Dame Elvira Sibyl Marie Mathews, ( Laughton; 25 September 1888 – 25 September 1959), known as Vera Laughton Mathews, was a British military officer and administrator. She was the second Director of the

Women's Royal Naval 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 ...

(WRNS), serving from its reformation in 1939 until 1946.

Early life and family

Elvira Sibyl Marie Laughton was born in Hammersmith, London, on 25 September 1888 to

Sir John Knox Laughton Sir John Knox Laughton (23 April 1830 – 14 September 1915) was a British naval historian and arguably the first to delineate the importance of the subject of Naval history as an independent field of study. Beginning his working life as a mathe ...

and María Josefa de Alberti of Cadiz, Spain. She had three brothers and one sister. Mathews was educated at Catholic schools: the Convent of St Andrew (in Streatham) and at Tournai (in Belgium). Later, she attended King's College London.Vera Laughton Mathews, ''Blue Tapestry'' (1986) e-book edition by BakerSteele Publishing (2018) Vera Laughton was married to Gordon Mathews from 10 June 1924 until his death in 1943; they had two sons and one daughter.

Military career

Mathews joined the

(WRNS) on its establishment in 1918, and was appointed to the rank of principal officer (equivalent to a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...

). She was initially the Unit Officer of the WRNS Training Depot at

The Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibitors from around th ...

in south

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 ...

; the Depot was wound up immediately after the Armistice was signed in November 1918 as recruitment had ceased and she went on to serve in various posts on the east coast of Britain until demobilisation in 1919. She was reappointed as the director of the reformed WRNS in 1939 with Ethel Goodenough as her deputy. Goodenough died in 1946 from

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

and Mathews retired in 1947. The Vera Laughton Mathews' Award charity was created on 21 March 1969 with the aim of supporting the education and training of the daughters of former WRNS personnel. The charity was disbanded in 2012.

Political campaigning and journalism

Mathews joined the

WSPU The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom from 1903 to 1918. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership an ...

as a young woman, and in 1911 joined the Catholic Women's Suffrage Society (later the St Joan's Social and Political Alliance), and was Chair of the Alliance between 1932 and 1939. In 1914, she was appointed acting Editor of ''The Suffragette'' magazine. She also worked on the magazine '' Time and Tide'', which had been launched by Lady Rhondda in 1920.

Post-war career

After her retirement from the WRNS, Dame Vera was asked by the post-war Labour government to sit on a number of industry committees. She chaired the Domestic Coal Consumers' Council between 1947 and 1950. She was the first woman to work in the management of the gas industry, as a member of the South-Eastern Gas Board between 1949 and 1959. She also served as an advisor on Women's Affairs to the National Gas Council. In 1958, she was appointed President of the British Federation of Business and Professional Women.

Affiliations

* Girl Guide Commissioner * Skipper of Sea Rangers * Chairman, St. Joan's Social and Political Alliance (1932-1939) * Chairman, Domestic Coal Consumers' Council (1947–1950) * President, National Smoke Abatement Society (1949–1951) * Member of the South-Eastern Gas Board (SEGAS) (1949–1959) * Adviser on Women's Affairs to the Gas Council * Life President, Association of Wrens * President, St. Joan's International Social and Political Alliance * Chair of the Status of Women Committee, St. Joan's Social and Political Alliance * President, Mermaid Swimming Club * Member, Council Girl Guides Association * President, British Federation of Business and Professional Women

Autobiography

''Blue Tapestry,'' published by Hollis & Carter in London, 1948

References

External links

WRNS Website

Notice of appointment as Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathews, Vera Laughton 1888 births 1959 deaths English people of Spanish descent Royal Navy personnel of World War II Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Women's Royal Naval Service officers Royal Navy admirals of World War II British women in World War II Alumni of King's College London People from Hammersmith Female admirals Royal Navy officers of World War I Military personnel from London