Mabel Brookes
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Dame Mabel Brookes, DBE (15 June 189030 April 1975) was an Australian community worker, activist, socialite, writer, historian, memoirist and humanitarian. Born Mabel Balcombe Emmerton in Raveloe,
South Yarra, Victoria South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the Cities of City of Melbourne, Melbourne and City of Sto ...
in 1890, her best-known service was as president of the
Queen Victoria Hospital The Queen Victoria Hospital (QVH), located in East Grinstead, West Sussex, England is the specialist reconstructive surgery centre for the south east of England, and also provides services at clinics across the region. It has become world-fam ...
from 1923 to 1970, where she presided over the addition of three new wings within ten years.


Early life and marriage

Born on 15 June 1890, Brookes was the only child of a Melbourne lawyer H. Emmerton and his wife. After being withdrawn from kindergarten by her mother in order to avoid 'developing a bad accent', Mabel described her childhood as a lonely one; she was educated by her father and a series of governesses. While recuperating from an illness in The Briars in Mornington, she heard from her grandmother, Emma Balcome, of her Balcombe ancestors who lived in The Briars in Saint Helena at the time of the exile of
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
. She developed a fascination with Saint Helena and Napoleon's exile there. Another ancestor, Sir William Doveton, was a member of the council of Saint Helena when Napoleon was there. When Mabel was 14, a young man allegedly told her mother that Mabel was 'dull, plain and reads too much', prompting a dramatic change in her parents' approach to her upbringing. After being presented at the Edwardian court in London, at 18 Mabel was engaged to
Norman Brookes Sir Norman Everard Brookes (14 November 187728 September 1968) was an Australian tennis player. During his career he won three Grand Slam singles titles; Wimbledon in 1907 and 1914 (the first non-British individual to do so) and the Austral ...
, a tennis player, who was the first Australian to win Wimbledon. They married in St Paul's Anglican Cathedral, Melbourne, on 19 April 1911. In 1914, with a baby daughter, she accompanied Brookes on his tennis trips to Europe and the USA. Whilst in the USA Norman Brookes and
Tony Wilding Anthony Frederick Wilding (31 October 1883 – 9 May 1915), also known as Tony Wilding, was a New Zealand world No. 1 tennis player and soldier who was killed in action during World War I. Considered the world's first tennis superstar, Wildin ...
won the
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
, which Mabel supposedly used as a rose bowl.


World War I and II

During World War I, in 1915, she joined her husband in
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 ...
where he was working as commissioner for the Australian Branch of the
British Red Cross The British Red Cross Society is the United Kingdom body of the worldwide neutral and impartial humanitarian network the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The society was formed in 1870, and is a registered charity with more ...
. Along with other officer's wives she tended to sick and wounded servicemen, as well as assisting in the establishment of a rest home for nurses. Her experiences in Egypt left a deep impression on her, inspiring her war novels ''Broken Idols'' (Melville and Mullin, 1917) and ''Old Desires'' (Australasian Authors Agency, 1922) which were largely set in Egypt, and sparking a lifelong engagement on matters of public health. On her husband's posting to
Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...
, she returned to
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
in 1917. In 1918 she served on the committee of the Royal Children's Hospital, then became president of the Children's Frankston Orthopaedic Hospital, the Anglican Babies' Home and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. She was an original member and a divisional officer of the Girl Guides' Association executive committee, foundation president of the Institute of
Almoner An almoner (} ' (alms), via the popular Latin '. History Christians have historically been encouraged to donate one-tenth of their income as a tithe to their church and additional offerings as needed for the poor. The first deacons, mentioned ...
s and of the Animal Welfare League. She was also a member of the Australian
Red Cross Society The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the world's largest group of non-governmental organizations working on humanitarian aid, is composed of the following bodies: *The ''International Committee of the Red Cross'' (ICRC), a comm ...
's federal executive and president of the Ladies' Swimming Association. During World War II the Brookes family vacated their home Kurneh to allow it to be used by the Red Cross as a convalescent home for returned soldiers. The Brookes family moved to their other property, ''Elm Tree House,'' and entertained Australian and American officers, including future American president
Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
(during an official state visit to Australia in 1967, Johnson would take time out to visit Mabel at Elm Tree House, attracting a crowd of hundreds to gather outside the house). Mabel Brookes was
commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...
of the Australian Women's Air Training Corps, and took on shift-work at the Maribyrnong Munitions Factory filling cartridges. Other war-work included establishing Air Force House and organizing, at the request of the minister for the army, an annexe for servicewomen at the Queen Victoria Hospital.


Presidency of Queen Victoria Hospital

From 1923 to 1970, Mabel served as president for the
Queen Victoria Hospital The Queen Victoria Hospital (QVH), located in East Grinstead, West Sussex, England is the specialist reconstructive surgery centre for the south east of England, and also provides services at clinics across the region. It has become world-fam ...
. By all accounts she was a fierce and capable advocate on behalf of the hospital, and oversaw the addition of three new wings, one of which was named after her in appreciation of her decades of service. She fought hard to get suitable accommodation for the hospital, describing 10am on 17 December 1946 as the proudest hour of her life when the last patient was moved from the old hospital on Little Lonsdale Street to the new building on the corner of Lonsdale and Swanston Streets. "It was when I realised that the women of Melbourne had finally and decisively won their 55-year-old battle for a large hospital completely staffed by women... It was a fight by women against prejudice, suspicion and intolerance of women," she was quoted in '' The Argus'' as saying, "There's no finer feeling than winning the supposedly hopeless battle."


