1 00:00:00,800 --> 00:00:04,400 Speaker 1: Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of I Heart Radio 2 00:00:04,640 --> 00:00:08,480 Speaker 1: and Grim and Mild from Aaron Manky listener discretion advised. 3 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:21,520 Speaker 1: In February eighteen, Britain's Postal Service released a collection of 4 00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:27,400 Speaker 1: stamps commemorating the one hundred year anniversary of women's suffrage 5 00:00:27,440 --> 00:00:31,760 Speaker 1: in the United Kingdom, if the puffed sleeves and cinched 6 00:00:31,880 --> 00:00:34,959 Speaker 1: waists in the black and white photos on the stamps 7 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 1: weren't an obvious indicator as to when the photos were taken, 8 00:00:38,880 --> 00:00:43,200 Speaker 1: the sea of sashes and protest signs makes the context 9 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:46,960 Speaker 1: pretty clear. But because the size of the stamps is 10 00:00:47,080 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 1: only a little bigger than an inch in either direction, 11 00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:56,200 Speaker 1: the captions below each photo are helpful at distinguishing specifically 12 00:00:56,400 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 1: what and whom we're looking at. Once damp reads the 13 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:05,440 Speaker 1: Great Pilgrimage of Suffragists, and it features a mass of 14 00:01:05,520 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 1: women standing shoulder to shoulder preparing to march in London 15 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:15,360 Speaker 1: for their cause. Another is titled Women's Freedom League Poster Parade, 16 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:19,000 Speaker 1: and it shows a procession of women holding signs. The 17 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:22,680 Speaker 1: women are being led in their parade by a young girl, 18 00:01:22,959 --> 00:01:26,399 Speaker 1: most likely no older than twelve. I should say the 19 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:31,039 Speaker 1: photos are all inspiring in a sort of non specific 20 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:37,160 Speaker 1: pleasant way. They're mostly nameless women, respectfully holding signs and 21 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:41,000 Speaker 1: gathering to assert their rights, and that makes sense when 22 00:01:41,080 --> 00:01:45,560 Speaker 1: thinking about how women suffrage is most often remembered. The 23 00:01:45,640 --> 00:01:49,680 Speaker 1: whole peaceful progress narrative just doesn't play as well next 24 00:01:49,720 --> 00:01:54,240 Speaker 1: to pictures of police brutality and the prison force feedings 25 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:58,560 Speaker 1: that those women were forced to endure. Today, the women's 26 00:01:58,680 --> 00:02:03,240 Speaker 1: right to vote is so lively accepted as an indisputable 27 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:07,360 Speaker 1: right that it's almost difficult to imagine the lengths to 28 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:12,520 Speaker 1: which the government once fought against women's suffrage. Looking back 29 00:02:12,760 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 1: one hundred years to the past, I think we like 30 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:22,440 Speaker 1: to imagine the fight as sanitized and simple, easy and inevitable, 31 00:02:22,960 --> 00:02:26,800 Speaker 1: which makes the inclusion of the second to last photo 32 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:32,840 Speaker 1: in the stamp collection all the more interesting. In that stamp, 33 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 1: a woman dressed in a floor length fur coat stands 34 00:02:37,560 --> 00:02:42,320 Speaker 1: on an empty sidewalk. A newspaper titled The Suffragette is 35 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:45,840 Speaker 1: held up in her right hand, with the headline propped 36 00:02:45,919 --> 00:02:49,640 Speaker 1: up on a poster to her left. That headline is 37 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:56,200 Speaker 1: just one word revolution. The stamps caption reads, Sophia do 38 00:02:56,400 --> 00:03:01,320 Speaker 1: Leep Singh sells the Suffragette and while it's technically true. 39 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:04,480 Speaker 1: It's enough to make you wonder in a collection of 40 00:03:04,600 --> 00:03:08,480 Speaker 1: photos of women gathered and masked, why is this single 41 00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:13,760 Speaker 1: woman recognized by name and given a stamp entirely her own? 42 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:18,720 Speaker 1: Well For starters, the caption buries the lead before its 43 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:23,959 Speaker 1: first word. The descriptor to this photo should read Princess 44 00:03:24,320 --> 00:03:28,840 Speaker 1: Sophia do leep singh sells The Suffragette and were character 45 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:33,240 Speaker 1: count not a factor? The small caption might also include 46 00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:37,760 Speaker 1: the fact that the seemingly nondescript sidewalk that the princess 47 00:03:37,800 --> 00:03:42,560 Speaker 1: is standing on was actually outside the grounds of Hampton Court, 48 00:03:42,920 --> 00:03:46,520 Speaker 1: where she had been granted an apartment by her godmother, 49 00:03:46,800 --> 00:03:54,160 Speaker 1: Queen Victoria. Contrary to the caption, Princess Sophia's main goal 50 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 1: outside Hampton Court that day was not just selling newsprint, 51 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:03,640 Speaker 1: at least east not the newspapers in her hand. Whether 52 00:04:03,760 --> 00:04:06,120 Speaker 1: or not she sold even a single copy of The 53 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:09,720 Speaker 1: Suffragette that day, the princess knew that pictures of her 54 00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:13,840 Speaker 1: trying would soon be gracing the gossip pages of every 55 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:18,479 Speaker 1: newspaper in London, and considering the fact that she's the 56 00:04:18,520 --> 00:04:22,320 Speaker 1: star of a women's suffrage publicity campaign a hundred years 57 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:26,880 Speaker 1: after the fact. She was absolutely correct about the power 58 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:32,040 Speaker 1: of her celebrity. But what I find especially satisfying about 59 00:04:32,120 --> 00:04:35,960 Speaker 1: Princess Sophia's stamp in the Royal Males collection is the 60 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:40,360 Speaker 1: implication her presence there brings with it. The other stamps 61 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:47,359 Speaker 1: show women protesting the quote unquote right way, peacefully marching, politely, 62 00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:51,040 Speaker 1: posing in sashes. Even the one photo of two women 63 00:04:51,160 --> 00:04:55,560 Speaker 1: being released from prison shows them smiling and waving from 64 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,919 Speaker 1: a flower covered carriage. And then there is Princess Sophia 65 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:05,840 Speaker 1: who is pictured selling newsprint advocating revolution. And it's a 66 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:11,760 Speaker 1: newspaper from an organization which had very publicly attacked, like 67 00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:18,120 Speaker 1: actually attacked with very real bombs, the Crown and its policies. 