Millicent Fawcett (11 June 1847 – 5 August 1929) was a British intellectual, political leader, activist and writer, known primarily for her work as a campaigner for women's suffrage. She took a moderate line regarding women's rights but was a tireless campaigner. In 1897 she became the president of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies, a position she held until 1919. She placed much of her focus on improving women's opportunities for higher education and served as a governor of Bedford College, London (now part of Royal Holloway), as well as co-founding Newnham College, Cambridge. As a politician, Fawcett was appointed to lead the British government's commission to South Africa in July 1901, investigating conditions in the concentration camps that had been created there in the wake of the Second Boer War. Her report corroborated what campaigner Emily Hobhouse had said about the terrible conditions in the camps.
This picture of Fawcett was produced by Elliott & Fry, a Victorian photography studio based in London. The photograph was published in 1913; this copy is in the collection of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.Photograph credit: Elliott & Fry; restored by Adam Cuerden