

when she defeated Conway Harvey by just two votes. She held the seat of Nyanza until 1942. Sidney was also a prominent member of the East Africa Women’s League and served as its president between 1953-4. During her presidency the EAWL was asked to take a census on the need for Primary day schools in rural areas and as a result of this several schools were opened. She later became Chairman of the National Council of Women in Kenya.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrar, Sidney 1900 births 1987 deaths Settlers of Kenya Members of the Legislative Council of Kenya British Kenya people 20th-century Kenyan women politicians 20th-century Kenyan politicians