68 00:05:18,839 --> 00:05:22,880 Speaker 1: And she's doing so on the steps just outside her 69 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:28,440 Speaker 1: royal apartments given to her by her godmother, Queen Victoria. Now, 70 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:33,960 Speaker 1: nothing about the image itself spells out anything especially controversial, 71 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:37,760 Speaker 1: which makes it an ideal image for the Royal Male's 72 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:41,560 Speaker 1: portrayal of women's suffrage. But if you know your history, 73 00:05:42,080 --> 00:05:46,120 Speaker 1: you know that Sophia and her association with the suffragette 74 00:05:46,120 --> 00:05:51,239 Speaker 1: movement was enough to have the Crown seething for retribution. 75 00:05:52,279 --> 00:05:56,039 Speaker 1: The Indian princess, whose nation had been stolen by the 76 00:05:56,320 --> 00:05:59,400 Speaker 1: very country she had no choice but to call home, 77 00:06:00,240 --> 00:06:06,280 Speaker 1: had the power to shake this supposedly superior government with 78 00:06:06,480 --> 00:06:09,960 Speaker 1: just a bag of printed paper and a sandwich board. 79 00:06:10,960 --> 00:06:16,160 Speaker 1: The revolution, as written across her poster, was coming, and 80 00:06:16,360 --> 00:06:20,160 Speaker 1: Princess Sophia du leep Singh was ready to meet those 81 00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:25,160 Speaker 1: who tried to stop it head on. The reason Princess 82 00:06:25,160 --> 00:06:28,560 Speaker 1: Sophia Duleep Singh, daughter of the last Maharajah of the 83 00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:33,280 Speaker 1: Sikh Empire and god daughter to Queen Victoria, stood holding 84 00:06:33,279 --> 00:06:37,240 Speaker 1: out a copy of The Suffragette is most likely the 85 00:06:37,320 --> 00:06:41,880 Speaker 1: same reason her image was specifically highlighted by the royal nail. 86 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:48,080 Speaker 1: She was a true change maker, though from the outside 87 00:06:48,320 --> 00:06:51,560 Speaker 1: she may have given off the image of the demure 88 00:06:51,920 --> 00:06:57,560 Speaker 1: Indian princess quote unquote, her very existence was enough to 89 00:06:57,760 --> 00:07:02,120 Speaker 1: shake the British government to its core, a fact she 90 00:07:02,320 --> 00:07:07,279 Speaker 1: made sure to never let them forget. I'm Dana Schwartz 91 00:07:07,560 --> 00:07:18,720 Speaker 1: and this is noble blood. On a typical morning for 92 00:07:18,800 --> 00:07:22,360 Speaker 1: the dew Leep sing children, it was not uncommon to 93 00:07:22,520 --> 00:07:25,760 Speaker 1: stumble out of bed and glance out the window to 94 00:07:25,920 --> 00:07:29,480 Speaker 1: find one of their many servants chasing an exotic animal 95 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:34,880 Speaker 1: over the dew laden lawns of elevated In Hall in Suffolk, Sussex, England. 96 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:39,080 Speaker 1: The children's house may have lied on British soil, but 97 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 1: that had in no way stopped their father, Maharajah de 98 00:07:43,160 --> 00:07:47,400 Speaker 1: Leep Singh, from collecting a menagerie of wild animals from 99 00:07:47,440 --> 00:07:51,600 Speaker 1: his homeland and bringing them to their estate. Echoes of 100 00:07:51,680 --> 00:07:56,160 Speaker 1: India ran in abundance through eleviad In Hall, which under 101 00:07:56,200 --> 00:08:00,640 Speaker 1: the Maharajas order had been fully stripped, and Ramon to 102 00:08:00,800 --> 00:08:04,600 Speaker 1: emulate the stylings and culture he had been forbidden to 103 00:08:04,680 --> 00:08:09,119 Speaker 1: return to. Following the death of his father, the Lion 104 00:08:09,200 --> 00:08:13,600 Speaker 1: of Punjab, Ranjit Singh, and following the British East India 105 00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:17,640 Speaker 1: Company's annexation of the Punjab what we now consider to 106 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:21,920 Speaker 1: be India and Pakistan, the then eleven year old Maharajah 107 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:26,239 Speaker 1: was given little other choice than to emigrate to London. 108 00:08:27,120 --> 00:08:30,880 Speaker 1: Upon his arrival, Queen Victoria was quick to dote on him, 109 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:34,600 Speaker 1: and of course by dote I mean anglicize away all 110 00:08:34,679 --> 00:08:39,280 Speaker 1: traces of his Indian identity and convert him to Christianity. 111 00:08:39,360 --> 00:08:42,240 Speaker 1: It wouldn't be until the young royal was married and 112 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:45,800 Speaker 1: surrounded with children of his own, that he would stop 113 00:08:45,840 --> 00:08:49,640 Speaker 1: to reconsider everything he had been forced to leave behind. 114 00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:54,960 Speaker 1: After his sixteenth birthday, the Maharajah received a stipend of 115 00:08:55,040 --> 00:08:59,120 Speaker 1: twenty five thousand dollars a year, the equivalent of around 116 00:08:59,280 --> 00:09:04,400 Speaker 1: two point five million dollars today, which may seem exorbitant, 117 00:09:04,800 --> 00:09:07,800 Speaker 1: but in reality was a pittance compared to the amount 118 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:10,000 Speaker 1: of well he would have had had he still been 119 00:09:10,080 --> 00:09:15,240 Speaker 1: ruling his own kingdom. Predictably, as the years passed, his 120 00:09:15,360 --> 00:09:20,080 Speaker 1: resentments towards the British Crown grew and his expenses began 121 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:24,120 Speaker 1: to surpass the threshold of what the India Office was 122 00:09:24,160 --> 00:09:28,199 Speaker 1: willing to forgive. The upkeep for his exotic animal menagerie 123 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:32,439 Speaker 1: alone wasn't cheap, and neither was the top down renovations 124 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:37,319 Speaker 1: he had insisted upon at Elvidon Hall that, paired with 125 00:09:37,520 --> 00:09:41,880 Speaker 1: his unfortunate gambling habit, brought the de leep Singh family 126 00:09:42,080 --> 00:09:47,880 Speaker 1: to the brink of financial ruin. By eighteen five, Facing 127 00:09:47,920 --> 00:09:53,520 Speaker 1: bankruptcy and an irreparable reputation, the Maharajah told his family 128 00:09:53,679 --> 00:09:58,240 Speaker 1: to pack their bags. They were going home to India. 129 00:09:59,520 --> 00:10:02,800 Speaker 1: This was are from Duleep Singh's first attempt to return 130 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:07,439 Speaker 1: to India, but with the near constant surveillance as well 131 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:12,160 Speaker 1: as his monetary dependence on the British government, all previous 132 00:10:12,200 --> 00:10:17,040 Speaker 1: attempts had been stopped before they started. Considering the political 133 00:10:17,120 --> 00:10:21,640 Speaker 1: turmoil in the British Raj since the Maharaja's exile, it 134 00:10:21,720 --> 00:10:26,439 Speaker 1: was unsurprising that the British Crown was less than enthusiastic 135 00:10:26,880 --> 00:10:30,600 Speaker 1: about the idea of the son of India's beloved Lion 136 00:10:30,679 --> 00:10:35,640 Speaker 1: of the Punjab returning to his homeland. As such, it 137 00:10:35,800 --> 00:10:40,280 Speaker 1: was equally unsurprising that, despite the secretive nature of their 138 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:44,800 Speaker 1: attempted escape, the Maharajah and his family didn't make it 139 00:10:44,840 --> 00:10:49,679 Speaker 1: passed Egypt before they were stopped by British authorities. Ordered 140 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:53,679 Speaker 1: to return to England at once. Do Leip Singh acquiesced 141 00:10:53,840 --> 00:10:57,080 Speaker 1: to sending his wife and children on a Britain bound ship, 142 00:10:57,600 --> 00:11:02,080 Speaker 1: but he refused to board it himself. Instead, he