Violet Bonham Carter

Violet Bonham Carter (April 15, 1887- February 19, 1969) was the daughter of Liberal Prime Minister H. H. Asquith by his first wife, Helen.

Lady Violet lived in an age when women were uncommon in frontline British politics. She was nonetheless active as President of the Women's Liberal Federation 1923 - 1925, and 1939 -1945, and was President of the Liberal Party 1945- 1947. In the 1945 general election she stood for Wells, coming third, while in 1951 she stood for the winnable seat of Colne Valley.

As an old friend, Churchill arranged for the Conservatives to not put up a candidate, giving her a clear run against Labour in Colne Valley. She was nonetheless narrowly defeated. She continued to be a popular and charismatic speaker for Liberal candidates, including for her son-in-law Jo Grimond, her son Mark, and the then-rising star Jeremy Thorpe, and she was a frequent broadcaster on current affairs programmes on radio and television.

Perhaps her greatest contribution, however, was as a much-esteemed orator and perceptive thinker on politics and policy issues, dedicated to classic Liberal politics in the mold of her father. She spoke on many platforms throughout the 1920s and 1930s, and along with Winston Churchill (and others), she very early on perceived the dangers of European fascism. In the cause to awake Britain and the world to the fascist danger, she joined and animated a number of anti-fascist groups (e.g., The Focus Group), often in concert with her old friend, Churchill, and spoke at many of their gatherings.

In the non-political sphere, she was also active in the arts, being a Governor of the BBC 1941-1946, and a Governor of the Old Vic (1945-1969).

In 1964, she was created Baroness Asquith of Yarnbury, of Yarnbury in the County of Wiltshire, one of the first new Liberal peers in several decades. (Her previous title, Lady Violet, was a courtesy title from her father's elevation to the peerage as 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith in 1925.) She continued to be extremely active in the House of Lords despite being increasingly beset by illness in her last few years.

She died of a heart attack at the age of 81, and is buried at Mells Church, Somerset.