Political career

Brookes attempted a political career by standing twice for parliament, but was unsuccessful. She stood for the
Division of Flinders The Division of Flinders is an Australian Electoral Division in Victoria. The division is one of the original 65 divisions contested at the first federal election. It is named for Matthew Flinders, the first man to circumnavigate Australia, ...
in the 1943 federal election as a Woman for Canberra candidate and in the 1952 state election for the seat of Toorak for the
Electoral Reform League The Victorian Liberal Party (VLP), often called the Hollway Liberals, was an independent political party formed on 27 October 1954 from a grouping of supporters of Thomas Hollway, a former leader of the Liberal and Country Party and Premier of Vic ...
. She was appointed a Commander of the
Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
(CBE) in 1933 and elevated to Dame of the order (DBE) in 1955 for services to hospitals and charity. Her lifelong fascination with Saint Helena and Napoleon led her to purchase The Briars, the pavilion where Napoleon had stayed, in 1959, and donate it to the
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs () is the ministry of the Government of France that handles France's foreign relations. Since 1855, its headquarters have been located at 37 Quai d'Orsay, close to the National Assembly. The term Qu ...
. The French Government appointed her as
Chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...
de la
Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
in 1960 in acknowledgement of her gift. She published ''St Helena Story'', an account of Napoleon's exile and his relationship with the Balcombes, in 1960. In 1967,
Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...
conferred an honorary LL.D. for her services to the
Queen Victoria Hospital The Queen Victoria Hospital (QVH), located in East Grinstead, West Sussex, England is the specialist reconstructive surgery centre for the south east of England, and also provides services at clinics across the region. It has become world-fam ...
, of which she was president. It had by that time become a Monash University teaching hospital. Dame Mabel Brookes published her memoirs in 1974 in which she recounted events in her life, including meeting many notable and historic people of the time. She died at South Yarra on 30 April 1975, aged 84, survived by two of her three daughters.
Sir Robert Menzies ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...
described her as 'one of the most remarkable women of our time', and that she possessed 'a beautiful organising mind.’


Writing career

Brookes was a published novelist and memoirist. She wrote the following works:


Novels

* ''Broken Idols''. Melbourne: Melville and Mullin, 1917. * ''On the Knees of the Gods''. Melbourne: Melville and Mullin, 1918. Illustrated by
Penleigh Boyd Theodore Penleigh Boyd (15 August 1890 – 27 November 1923) was a British born Australian artist. Penleigh Boyd was a member of the Boyd artistic dynasty: his parents Arthur Merric Boyd (1862–1940) and Emma Minnie Boyd (née à Beckett) ...
. * ''Old Desires''. Melbourne: Australasian Authors Agency, 1922. * Riders of time / Mabel Brookes ; with illustrations by Harold Freedman. 1967.


History

* ''St Helena Story''. London: Heinemann, 1960. Deals with Napoleon Bonaparte's internment on St Helena island and was introduced by Sir
Robert Menzies The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...
, former Prime Minister of Australia.


Memoir

* ''Crowded Galleries''. Melbourne: Heinemann, 1956. With chapters on tennis by Sir
Norman Brookes Sir Norman Everard Brookes (14 November 187728 September 1968) was an Australian tennis player. During his career he won three Grand Slam singles titles; Wimbledon in 1907 and 1914 (the first non-British individual to do so) and the Austral ...
, her husband and 1907 and 1914 winner of the
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
singles and doubles tennis tournament, and America's
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
. * ''Riders of Time''. Melbourne: Macmillan, 1967. * ''Memoirs''. Melbourne: Macmillan, 1974.


Book collecting

She built up a substantial collection of books with a focus on the
Elizabethan era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...
and Australiana. In 1959 she joined the Book Collectors Society of Australia and was later elected its President. Her Australiana books were auctioned in 1968, the sale catalogue containing 474 items. Among the highlights were the three volumes of ''
The Mammals of Australia ''The Mammals of Australia'' is a three-volume work written and published by John Gould between 1845–63. It contains 182 illustrations by the author and its artist H. C. Richter. It was intended to be a complete survey of the novel species of ma ...
'' (1845-1863) by
John Gould John Gould (; 14 September 1804 – 3 February 1881) was an English ornithologist. He published a number of monographs on birds, illustrated by plates produced by his wife, Elizabeth Gould, and several other artists, including Edward Lear, ...
.


References


External links

*
Australian Dictionary of Biography EntryOxford Dictionary of National BiographyAustLit Author Entry
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brookes, Mabel 1890 births 1975 deaths Activists from Melbourne Australian Anglicans Australian Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Australian humanitarians Women humanitarians Australian memoirists Australian socialites Australian women memoirists People of Saint Helenian descent 19th-century Australian women 20th-century Australian women 20th-century memoirists Australian book and manuscript collectors People from South Yarra, Victoria Writers from Melbourne