watched 143 00:11:02,160 --> 00:11:05,240 Speaker 1: from the docks as his family sailed back to the 144 00:11:05,320 --> 00:11:09,439 Speaker 1: country that had taken everything from him, and he himself 145 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:14,200 Speaker 1: turned to board ship to France alone to start a 146 00:11:14,200 --> 00:11:20,040 Speaker 1: new life. Upon the Famili's returned to England, Dewleep Singh's 147 00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:25,840 Speaker 1: absence had Sophia's mother plummeting into a staggering depression, the 148 00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:29,559 Speaker 1: rest of the children clung on for any remaining semblance 149 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:34,720 Speaker 1: of familial stability. Little more than a year later, eleven 150 00:11:34,800 --> 00:11:39,959 Speaker 1: year old Sophia contracted typhoid. Her mother sat vigil at 151 00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:43,480 Speaker 1: her bedside during the night, but when the doctors came 152 00:11:43,520 --> 00:11:46,959 Speaker 1: to check on the young Sophia the next morning, they 153 00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:52,720 Speaker 1: found her mother dead at her bedside. Doctors eventually concluded 154 00:11:52,800 --> 00:11:57,880 Speaker 1: that she went into renal failure. Her recent bout of alcoholism, 155 00:11:57,960 --> 00:12:02,160 Speaker 1: combined with the stress relating to her ailing daughter and 156 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:06,120 Speaker 1: absentee husband, proved to be too much for her body 157 00:12:06,160 --> 00:12:12,240 Speaker 1: to handle. Regardless, Sophia and her siblings were now parentless 158 00:12:12,240 --> 00:12:16,040 Speaker 1: in a country that was never supposed to be their homeland. 159 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:19,720 Speaker 1: The princess would go on to spend her formative years 160 00:12:19,760 --> 00:12:25,720 Speaker 1: in houses of British aristocracy until eighteen, when Queen Victoria 161 00:12:25,840 --> 00:12:29,959 Speaker 1: granted her and her sisters a Grace and Favor apartment 162 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:34,920 Speaker 1: in Hampton Court in London. It was there Princess Sophia 163 00:12:35,040 --> 00:12:38,720 Speaker 1: would truly have her first taste of freedom from outside 164 00:12:38,760 --> 00:12:41,880 Speaker 1: the near constant surveillance that she had been kept under 165 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:46,040 Speaker 1: since her mother died. After years of receiving a quote 166 00:12:46,120 --> 00:12:51,640 Speaker 1: unquote proper English education, culminating in a Britain ask debut 167 00:12:51,760 --> 00:12:56,880 Speaker 1: into society with the white gowns and ostrich feathers, Sophia 168 00:12:56,960 --> 00:13:00,560 Speaker 1: took to her freedom with newfound vigor. Thanks to the 169 00:13:00,640 --> 00:13:04,880 Speaker 1: attention garnered by her debut, The Princess was a common 170 00:13:04,920 --> 00:13:10,559 Speaker 1: staple at London's most exclusive social gatherings, each host clamoring 171 00:13:10,600 --> 00:13:14,360 Speaker 1: to boast their connection to the young Indian royal. The 172 00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:18,600 Speaker 1: god daughter of Queen Victoria, She was often seen wearing 173 00:13:18,679 --> 00:13:23,320 Speaker 1: the newest fashions in the finest fabrics, the walking envy 174 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:27,120 Speaker 1: of every British socialite, and when she wasn't the talk 175 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:31,439 Speaker 1: of London's nightlife, Sophia still managed to grab headlines with 176 00:13:31,520 --> 00:13:37,920 Speaker 1: her ever expanding list of unorthodox hobbies, despite the rumors 177 00:13:38,040 --> 00:13:42,360 Speaker 1: associated with its ill effect on a woman's reproductive help. 178 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:48,120 Speaker 1: Sophia became an avid cyclist, procuring the latest equipment and 179 00:13:48,720 --> 00:13:53,240 Speaker 1: often traversing the short distance between Hampton Court and Richmond Park, 180 00:13:53,720 --> 00:13:59,280 Speaker 1: while to the horror of many un chaperoned. She also 181 00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:03,000 Speaker 1: carried on her father's love of animals with her own 182 00:14:03,120 --> 00:14:06,520 Speaker 1: pack of show dogs that she took pride in breeding 183 00:14:06,720 --> 00:14:11,000 Speaker 1: for competitions at any time. The air in her home 184 00:14:11,360 --> 00:14:16,240 Speaker 1: was a chaotic blend of dog for and imported foreign tobacco, 185 00:14:17,120 --> 00:14:19,840 Speaker 1: which didn't take too long too great on the other 186 00:14:20,000 --> 00:14:25,760 Speaker 1: two de leep sing daughters. Sophia's sisters, Bomba and Caroline, 187 00:14:26,160 --> 00:14:30,440 Speaker 1: were famously critical of their younger sister's fondness for her 188 00:14:30,520 --> 00:14:35,840 Speaker 1: small brood of animal companions, But despite Hampton Court technically 189 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:39,520 Speaker 1: being their shared residence, the sisters never made a habit 190 00:14:39,600 --> 00:14:43,640 Speaker 1: of staying around long enough to call at home. Caroline 191 00:14:43,840 --> 00:14:48,000 Speaker 1: followed their former governess abroad to Germany, while Bomba traveled 192 00:14:48,040 --> 00:14:51,200 Speaker 1: to the United States to go to medical school in Chicago. 193 00:14:52,080 --> 00:14:56,600 Speaker 1: That was until Northwestern University decided women weren't fit to 194 00:14:56,680 --> 00:15:02,600 Speaker 1: study medicine, citing quote women men cannot grasp chemical laboratory 195 00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:07,760 Speaker 1: work or the intricacies of surgery. But considering this was 196 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:12,120 Speaker 1: the same generation of scientists that believed a bicycle seat 197 00:15:12,200 --> 00:15:15,640 Speaker 1: would be detrimental to a woman's reproductive health, I think 198 00:15:15,720 --> 00:15:20,200 Speaker 1: it's safe to assume the scientific basis for their prejudice 199 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:23,320 Speaker 1: may have had less to do with evidence and more 200 00:15:23,480 --> 00:15:28,600 Speaker 1: with a few fragile male egos. Regardless When Bamba do 201 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:33,240 Speaker 1: Leap Sing reluctantly returned to Hampton Court, it was with 202 00:15:33,640 --> 00:15:36,800 Speaker 1: heaviness in her step. The event that had led her 203 00:15:36,880 --> 00:15:40,680 Speaker 1: back to Britain obviously weighed painfully on her mind, but 204 00:15:40,800 --> 00:15:44,560 Speaker 1: Sophia was intent on bringing her sister out of her slump. 