Molly, Lady Huggins
Born
Molly Green

1907
Singapore, Straits Settlements
Died11 September 1981
NationalityBritish
SpouseSir John Huggins (1929 – ?)
Children3, including Cherry Hambro

Molly, Lady Huggins, née Green (1907 – 11 September 1981) was a British activist and philanthropist.[1]

Life

Molly Huggins was born Molly Green[2] in Singapore in 1907, the daughter of a colonial resident in Malaya.[3] Partly brought up by maiden aunts in Scotland,[4] she was educated at Roedean School. Early in her career, Huggins worked as a secretary for a doctor in London.[2]: 156  She had 'great fun' breaking the General Strike of 1926, and had several relationships before marrying Sir John Huggins, sixteen years her senior, in Kuala Lumpur in 1929.[3] The couple had three daughters,[1] including the fashion journalist Cherry Hambro.[5]

Her husband had colonial postings to Malaya, Singapore, Trinidad and Washington. During her time in Trinidad, when her husband was colonial secretary, Huggins organized Women's Volunteer Services. She also was active in the Red Cross during World War II.[6] In 1943 John Huggins was appointed Governor of Jamaica. While in Jamaica, 'Lady Molly' established the Jamaica Federation of Women. She also played golf and tennis, joining with a friend to win the Jamaican ladies' doubles championship in 1947.[2]

On their return to England in 1950 she became active in Conservative Party politics, standing unsuccessfully as the Unionist Party candidate for West Dunbartonshire in the 1955 general election. Her political fortunes were not helped by the failure of her marriage.[4] She continued party involvement as deputy chairman of the Conservative Commonwealth Council, and Chairman of his West Indies Group.[1] In the 1950s, Huggins also set up the Metropolitan Coloured People's Housing Association – later renamed the Metropolitan Housing Trust – to improve the quality of accommodation for London's Caribbean community.[7] She published a book of memoirs, Too Much to Tell, in 1967.[4]

Works

  • Too Much to Tell. London: Heinemann, 1967.

References

  1. 1 2 3 'Lady Huggins', The Times, 16 September 1981, p. 12.
  2. 1 2 3 "Life Visits Lady Molly Huggins". Life. 24 April 1950. pp. 153–156, 158–160. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  3. 1 2 Matthew Parker (2014). Goldeneye: Where Bond was Born: Ian Fleming's Jamaica. Random House. pp. 27–30. ISBN 978-1-4481-8526-9.
  4. 1 2 3 Tara Zinkin, Jolly Molly, The Spectator, 15 December 1967, p. 18.
  5. ↑ Lady Hambro, first fashion editor of the Telegraph magazine – obituary. The Telegraph, 14 April 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2020. (subscription required)
  6. ↑ "Lady Huggins of Britain to Speak". Arizona Daily Star. Tucson, Arizona. 18 February 1953. p. 11. Retrieved 21 April 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ In the wake of Windrush and at the dawn of Metropolitan, Metropolitan Thames Valley. 22 June 2018. Accessed 19 April 2020.
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