Thelma Cazalet-Keir

Thelma Cazalet-Keir CBE, née Cazalet, (28 May 1899 – 13 January 1989) was a British feminist and Conservative Party politician.

She was born in London, the third child and only daughter of William Marshall Cazalet (1865–1932), and Maud Lucia née Heron-Maxwell (died 1952). Her father was a wealthy socialite, and in her childhood she met many leading figures of the day, including Rudyard Kipling, Sylvia Pankhurst and Beatrice Webb. Her mother was a feminist Christian Scientist and a strong influence on her daughter.

Cazalet was educated at home by governesses, and later attended lectures at the London School of Economics. She was a close friend of Megan Lloyd George, daughter of Prime Minister David Lloyd George and later a Member of Parliament (MP).

She entered local politics in Kent, where the family had a country house, and in 1924 was elected to the London County Council, remaining a councilor until she became an alderman in 1931.

Cazalet contested the Islington East by-election in 1931, finishing third in a four-way contest. She stood again in the Islington East constituency at the general election in October 1931, winning the seat from the by-election winner, Labour's Leah Manning. She held the seat until her defeat at the 1945 general election by the Labour candidate, Eric Fletcher.

References

* Dictionary of National Biography: Thelma Cazalet-Keir
*"From the Wings: An Autobiography" by Thelma Cazalet-Keir (The Bodley Head, London, 1967)
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*Rayment