205 00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:49,080 Speaker 1: Sophia may not have been old enough to fully understand 206 00:15:49,160 --> 00:15:52,360 Speaker 1: the extent of her mother's depression after their father had 207 00:15:52,400 --> 00:15:57,000 Speaker 1: abandoned them, but her sister Bomba's discontent was not something 208 00:15:57,120 --> 00:16:00,280 Speaker 1: she could stand to watch fester. The day is at 209 00:16:00,320 --> 00:16:03,360 Speaker 1: Hampton Court were leaching the life out of her sister, 210 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:07,920 Speaker 1: and so Sophia said about achieving what their father had 211 00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:10,680 Speaker 1: never been able to do. She was going to bring 212 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:14,600 Speaker 1: them back to India. In the end, she found that 213 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:18,560 Speaker 1: it would be easier to ask forgiveness than permission. The 214 00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:22,760 Speaker 1: sisters told no one of their plans, and possibly even 215 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:27,040 Speaker 1: used false names to gain passage to the homeland they 216 00:16:27,080 --> 00:16:32,200 Speaker 1: had never known. When they finally arrived and Princess Sophia 217 00:16:32,360 --> 00:16:36,000 Speaker 1: descended the ship's steps and finally set her feet on 218 00:16:36,200 --> 00:16:40,160 Speaker 1: Indian soil for the first time in her life, she 219 00:16:40,320 --> 00:16:44,720 Speaker 1: had expected something to happen. She had at least expected 220 00:16:44,800 --> 00:16:49,000 Speaker 1: to be acknowledged, considering she and her sister had just 221 00:16:49,240 --> 00:16:53,480 Speaker 1: illegally gained passage to the one country on Earth she 222 00:16:53,600 --> 00:16:56,560 Speaker 1: and her family had been expressly forbidden to travel to 223 00:16:56,800 --> 00:17:00,560 Speaker 1: since before she was born. She expected some sort of 224 00:17:00,720 --> 00:17:05,720 Speaker 1: reprimand once the British authorities pieced together their whereabouts, But 225 00:17:05,840 --> 00:17:08,680 Speaker 1: when she stepped off the ship, the only thing to 226 00:17:08,800 --> 00:17:13,480 Speaker 1: meet her, along with the blistering Indian heat, was the 227 00:17:13,680 --> 00:17:19,480 Speaker 1: cool air of English indifference. The authorities had certainly taken 228 00:17:19,560 --> 00:17:23,840 Speaker 1: note of the princess's arrivals, but had opted to ignore 229 00:17:23,960 --> 00:17:28,800 Speaker 1: them and their disobedience altogether. This meant, rather than providing 230 00:17:28,960 --> 00:17:32,040 Speaker 1: a guide to the English speaking sisters, as would have 231 00:17:32,080 --> 00:17:35,600 Speaker 1: been customary for anyone else of their name and rank, 232 00:17:36,160 --> 00:17:39,840 Speaker 1: the deleep Singh princesses were now forced to embark on 233 00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:44,160 Speaker 1: their travels alone, and while the Crown may have felt 234 00:17:44,240 --> 00:17:49,120 Speaker 1: vindicated in their passive aggression, it unfortunately had the inverse 235 00:17:49,160 --> 00:17:53,560 Speaker 1: effect of exposing Sophia and her sisters to parts of 236 00:17:53,680 --> 00:17:58,639 Speaker 1: India that didn't necessarily look kindly upon British rule. For 237 00:17:58,840 --> 00:18:02,200 Speaker 1: the first time in her life, Sophia was welcomed into 238 00:18:02,359 --> 00:18:08,040 Speaker 1: rooms not as the quote exotic Indian princess, but as 239 00:18:08,119 --> 00:18:12,720 Speaker 1: the granddaughter of their beloved Raj Singh, the stairs in 240 00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:15,760 Speaker 1: her direction were not due to the color of her skin, 241 00:18:16,320 --> 00:18:22,439 Speaker 1: but the blood in her veins. Despite the language barrier, 242 00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:26,119 Speaker 1: Sophia took every moment she could to learn more about 243 00:18:26,200 --> 00:18:29,920 Speaker 1: her country and its history. It was during this first 244 00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:33,240 Speaker 1: trip to India that the princess learned of the poverty 245 00:18:33,440 --> 00:18:37,040 Speaker 1: and plague her people had been subjected to under British rule. 246 00:18:37,920 --> 00:18:40,359 Speaker 1: The version of history that she had been given in 247 00:18:40,480 --> 00:18:44,679 Speaker 1: the halls of a Buckinghamshire estate were wildly different from 248 00:18:44,720 --> 00:18:47,400 Speaker 1: what she was learning as she rode on horseback through 249 00:18:47,480 --> 00:18:51,760 Speaker 1: the Punjabi countryside. She was now determined to find out 250 00:18:51,840 --> 00:18:57,120 Speaker 1: the truth for herself. When Sophia eventually made her way 251 00:18:57,160 --> 00:19:01,360 Speaker 1: back to England, she found the extravagant gowns cluttering her 252 00:19:01,440 --> 00:19:04,919 Speaker 1: closet begging to be worn to the countless social events 253 00:19:05,400 --> 00:19:08,720 Speaker 1: no longer brought her the same joy they once had. 254 00:19:09,920 --> 00:19:12,760 Speaker 1: Even though she had been born and raised in England, 255 00:19:13,480 --> 00:19:17,199 Speaker 1: she had always known it was not her home, not really. 256 00:19:18,200 --> 00:19:21,879 Speaker 1: But it was one thing to understand that concept, and 257 00:19:22,040 --> 00:19:26,119 Speaker 1: another thing entirely to be so blatantly confronted with the 258 00:19:26,240 --> 00:19:29,560 Speaker 1: inequity and destruction that had trailed in the wake of 259 00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:34,119 Speaker 1: the British rule in her homeland, and even more infuriating 260 00:19:34,720 --> 00:19:37,639 Speaker 1: in theory. She was in a position of power, and 261 00:19:37,840 --> 00:19:41,800 Speaker 1: yet she found herself powerless to affect any meaningful change 262 00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:45,440 Speaker 1: for the people that she had met overseas. Pomp and 263 00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:51,280 Speaker 1: pageantry of her life suddenly felt so insignificant. She needed 264 00:19:51,400 --> 00:19:55,680 Speaker 1: to do something. It was with that fire that in 265 00:19:56,600 --> 00:20:00,440 Speaker 1: h eight, Princess Sophia found herself walking into the home 266 00:20:00,920 --> 00:20:04,520 Speaker 1: of one Una Dugdale, a woman holding a meeting for 267 00:20:04,680 --> 00:20:09,920 Speaker 1: a group called the Women's Social and Political Union. Sophia 268 00:20:10,040 --> 00:20:14,680 Speaker 1: watched as the woman spoke her impassioned tone, boldly declaring 269 00:20:14,800 --> 00:20:19,240 Speaker 1: the necessity for progress in their country, for equal rights 270 00:20:19,480 --> 00:20:25,119 Speaker 1: and equal representation, for the women's right to vote. Una 271 00:20:25,320 --> 00:20:29,280 Speaker 1: described a movement of like minds, a group tired of 272 00:20:29,359 --> 00:20:33,560 Speaker 1: waiting for permission to take up space, and when Sophia 273 00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:37,040 Speaker 1: went home that night, for once, she didn't spare a 274 00:20:37,119 --> 00:20:40,480 Speaker 1: thought for the countless gowns that no longer fit the 275 00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:44,560 Speaker 1: person she had become. For the first time since her 276 00:20:44,640 --> 00:20:49,960 Speaker 1: return from India, Princess Sophia do Leep Singh felt that 277 00:20:50,119 --> 00:20:57,399 Speaker 1: she had found a home. Before we continue, I just 278 00:20:57,480 --> 00:20:59,600 Speaker 1: want to make a quick note that from here on 279 00:20:59,680 --> 00:21:03,360 Speaker 1: out I'll be using the term suffragette rather than suffragist, 280 00:21:04,080 --> 00:21:07,960 Speaker 1: simply because that was how Sophia referred to herself, and 281 00:21:08,240 --> 00:21:10,919 Speaker 1: I think in telling her story, it's important to use 282 00:21:11,000 --> 00:21:15,399 Speaker 1: the language that she identified with. Now back to that story. 