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Annie Besant was born to
William Wood and Emily Morris in 1847. When she was five years old,
her father, who was a doctor, passed away leaving her alone with her
mother. Her mother, Emily, had to take care of Annie so she took up
a job with a boarding school and left Annie with one of her friends.
In 1866, she tied the
nuptial knot with Rev. Frank Besant and by the age of twenty-three
she already had two children.
After some years of
marriage she discovered that her independent views clashed with the
religious views of her husband. When she refused to attend a
communion, her husband asked her to leave home. They agreed to a
divorce and parted ways.
She took her University
degree in Sanskrit literature, English literature and Indian history
from the Benaras Hindu University. She became a supporter of
Theosophy in 1890 and believed in the Hindu law of Karma and
reincarnation. Subsequently she came to live in India in 1893 and
remained interested in the subject of women's rights. She was
motivated by the freedom struggle of India and started the home Rule
League in India making it a household name. Her political career saw
her being elected as the president of the Congress in 1917. She
argued with the Indian leaders, especially Gandhiji, on some points
such as if the people disregard the law ( in terms of the non
co-operation movement) they will be hard to control when the country
gets independence. This brought about some decline in her
popularity. She was instrumental in drafting the Commonwealth of
India Bill with help from Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru.
She opened a mock
parliament that was used to train people in parliamentary affairs.
It included mental preparation of what was to be said, behaviour,
etc. as a part of grooming people in order to make a healthy debate.
She strongly believed
that education was necessary for children to build a strong
character. She quoted that, ‘ a nations prosperity depends on the
character of its people’.
Annie Besant died in
India in 1933. After her death she was cremated in what was known as
the garden of remembrance in Chennai.
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