Lady Victoria Buxton (née Noel; 1 July 1839 – 9 August 1916) was a British philanthropist principally known for her work with the Mothers' Union and Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA).

Early life

She was the daughter of Charles Noel, 1st Earl of Gainsborough and Lady Frances Jocelyn, daughter of Robert Jocelyn, 3rd Earl of Roden. She spent her early years at the Noel family's ancestral home at

Exton Hall Exton Hall is an English country house on the western edge of the village of Exton, Rutland, England, standing in its own extensive park. The Hall It was the family seat of the family of Sir James Harington and later the Noel family, Earls of G ...

Rutland Rutland () is a ceremonial county and unitary authority in the East Midlands, England. The county is bounded to the west and north by Leicestershire, to the northeast by Lincolnshire and the southeast by Northamptonshire. Its greatest len ...

and later at

Barham Court Barham Court is an English country house in the village of Teston, Kent. History It was once the home of Reginald Fitz Urse, one of the knights who murdered Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170. As a result of that deed, Fitz Urse f ...

, Maidstone. She was educated by governess and travelled extensively on the continent. Her parents were of strong evangelical faith and placed great emphasis on community work in which Lady Victoria also participated.

Philanthropic works

In 1862 she married

Sir Thomas Buxton, 3rd Baronet Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, 3rd Baronet, (26 January 1837 – 28 October 1915), commonly known as Sir Fowell Buxton, was the Governor of South Australia from 29 October 1895 until 29 March 1899. He was the grandson of Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, a ...

and resided with him at Warlies,

Upshire Upshire is a village and area of Waltham Abbey in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. The centre of the village is on Horseshoe Hill (a minor road), on which is The Horseshoe public house, and the church of St Thomas, a Grade II* listed ...

near Waltham Abbey. The couple had thirteen children of whom ten survived. She assisted her husband with his political career and worked to support social services and church missions including the YMCA and YWCA. In 1869 she began to suffer from osteoarthritis. Although she found travel difficult she remained reasonably active and retained her cheerful disposition. She held mothers' meetings at Warlies and established a branch of the Church of England Mothers' Union. She served as diocesan president of the Mothers' Union in London where she was also president of the Time and Talents Association of young factory girls. She accompanied her husband to South Australia in 1895 upon his appointment as governor. She continued her philanthropic activity by sponsoring reading circles and supporting missionary work. She was the founding president of the Mother's Union of South Australia and actively supported the YWCA in Adelaide. She and her husband held a convention at which a constitution for a united

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

was first discussed. In 1896 she laid a foundation stone for a new junior branch of the YMCA in Adelaide, the

Our Boys Institute Our Boys Institute (OBI) was a junior branch of YMCA. Opened in 1896, the club was housed in a purpose-built premises at 221 Wakefield Street, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The Our Boys Institute included lecture and games rooms, indoor ...

. In 1898 Lady Victoria returned to England with her husband on leave. Her health deteriorated and she did not return to Australia. In 1902 the Buxtons built St Thomas's Church in Upshire.

Death/Legacy

She died at North Lodge, Cromer on 9 August 1916, aged 77.

References

*Joan B. Huffman, ''Buxton, Lady Victoria (1839–1916)'', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Buxton, Lady Victoria 1839 births 1916 deaths British Christians People from Waltham Abbey, Essex People from Rutland People from Maidstone Daughters of British earls Victoria Victoria Wives of baronets 19th-century British philanthropists