283 00:21:16,320 --> 00:21:21,119 Speaker 1: From that day forward, Sophia became a devout supporter of 284 00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:26,560 Speaker 1: the Women's Social and Political Union, or WSPU, throwing all 285 00:21:26,640 --> 00:21:30,160 Speaker 1: of her efforts into fundraising for the cause. It didn't 286 00:21:30,200 --> 00:21:33,399 Speaker 1: take long for the organization to take an interest in 287 00:21:33,480 --> 00:21:37,920 Speaker 1: the Royal Suffragette, and soon Emmiline Pankhurst was asking to 288 00:21:38,200 --> 00:21:43,880 Speaker 1: use Sophia's image strategically to promote their message. The princess 289 00:21:43,960 --> 00:21:47,720 Speaker 1: didn't have to think twice. Amidst the reports of hunger 290 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:51,720 Speaker 1: strikes and subsequent force feedings coming out of the prisons, 291 00:21:52,240 --> 00:21:55,119 Speaker 1: Sophia was more than ready to be put on the 292 00:21:55,240 --> 00:21:59,560 Speaker 1: front lines. Though as excited as she was to show 293 00:21:59,680 --> 00:22:03,680 Speaker 1: her port for the w SPU, even she could not 294 00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:07,359 Speaker 1: have predicted the horror of what was to come. On 295 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:13,399 Speaker 1: November eighth, the streets outside Caxton Hall were cold and 296 00:22:13,600 --> 00:22:17,360 Speaker 1: wet in the late autumn morning, As more and more 297 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:21,480 Speaker 1: women gathered in the narrow street, the energy between them 298 00:22:21,600 --> 00:22:26,560 Speaker 1: crackled through the dreary London fog. Only a week before, 299 00:22:27,160 --> 00:22:30,720 Speaker 1: Pinkhurst had stood at the head of Albert Hall and 300 00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:37,720 Speaker 1: addressed her legion of supporters with grave news. The Conciliation Bill, 301 00:22:38,320 --> 00:22:42,280 Speaker 1: which the w SPU had been working on tirelessly for months, 302 00:22:43,160 --> 00:22:46,399 Speaker 1: was on the brink of failure after a letter leaked 303 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:50,960 Speaker 1: from the Prime Minister outlining his intentions to quash the 304 00:22:51,080 --> 00:22:55,960 Speaker 1: bill before it could pass through Parliament. Quote if the bill, 305 00:22:56,160 --> 00:22:59,360 Speaker 1: in spite of our efforts, is killed by the government, 306 00:23:00,080 --> 00:23:03,240 Speaker 1: then first of all I have to say there is 307 00:23:03,280 --> 00:23:08,360 Speaker 1: an end of the truce. Pink Hurst's anger echoed through 308 00:23:08,400 --> 00:23:11,240 Speaker 1: the hall she was speaking at, and when she declared 309 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,280 Speaker 1: her intention to beat down the doors to the House 310 00:23:14,359 --> 00:23:18,960 Speaker 1: of Commons, the roar of the crowd support was deafening. 311 00:23:20,040 --> 00:23:24,200 Speaker 1: A week later, Sophia walked alongside pink Hurst at the 312 00:23:24,320 --> 00:23:28,760 Speaker 1: head of the three person strong procession to the House 313 00:23:28,840 --> 00:23:33,639 Speaker 1: of Commons. Sophia was next to eight other women purposefully 314 00:23:33,760 --> 00:23:37,840 Speaker 1: chosen to signify the face of the women's suffrage movement. 315 00:23:39,160 --> 00:23:44,120 Speaker 1: The morning's tension only grew as the protesters poured steadily 316 00:23:44,600 --> 00:23:49,440 Speaker 1: into Parliament Square. Sophia continued to put one foot in 317 00:23:49,560 --> 00:23:52,600 Speaker 1: front of the other, but it was difficult to ignore 318 00:23:52,680 --> 00:23:56,440 Speaker 1: the stairs of the police and civilian men who had 319 00:23:56,480 --> 00:24:06,720 Speaker 1: been awaiting their arrival. Pankhurst's group managed to summit the 320 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:11,240 Speaker 1: steps to Saint Stephen's Gate, the last obstacle between them 321 00:24:11,400 --> 00:24:15,200 Speaker 1: and Parliament, But as Sophia turned to look back on 322 00:24:15,320 --> 00:24:19,680 Speaker 1: her sisters and arms beside her, the cheers she thought 323 00:24:19,800 --> 00:24:24,080 Speaker 1: she heard suddenly sent chills of horror down her spine. 324 00:24:24,920 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 1: By the time Big Ben struck twelve noon, all hell 325 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:33,440 Speaker 1: had broken loose. The events of this day would go 326 00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:36,960 Speaker 1: on to live in infamy under the name Black Friday, 327 00:24:37,800 --> 00:24:41,520 Speaker 1: a well deserved moniker for possibly one of the darkest 328 00:24:41,640 --> 00:24:46,000 Speaker 1: days for the women's suffrage movement in Great Britain. For 329 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:52,080 Speaker 1: the following six hours, police would attack the suffragettes, throwing 330 00:24:52,200 --> 00:24:56,200 Speaker 1: them to the ground with excessive force and sexually assaulting 331 00:24:56,320 --> 00:24:59,200 Speaker 1: those who had the nerve to stand back up. There 332 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:05,400 Speaker 1: were numerous reports of policemen and plainclothes officers groping women's breasts, 333 00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:09,119 Speaker 1: a practice which at the time was widely believed to 334 00:25:09,200 --> 00:25:14,560 Speaker 1: cause breast cancer. Others would recall being tossed between officers, 335 00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:19,440 Speaker 1: having their clothes ripped and dislodged as they fought and 336 00:25:19,720 --> 00:25:24,720 Speaker 1: clawed back in self defense. Meanwhile, at St. Stephen's Gate, 337 00:25:25,200 --> 00:25:28,119 Speaker 1: Sophia and her cohort were trapped by a line of 338 00:25:28,200 --> 00:25:33,119 Speaker 1: policemen blocking their way back into the square. Pankhurst yelled 339 00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:36,080 Speaker 1: herself horse in an attempt to get the police to 340 00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:39,840 Speaker 1: rein in their men, while another woman in their party, 341 00:25:39,880 --> 00:25:43,600 Speaker 1: who rode alongside them on horseback, took matters into her 342 00:25:43,640 --> 00:25:47,359 Speaker 1: own hands. She broke the line by riding her horse 343 00:25:47,480 --> 00:25:51,240 Speaker 1: through the officers, taking down as many as she could 344 00:25:51,680 --> 00:25:56,399 Speaker 1: with her riding crop. Sophia had just enough time to 345 00:25:56,560 --> 00:25:59,760 Speaker 1: watch her friend be pulled from her horse before she 346 00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:02,960 Speaker 1: managed to break through the line of police herself and 347 00:26:03,160 --> 00:26:07,879 Speaker 1: run headfirst into the fray. The brutality from Afar had 348 00:26:07,960 --> 00:26:12,359 Speaker 1: been horrifying, but once within the chaos, the reality was 349 00:26:12,560 --> 00:26:16,920 Speaker 1: much more gruesome. She watched a woman near her bethrown 350 00:26:17,040 --> 00:26:20,880 Speaker 1: to the ground by an officer multiple times, each blow 351 00:26:21,200 --> 00:26:23,680 Speaker 1: making it more difficult for the woman to stay on 352 00:26:23,760 --> 00:26:27,320 Speaker 1: her feet. When Sophia could no longer stand to watch, 353 00:26:27,840 --> 00:26:30,840 Speaker 1: she pushed her way through the crowd and placed herself 354 00:26:31,040 --> 00:26:34,639 Speaker 1: between the two, demanding that the police officer stop his 355 00:26:34,760 --> 00:26:39,160 Speaker 1: abuse immediately. Now it should be noted that it barely 356 00:26:39,280 --> 00:26:44,080 Speaker 1: taller than five ft. The princess was hardly an imposing figure, 357 00:26:44,760 --> 00:26:47,440 Speaker 1: but when the officer finally stopped to take in who 358 00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:51,399 Speaker 1: had stopped him, he didn't think twice before running in 359 00:26:51,520 --> 00:26:56,119 Speaker 1: the opposite direction. Princess Sophia's face was a staple in 360 00:26:56,320 --> 00:26:59,240 Speaker 1: all the London papers, and even if she was not 361 00:26:59,400 --> 00:27:04,600 Speaker 1: the most physically intimidating figure, her social status alone was 362 00:27:04,800 --> 00:27:08,120 Speaker 1: enough to make the power that the police officer flaunted 363 00:27:08,280 --> 00:27:13,919 Speaker 1: so gratuitously just moments earlier wither away into dust after 364 00:27:14,240 --> 00:27:18,760 Speaker 1: she had gotten his badge number. He was Constable V 365 00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:26,080 Speaker 1: seven hundred. Unfortunately, despite Sophia's quick thinking, Constable V seven 366 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:29,840 Speaker 1: hundred would not be charged with any sort of crime 367 00:27:29,960 --> 00:27:33,920 Speaker 1: for the atrocities committed on Black Friday, nor would any 368 00:27:34,040 --> 00:27:38,640 Speaker 1: of the officers responsible for the Wanton bloodshed. The Home 369 00:27:38,760 --> 00:27:43,800 Speaker 1: Secretary at the time, a relatively young Winston Churchill, issued 370 00:27:43,840 --> 00:27:46,560 Speaker 1: a statement saying that they would not be charging the 371 00:27:46,680 --> 00:27:50,399 Speaker 1: officers with any offenses which may have taken place, since 372 00:27:50,480 --> 00:27:54,840 Speaker 1: all charges against those suffragettes arrested that day had also 373 00:27:54,960 --> 00:27:58,879 Speaker 1: been dropped, as if that evened the score. For weeks 374 00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:02,320 Speaker 1: following the event, Sophia wrote to the Office of the 375 00:28:02,400 --> 00:28:08,320 Speaker 1: Home Secretary, citing specific events she witnessed and demanding justice 376 00:28:08,400 --> 00:28:13,400 Speaker 1: be handed down. Eventually, Churchill got so tired of receiving 377 00:28:13,520 --> 00:28:16,840 Speaker 1: mail from the princess that he had his office flag 378 00:28:17,040 --> 00:28:20,359 Speaker 1: her name so no further postage from her would make 379 00:28:20,400 --> 00:28:24,359 Speaker 1: its way to her desk, as if she could be ignored. 