Women's History Month Ishbel Lady Aberdeen Part One

March is #WomensHistoryMonth

...and although much of it is already gone, I will be posting about some notable Scottish women who either gained the reputation they deserved, or who should be much better known.

Today, I'm posting the first of a short series about Ishbel, Lady Aberdeen (1857-1939) 

Ishbel, Lady Aberdeen (CC)

Haddo House in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, was the ancestral seat of the Earls of Aberdeen till the National Trust for Scotland took over the property in 1979. My connection to #WomensHistoryMonth goes back to the late 1870s when the then current owner John Campbell Hamilton-Gordon married Ishbel Maria Marjoribanks, the daughter of Lord Tweedmouth (m. 1877). Ishbel had set her cap at Johnny Aberdeen when she was only twelve and he ten years older than her, but patience was worth it when he eventually proposed to her in early 1877. To be fair, Johnny went through some trials during those intervening years while Ishbel waited in the wings. 

Johnny Aberdeen
National Portrait Gallery- CC

Born the third son, Johnny wasn't expecting to inherit the title or the estates. The first-born son James Henry inherited on their father's death in 1864 but committed suicide a few years later. George, the second son, appeared to decide that becoming a Scottish laird of an immense land portfolio wasn't for him and he went off to become a sailor. News of George's death at sea came to Johnny by 1870. Johnny eventually, officially, succeeded to the title, the estates, and what I believe was a very healthy bank balance. 

Lady Ishbel was no slouch. Even before her marriage to her beloved, if somewhat imprudent Johnny, Ishbel was a determined young woman of deep religious faith who was determined to improve the lives of women who weren’t as prosperous as she was. As the daughter of Dudley Marjoribanks, Lord Tweedmouth, she had never wanted for anything in material terms. Her Scottish businessman father was extremely rich. He was a son of the Coutts Banking family but he excelled at continuing to make money beyond his Coutts inheritance. He profited highly from his purchase of Meux Brewery and with his interests in the East India Company. Dudley was a Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons, so from an early age Ishbel grew up in a household with a high-achieving, driven father who held some liberal views regarding social norms. This meant that as a teenager Ishbel was often in exalted company e.g. William Ewart Gladstone, a Liberal Prime Minister and a dominant philanthropist and campaigner for many different injustices.

Before her short engagement at the age of 20, Ishbel was already involving herself in philanthropic ‘good causes’ wishing to improve the lot of prostitutes and women who’d fallen on hard times. Since there were very many women in that category, Ishbel was dipping a toe in the water but her toe was desperately sincere! And from that determined teenager, Ishbel matured to a woman of immense influence and dedication.

Look out for Part Two coming very soon about Ishbel, Lady Aberdeen.

Slainthe!