Alice Isaacs, Marchioness of Reading in 1918 by Bachrach Studios

Alice Edith Isaacs, Marchioness of Reading, (''née'' Cohen; – 30 January 1930) was the first wife of

Rufus Isaacs, 1st Marquess of Reading Rufus Daniel Isaacs, 1st Marquess of Reading, (10 October 1860 – 30 December 1935) was a British Liberal politician and judge, who served as Lord Chief Justice of England, Viceroy of India, and Foreign Secretary, the last Liberal to hold that ...

, and a prominent philanthropist in

colonial India Colonial India was the part of the Indian subcontinent that was occupied by European colonial powers during the Age of Discovery. European power was exerted both by conquest and trade, especially in spices. The search for the wealth and prosper ...

. Her husband served as

Viceroy and Governor-General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

, making her the Vicereine. Isaacs was born in London to a Jewish family. She was the third daughter of Albert Cohen, a merchant in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

, and his wife, Elizabeth. She married Rufus Isaacs, then a newly qualified

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

, on 8 December 1887. He had considered being a stockbroker but his wife encouraged him to pursue a career in law. He was ultimately Solicitor-General,

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

and

Lord Chief Justice Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

. Her title successively changed from Mrs Isaacs to Lady Isaacs on her husband's knighthood in 1910, Baroness Reading on his ennoblement in 1914, Viscountess Reading in 1916, the Countess of Reading in 1917, and finally the Marchioness of Reading in 1926. In 1921, Lord Reading was appointed Viceroy of India. He was reluctant to accept, as his wife's health was delicate, but she persuaded him. She accompanied him to India and, despite continuing poor health, served prominently as Viceregal Consort. She also threw herself into charitable work, particularly with Indian women and children. She established the Women of India Fund in 1921 and National Baby Week in 1923, as well as supporting many existing charities. In 1926 she campaigned to construct a standard hospital in

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

, in place of Agerton Hospital. The new hospital was subsequently named as

Lady Reading Hospital Lady Reading Hospital is located at Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan. It is also called ''Loye Huspatal'' (big hospital) and ''Gernali Huspatal''. It is named after Lady Reading, the wife of the Viceroy of India, Lord Reading. It ...

. Later, upon the retirement of her husband in 1926, they returned to England. She was appointed

Dame Grand Cross 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 o ...

(GBE) in the 1920 civilian war honours and

Companion of the Order of the Crown of India The Imperial Order of the Crown of India is an order in the British honours system. The Order was established by Queen Victoria when she became Empress of India in 1878. The Order was open only to women, and no appointments have been made since t ...

(CI) on 14 March 1921, the latter being a traditional honour for the Vicereine of India. She was awarded the

Kaiser-i-Hind Medal The Kaisar-i-Hind Medal for Public Service in India was a medal awarded by the Emperor/Empress of India between 1900 and 1947, to "any person without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex ... who shall have distinguished himself (o ...

in gold in 1924. She died of cancer in 1930, aged 64.

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reading, Alice Isaacs, Marchioness of 1860s births 1930 deaths British marchionesses British women in World War I Deaths from cancer in England English humanitarians English Jews English philanthropists People from the City of London Recipients of the Kaisar-i-Hind Medal Companions of the Order of the Crown of India Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Viceregal consorts of India Wives of knights