380 00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:37,000 Speaker 1: After the events of Black Friday, the Princess's involvement in 381 00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:43,000 Speaker 1: the WSPU only continued to grow. The following February, on 382 00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:45,280 Speaker 1: the day the King was said to make a speech 383 00:28:45,360 --> 00:28:50,400 Speaker 1: to Parliament, Sophia participated in a coordinated protest where she 384 00:28:50,600 --> 00:28:53,560 Speaker 1: jumped in front of the Prime Minister's car holding a 385 00:28:53,680 --> 00:28:58,080 Speaker 1: banner which read give women the Vote. After being hauled 386 00:28:58,120 --> 00:29:02,400 Speaker 1: away by police, the authority parties contemplated taking further action 387 00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:06,840 Speaker 1: against the princess, but they ultimately decided against it. The 388 00:29:06,960 --> 00:29:09,360 Speaker 1: King's speech was meant to be the story in the 389 00:29:09,440 --> 00:29:13,400 Speaker 1: papers the following day, not the arrest of Queen Victoria's 390 00:29:13,440 --> 00:29:17,040 Speaker 1: god daughter, and so much to the chagrin of the 391 00:29:17,120 --> 00:29:22,239 Speaker 1: Prime Minister, the princess was allowed to walk free. By 392 00:29:22,320 --> 00:29:25,440 Speaker 1: this point, the British government was more than ready to 393 00:29:25,640 --> 00:29:30,040 Speaker 1: reprimand the royal pain in their sides, but prison time 394 00:29:30,120 --> 00:29:34,160 Speaker 1: for the princess remained out of the question. The reports 395 00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:38,000 Speaker 1: of force feedings and abuse within the prison system would 396 00:29:38,000 --> 00:29:40,840 Speaker 1: have only acted to make the Princess a murtyr, something 397 00:29:40,960 --> 00:29:44,240 Speaker 1: the Crown could not afford in their ongoing fight against 398 00:29:44,320 --> 00:29:48,960 Speaker 1: the suffrage movement. Instead, they chose to punish her through 399 00:29:49,040 --> 00:29:54,440 Speaker 1: the most public legal channel they possessed. After years of 400 00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:59,520 Speaker 1: participating in public protests and proudly defying the government in 401 00:29:59,600 --> 00:30:04,960 Speaker 1: the name of women's suffrage, in June nine eleven, Princess 402 00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:09,440 Speaker 1: Sophia finally received a court summons for her failure to 403 00:30:09,560 --> 00:30:14,280 Speaker 1: pay the licensing fees for her dogs. Scandalous, I know. 404 00:30:15,480 --> 00:30:19,880 Speaker 1: In reality, her lack of proper canine documentation was a 405 00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:23,720 Speaker 1: mere bullet point in the lengthy list of taxes the 406 00:30:23,840 --> 00:30:28,800 Speaker 1: princess was refusing to pay. Sophia was an ardent supporter 407 00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:32,440 Speaker 1: of the Women's Tax Resistance League, which had taken to 408 00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:38,640 Speaker 1: adopting the Americans Revolutionary War slogan no taxation without representation. 409 00:30:39,680 --> 00:30:43,760 Speaker 1: Just a few weeks previously, another suffragette had been arrested 410 00:30:43,840 --> 00:30:48,200 Speaker 1: for her tax in subordination, and Sophia was prepared to 411 00:30:48,280 --> 00:30:51,840 Speaker 1: be led away in handcuffs as well. The court, however, 412 00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:57,120 Speaker 1: was set on taking a different approach. Two weeks after 413 00:30:57,240 --> 00:31:01,720 Speaker 1: her court summons, bailiffs arrived at Empton Court with a warrant. 414 00:31:02,520 --> 00:31:06,040 Speaker 1: They warned Sophia, should she once again refuse to pay 415 00:31:06,160 --> 00:31:09,440 Speaker 1: her fines, they would be forced to enter her home 416 00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:13,200 Speaker 1: and find goods which they could auction off to compensate 417 00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:18,200 Speaker 1: for her debts. The princess kindly informed the officers that 418 00:31:18,400 --> 00:31:21,640 Speaker 1: she would be happy to pay once women had the 419 00:31:21,800 --> 00:31:26,360 Speaker 1: right to vote. Predictably, this didn't sit well with the bailiffs, 420 00:31:26,800 --> 00:31:30,360 Speaker 1: who proceeded to raid her home and take a seven 421 00:31:30,680 --> 00:31:34,920 Speaker 1: stone diamond ring from her collection of jewels, the value 422 00:31:35,040 --> 00:31:38,840 Speaker 1: of which far surpassed the sum of her finds. But 423 00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:41,880 Speaker 1: when the ring was set to be auctioned off a 424 00:31:42,000 --> 00:31:46,640 Speaker 1: little over a month later, this time, Sophia was not alone. 425 00:31:47,560 --> 00:31:50,840 Speaker 1: By the time the auction began, the room was filled 426 00:31:51,360 --> 00:31:55,800 Speaker 1: wall to wall with suffragettes waiting for the moment the 427 00:31:55,920 --> 00:31:58,960 Speaker 1: ring would be brought to the stage. When the seven 428 00:31:59,080 --> 00:32:02,960 Speaker 1: diamonds finally glinted from the front of the hall, the 429 00:32:03,120 --> 00:32:09,680 Speaker 1: auctioneer opened the bidding to absolutely no response. A smug 430 00:32:10,120 --> 00:32:14,640 Speaker 1: silence settled over the room as the auctioneer was repeatedly 431 00:32:14,800 --> 00:32:20,840 Speaker 1: forced to place the starting bid lower and lower. Only 432 00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:25,400 Speaker 1: when he reduced the starting price to ten pounds did 433 00:32:25,440 --> 00:32:29,280 Speaker 1: a woman finally raise her hand. I like to imagine 434 00:32:29,320 --> 00:32:32,960 Speaker 1: the auctioneer never swung a gavel so fast in his life. 435 00:32:34,000 --> 00:32:36,920 Speaker 1: As soon as the ring was paid for, the woman 436 00:32:37,000 --> 00:32:40,640 Speaker 1: in question placed the ring in Sophia's palm, to the 437 00:32:40,800 --> 00:32:45,920 Speaker 1: uproarious cheers of the suffragettes around them. The government's efforts 438 00:32:46,000 --> 00:32:50,240 Speaker 1: to make an example of their royal suffragette only served 439 00:32:50,320 --> 00:33:00,840 Speaker 1: to make her burn brighter. Over the next few years, 440 00:33:01,120 --> 00:33:06,120 Speaker 1: Sophia's dedication to the cause remained unwavering, even as those 441 00:33:06,200 --> 00:33:11,800 Speaker 1: around her began to falter. By thirteen, the actions of 442 00:33:11,920 --> 00:33:19,200 Speaker 1: the WSPU had gone from civil disobedience to arson bombings 443 00:33:19,440 --> 00:33:26,360 Speaker 1: and rather ironic considering their ten commemoration the destruction of mail. 444 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:29,400 