Margaret Irwin

Margaret Emma Faith Irwin (1889 – 11 December 1969) was an English author of several important historical novels, as well as a factual biography of Sir Walter Raleigh.

Biography

Irwin was born in London, England, and educated at Clifton High School in Bristol, and at Oxford University. She began writing books and short stories in the early 1920s. She married children's author and illustrator John Robert Monsell in 1929.

Her novels were esteemed for the accuracy of their historical research, and she became a noted authority on the Elizabethan and early Stewart era. One of her novels, Young Bess about the early years of Queen Elizabeth I, was made into a movie starring Jean Simmons.

Irwin wrote several ghost stories (including "The Book" and "The Earlier Service"). Irwin also wrote two fantasy novels: Still She Wished For Company is about a magical timeslip, while These Mortals is an adult fairy-tale about a wizard's daughter.

Bibliography

Single novels

Margaret Irwin (trade unionist)

Margaret Hardinge Irwin (13 January 1858 – 23 January 1940) was a Scottish labour activist who held important posts in the trade union movement.

Irwin was born on the Lord Hardinge ship, from which she took her middle name. She grew up in Broughty Ferry in Forfarshire, then studied at the University of St Andrews, from which she received a "lady literate in arts" (LLA) degree, followed by attendance at the Glasgow School of Art and Queen Margaret College. She then became involved in the women's rights movement, and also bought and ran a fruit farm in Blairgowrie.

In 1891, Irwin became the full-time Scottish organiser of the Women's Protective and Provident League, then in 1895 became the secretary of the Scottish Council for Women's Trades (SCWT). In this role, she campaigned for the creation of the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) and, when it was created in 1897, she was elected as its first secretary. However, Robert Smillie became unhappy that she did not focus much attention on the campaign for an eight-hour day, and in 1900, Irwin decided not to stand for re-election. However, she remained secretary of the SCWT, and frequently served as its delegate to the STUC over the next decade.