Speaker 1: Now I want to be on the record and say 445 00:33:29,520 --> 00:33:33,360 Speaker 1: I do not support arson bombings or the destruction of mail, 446 00:33:33,640 --> 00:33:36,880 Speaker 1: no matter how ironic the destruction of mail is. But 447 00:33:37,200 --> 00:33:41,120 Speaker 1: for better or for worse, Sophia was steadfast and her 448 00:33:41,160 --> 00:33:45,240 Speaker 1: support of the w s p u s efforts. The 449 00:33:45,360 --> 00:33:49,440 Speaker 1: princess may have loathed public speaking, but she offered to 450 00:33:49,520 --> 00:33:53,440 Speaker 1: stand on stage next to Pankers to amplify her support 451 00:33:53,520 --> 00:33:56,520 Speaker 1: for the cause whenever she would have her. This was 452 00:33:56,640 --> 00:33:59,920 Speaker 1: also around the time she would begin to stand outside 453 00:34:00,160 --> 00:34:03,520 Speaker 1: her residence at Hampton Court with a satchel full of 454 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:09,000 Speaker 1: copies of the Suffragette newspaper. With the w SPUs methods 455 00:34:09,120 --> 00:34:12,719 Speaker 1: resorting to more and more violent action by the day, 456 00:34:13,400 --> 00:34:18,000 Speaker 1: Sophia continued to use her image to bolster support even 457 00:34:18,080 --> 00:34:22,759 Speaker 1: when they're formerly ardent supporters began to desert them. But 458 00:34:22,960 --> 00:34:26,200 Speaker 1: just as tensions between the British government and the w 459 00:34:26,600 --> 00:34:32,960 Speaker 1: SPU threatened to reach a boiling point in June nineteen fourteen, 460 00:34:33,520 --> 00:34:37,360 Speaker 1: a bullet was fired in Sarajevo and not even the 461 00:34:37,640 --> 00:34:46,000 Speaker 1: w SPU could dodge the collateral damage. In the wake 462 00:34:46,200 --> 00:34:50,680 Speaker 1: of World War One, the w SPU immediately stalled their 463 00:34:50,719 --> 00:34:54,320 Speaker 1: practices so they could help contribute to the war effort. 464 00:34:55,239 --> 00:34:58,399 Speaker 1: The hard stop was difficult for some of the Suffragettes 465 00:34:58,480 --> 00:35:02,160 Speaker 1: to take, but so Fia easily pivoted to her new 466 00:35:02,280 --> 00:35:07,879 Speaker 1: line of work. By nineteen fifteen, Sophia was volunteering as 467 00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:11,839 Speaker 1: a nurse for the British Red Cross in Brighton, after 468 00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:16,080 Speaker 1: having spent so many months abroad. Wounded Punjabi men coming 469 00:35:16,160 --> 00:35:19,680 Speaker 1: off the front lines found themselves comforted by the site 470 00:35:19,760 --> 00:35:23,440 Speaker 1: of familiar brown skin, but no doubt, they quickly became 471 00:35:23,600 --> 00:35:27,040 Speaker 1: flustered at the realization that their wounds were being tended 472 00:35:27,320 --> 00:35:31,800 Speaker 1: by the granddaughter of their beloved Ragitet Singh. When the 473 00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:35,360 Speaker 1: Princess could, she presented some of the injured men with 474 00:35:35,600 --> 00:35:40,040 Speaker 1: small carvings of ivory to take home, keepsakes meant to 475 00:35:40,200 --> 00:35:44,320 Speaker 1: brighten the dreary realities that the war held over their heads. 476 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:49,240 Speaker 1: Putting her image to use. In nine seventeen, Princess Sophia 477 00:35:49,480 --> 00:35:55,160 Speaker 1: organized in India Day fundraiser, which funded over fifty thousand 478 00:35:55,320 --> 00:35:59,680 Speaker 1: huts for sepoys stationed around the world. And she wasn't 479 00:35:59,760 --> 00:36:04,680 Speaker 1: a own in her efforts, whether through fundraising, nursing, or 480 00:36:05,200 --> 00:36:08,520 Speaker 1: filling the posts left vacant by soldiers off to fight 481 00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:13,040 Speaker 1: on the front lines, women carried England economy on their 482 00:36:13,719 --> 00:36:18,840 Speaker 1: previously assumed to be meek and fragile backs. By the 483 00:36:19,080 --> 00:36:22,560 Speaker 1: end of the war, women's role in the community had 484 00:36:22,680 --> 00:36:29,400 Speaker 1: so completely shifted that in Parliament passed the Representation of 485 00:36:29,520 --> 00:36:34,239 Speaker 1: the People Act, which widened the previous restrictions on citizens 486 00:36:34,239 --> 00:36:40,160 Speaker 1: suffrage to include certain women among their ranks. And suddenly, 487 00:36:40,480 --> 00:36:44,799 Speaker 1: as white flags were waved over trenches and soldiers were 488 00:36:44,920 --> 00:36:49,600 Speaker 1: finally called back home, Sophia was confronted with the bitter 489 00:36:49,719 --> 00:36:53,560 Speaker 1: sweet realization that, in order for the country to move 490 00:36:53,680 --> 00:36:56,400 Speaker 1: forward toward the future, she had helped to fight for 491 00:36:57,680 --> 00:37:01,800 Speaker 1: the home she had once found among the suffragettes no 492 00:37:02,000 --> 00:37:10,640 Speaker 1: longer needed to exist. The years following the war passed 493 00:37:10,719 --> 00:37:15,200 Speaker 1: in a painfully slow pace for the Princess. The void 494 00:37:15,520 --> 00:37:18,680 Speaker 1: left in the wake of her social activism had already 495 00:37:18,800 --> 00:37:22,880 Speaker 1: threatened to sink her into a staggering depression, but the 496 00:37:22,960 --> 00:37:27,400 Speaker 1: grudges held steadfastly by the British government had her struggling 497 00:37:27,640 --> 00:37:31,840 Speaker 1: to keep afloat. Across the ocean, the fight for Indian 498 00:37:31,960 --> 00:37:35,960 Speaker 1: independence was growing by the day, which inversely meant that 499 00:37:36,160 --> 00:37:40,040 Speaker 1: the adoration for the grandchildren of the Line of Punjab 500 00:37:40,880 --> 00:37:44,480 Speaker 1: was beginning to fall by the wayside. The British government, 501 00:37:44,800 --> 00:37:48,320 Speaker 1: most likely still bitter because of the public embarrassment the 502 00:37:48,400 --> 00:37:52,120 Speaker 1: Princess caused the Crown with her actions for the WSPU 503 00:37:53,239 --> 00:37:56,400 Speaker 1: decided it was within the best interests of the British 504 00:37:56,520 --> 00:37:59,959 Speaker 1: people to all but cut off the dew leap singing 505 00:38:00,040 --> 00:38:04,360 Speaker 1: at children. For Sophia's siblings, who were either married or 506 00:38:04,520 --> 00:38:08,400 Speaker 1: financially independent by this point, this was a non issue. 507 00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:12,560 Speaker 1: But for Sophia, the sudden lack of funds meant that 508 00:38:12,680 --> 00:38:16,000 Speaker 1: while the government didn't dare touch the home granted to 509 00:38:16,080 --> 00:38:19,799 Speaker 1: her by Queen Victoria, she could barely afford to keep 510 00:38:19,840 --> 00:38:25,040 Speaker 1: it heated during the winter. After several attempts unsuccessfully to 511 00:38:25,160 --> 00:38:29,560 Speaker 1: get the India Office to reconsider their decision, Sophia's brother 512 00:38:29,760 --> 00:38:33,560 Speaker 1: stepped in to assist in her finances. He also hired 513 00:38:33,680 --> 00:38:35,800 Speaker 1: someone who would be able to help her manage the 514 00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:40,800 Speaker 1: apartments at Hampton Court, a gesture that would indirectly shape 515 00:38:40,840 --> 00:38:46,680 Speaker 1: the rest of Princess Sophia's life. Janet Ivy Bowden, or Bozy, 516 00:38:46,920 --> 00:38:50,560 Speaker 1: as she was known, like her employer, was a force 517 00:38:50,719 --> 00:38:54,000 Speaker 1: to be reckoned with. At the time she was hired, 518 00:38:54,280 --> 00:38:57,279 Speaker 1: Bosey was only twenty two years old, but if she 519 00:38:57,400 --> 00:39:02,799 Speaker 1: had anything it was the audacity. On previous occasions when 520 00:39:02,840 --> 00:39:05,560 Speaker 1: the Princess's depression seemed to get the better of her, 521 00:39:06,160 --> 00:39:08,520 Speaker 1: the majority of her staff had gone out of their 522 00:39:08,560 --> 00:39:11,440 Speaker 1: way to avoid her, but with a full house to 523 00:39:11,560 --> 00:39:14,960 Speaker 1: run on a shoestring budget, Bosey did not have time 524 00:39:15,040 --> 00:39:19,040 Speaker 1: to coddle the princess, as she saw it, and instead 525 00:39:19,160 --> 00:39:24,000 Speaker 1: she told Sophia to simply, quote, stop pouting. After a 526 00:39:24,080 --> 00:39:26,960 Speaker 1: lifetime of being catered to by servants who had never 527 00:39:27,160 --> 00:39:30,440 Speaker 1: dared to speak back to her. It was Bosi's blunt, 528 00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:34,960 Speaker 1: but arguably fair demeanor that not only secured her employment 529 00:39:35,080 --> 00:39:39,120 Speaker 1: with the princess but served to make her a lifelong friend. 530 00:39:40,000 --> 00:39:43,360 Speaker 1: Bosey and Sophia grew so close that she would eventually 531 00:39:43,600 --> 00:39:47,640 Speaker 1: make Sophia the godmother to her daughter, a role Sophia 532 00:39:47,760 --> 00:39:51,440 Speaker 1: took on with the same enthusiasm and devotion she did 533 00:39:51,719 --> 00:39:56,520 Speaker 1: all other roles before. From a young age, Sophia made 534 00:39:56,560 --> 00:39:59,920 Speaker 1: sure to instill in her new god daughter the important 535 00:40:00,080 --> 00:40:04,200 Speaker 1: of using her voice in the world. Bose's daughter would 536 00:40:04,280 --> 00:40:08,359 Speaker 1: later recall her godmother making her promise quote, you are 537 00:40:08,560 --> 00:40:12,680 Speaker 1: never ever not to vote. You must promise me when 538 00:40:12,719 --> 00:40:15,480 Speaker 1: you are allowed to vote, you are never ever to 539 00:40:15,640 --> 00:40:18,640 Speaker 1: fail to do so. You don't realize how far we've 540 00:40:18,719 --> 00:40:23,120 Speaker 1: come when we look back on social change, Throughout history, 541 00:40:23,680 --> 00:40:26,400 Speaker 1: we have a tendency to boil down the entirety of 542 00:40:26,480 --> 00:40:31,080 Speaker 1: a movement to the outcome it achieved. Namely, this makes sense. 543 00:40:31,480 --> 00:40:36,360 Speaker 1: Every story needs a beginning, middle, and end. But the 544 00:40:36,480 --> 00:40:40,640 Speaker 1: more time passes, the more a beginning, middle, and end 545 00:40:41,400 --> 00:40:45,920 Speaker 1: somehow shifts into a before and after binary way of 546 00:40:46,080 --> 00:40:52,600 Speaker 1: interpreting history, time giving the illusion that the after would 547 00:40:52,680 --> 00:40:57,680 Speaker 1: have given enough time, inevitably come to pass. But that's 548 00:40:57,760 --> 00:41:01,400 Speaker 1: just the thing, isn't it. The outcome of these movements, 549 00:41:01,560 --> 00:41:04,600 Speaker 1: these freedoms, and these rights that we have the privilege 550 00:41:04,640 --> 00:41:08,200 Speaker 1: to benefit from, we're not given to us. They were 551 00:41:08,400 --> 00:41:13,160 Speaker 1: hard fought for, tooth and nail, inch by grading inch. 552 00:41:14,520 --> 00:41:20,719 Speaker 1: In August, Princess Sophia du leip Sing passed away peacefully 553 00:41:20,840 --> 00:41:23,960 Speaker 1: in her sleep at the age of seventy two. She 554 00:41:24,160 --> 00:41:28,160 Speaker 1: left behind no spouses or airs, but in her place 555 00:41:28,440 --> 00:41:33,600 Speaker 1: stands a legacy of bravery and perseverance that continues to 556 00:41:33,719 --> 00:41:36,800 Speaker 1: live on in the ballots of women around the world. 557 00:41:44,960 --> 00:41:49,320 Speaker 1: That's the life of royal suffragette Princess Sophia du Leepsing, 558 00:41:50,040 --> 00:41:53,160 Speaker 1: but stick around after a brief sponsor break to hear 559 00:41:53,239 --> 00:41:56,200 Speaker 1: more about how she spent some of the later years 560 00:41:56,320 --> 00:42:08,520 Speaker 1: of her life. In two thousand two, the grieving family 561 00:42:08,680 --> 00:42:11,960 Speaker 1: of a man named Michael Sarbert was sorting through his 562 00:42:12,080 --> 00:42:17,120 Speaker 1: belongings when they made a peculiar discovery. Deep within a 563 00:42:17,360 --> 00:42:20,759 Speaker 1: hidden box of his possessions that were never before seen 564 00:42:21,280 --> 00:42:24,560 Speaker 1: were photos of Sarbert as a child, which would not 565 00:42:24,680 --> 00:42:28,480 Speaker 1: have been all that odd except for the inexplicable presence 566 00:42:28,600 --> 00:42:31,920 Speaker 1: of an elderly Indian woman in the frame beside him. 567 00:42:32,320 --> 00:42:35,919 Speaker 1: Beneath the photos, Michael had left his family a letter 568 00:42:36,360 --> 00:42:39,920 Speaker 1: explaining his final wish was to have his ashes spread 569 00:42:40,360 --> 00:42:44,000 Speaker 1: around the grounds of the house in the photos. The 570 00:42:44,120 --> 00:42:48,320 Speaker 1: house in question happened to be a residence in Buckinghamshire, 571 00:42:48,800 --> 00:42:52,680 Speaker 1: where Sarbert and his two siblings stayed during World War 572 00:42:52,800 --> 00:42:59,240 Speaker 1: Two with none other than Princess Sophia herself. During the Blitz, 573 00:42:59,680 --> 00:43:03,279 Speaker 1: so Fia had evacuated her residence in Hampton Court and 574 00:43:03,400 --> 00:43:06,960 Speaker 1: gone to stay with her sister Katherine in the British countryside. 575 00:43:07,760 --> 00:43:11,120 Speaker 1: While there, she volunteered to take in a family of 576 00:43:11,280 --> 00:43:16,000 Speaker 1: three children and their mother. One of the children was Michael. 577 00:43:17,120 --> 00:43:19,880 Speaker 1: You might already be familiar with the idea that children 578 00:43:19,960 --> 00:43:23,760 Speaker 1: were evacuated from London during the Blitz. It's a scene 579 00:43:23,800 --> 00:43:26,440 Speaker 1: that happens at the beginning of the Famous Lion, the 580 00:43:26,520 --> 00:43:31,360 Speaker 1: Witch and the Wardrobe, but this was reality. The princess 581 00:43:31,600 --> 00:43:34,760 Speaker 1: quickly grew to dote on the children, and she frequently 582 00:43:34,840 --> 00:43:37,560 Speaker 1: took them walking around the ground with her and her 583 00:43:37,640 --> 00:43:42,719 Speaker 1: famous dogs. Michael's sister recalled quote she once told me 584 00:43:42,880 --> 00:43:45,799 Speaker 1: I had to tell her everything, leaving no detail out, 585 00:43:46,239 --> 00:43:49,080 Speaker 1: because she had never gone to school like us and 586 00:43:49,320 --> 00:43:52,600 Speaker 1: wanted to know what she had missed. After the war, 587 00:43:52,920 --> 00:43:56,320 Speaker 1: Michael moved back to London with his family and eventually 588 00:43:56,480 --> 00:43:59,719 Speaker 1: grew up and immigrated to New Zealand, where he would 589 00:43:59,719 --> 00:44:02,480 Speaker 1: go on to have a family of his own. He 590 00:44:02,680 --> 00:44:05,960 Speaker 1: never spoke of his time in Princess Sophia's home in 591 00:44:06,040 --> 00:44:10,080 Speaker 1: the countryside, and so it was left to Michael's sister 592 00:44:10,640 --> 00:44:15,880 Speaker 1: to explain her brother's final request and this previously unknown 593 00:44:16,040 --> 00:44:20,640 Speaker 1: chapter of his life to his family. In two thousand four, 594 00:44:21,120 --> 00:44:25,000 Speaker 1: Sarbert's sister was able to return to England to fulfill 595 00:44:25,160 --> 00:44:28,480 Speaker 1: her brother's final wish to go back to the place 596 00:44:28,600 --> 00:44:47,360 Speaker 1: he had quote been happiest in his life. Noble Blood 597 00:44:47,520 --> 00:44:50,120 Speaker 1: is a production of I Heart Radio and Grim and 598 00:44:50,200 --> 00:44:53,600 Speaker 1: Mild from Aaron Manky Noble Blood is hosted by me 599 00:44:53,920 --> 00:44:58,120 Speaker 1: Danish Wortz. Additional writing and researching done by Hannah Johnston, 600 00:44:58,480 --> 00:45:02,960 Speaker 1: hannah's Wick, Mirra Award, Courtney Sunder and Laurie Goodman. The 601 00:45:03,040 --> 00:45:07,160 Speaker 1: show is produced by rema Il Kali, with supervising producer 602 00:45:07,440 --> 00:45:11,920 Speaker 1: Josh Thaine and executive producers Aaron Mankey, Alex Williams, and 603 00:45:12,040 --> 00:45:15,959 Speaker 1: Matt Frederick. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, visit 604 00:45:16,040 --> 00:45:19,360 Speaker 1: the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 605 00:45:19,480 --> 00:45:20,680 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.