THEOSOPHY

ANNIE BESANT

 

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Annie Besant

1847 – 1933

President of the Theosophical Society  1907-1933

 

 

 

Biography

Of

Annie Besant

 

Writings of Annie Besant

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Annie Besant, the daughter of William Wood and Emily Morris, was born in 1847. Annie's father, a doctor, died when she was only five years old. Without any savings, Annie's mother found work looking after boarders at Harrow School. Mrs. Wood was unable to care for Annie and she persuaded a friend, Ellen Marryat, to take responsibility for her upbringing.

In 1866 Annie met the Rev. Frank Besant. Although only nineteen, Annie agreed to marry the young clergyman. By the time she was twenty-three Annie had two children. However, Annie was deeply unhappy because her independent sprit clashed with the traditional views of her husband. Annie also began to question her religious beliefs. When Annie refused to attend communion, Frank Besant ordered her to leave the family home. A legal separation was arranged and Digby, the son, stayed with his father, and Mabel went to live with Annie in London.

After leaving her husband Annie Besant completely rejected Christianity and in 1874 joined the Secular Society. Annie soon developed a close relationship with Charles Bradlaugh, editor of the radical National Reformer and leader of the secular movement in Britain. Bradlaugh gave Annie a job working for the National Reformer and during the next few years wrote many articles on issues such as marriage and women's rights. In 1877 Annie Besant and Charles Bradlaugh decided to publish The Fruits of Philosophy, Charles Knowlton's book advocating birth control. Besant and Bradlaugh were charged with publishing material that was "likely to deprave or corrupt those whose minds are open to immoral influences". In court they argued that "we think it more moral to prevent conception of children than, after they are born, to murder them by want of food, air and clothing." Besant and Bradlaugh were both found guilty of publishing an "obscene libel" and sentenced to six months in prison. At the Court of Appeal the sentence was quashed.

After the court-case Besant wrote and published her own book advocating birth control entitled The Laws of Population. The idea of a woman advocating birth-control received wide-publicity. Newspapers like The Times accused Besant of writing "an indecent, lewd, filthy, bawdy and obscene book". Rev. Besant used the publicity of the case to persuade the courts that he, rather than Annie Besant, should have custody of their daughter Mabel.

In 1880 Charles Bradlaugh was elected MP for Northampton, but as he was not a Christian he refused to take the oath, and was expelled from the House of Commons. As well as working with Bradlaugh, Besant also became friends with socialists such as Walter Crane, Edward Aveling and George Bernard Shaw.

After joining the Social Democratic Federation, Annie started her own campaigning newspaper called The Link. Like Catherine Booth of the Salvation Army, Annie was concerned about the health of young women workers at the Bryant & May match factory. On 23rd June, 1888, Annie published an article White Slavery in London where she drew attention to the dangers of phosphorus fumes and complained about the low wages paid to the women who worked at Bryant & May.

Three women who provided information for Annie's article were sacked. Annie responded by helping the women at Bryant & May to form a Matchgirls Union. After a three week strike, the company was forced to make significant concessions including the re-employment the three victimized women.

Besant also join the socialist group, the Fabian Society, and in 1889 contributed to the influencial book, Fabian Essays. As well as Besant, the book included articles by George Bernard Shaw, Sydney Webb, Sydney Olivier, Graham Wallas, William Clarke and Hubert Bland. Edited by Shaw, the book sold 27,000 copies in two years.

In 1889 Annie Besant was elected to the London School Board. After heading the poll with a fifteen thousand majority over the next candidate, Besant argued that she had been given a mandate for large-scale reform of local schools. Some of her many achievements included a programme of free meals for undernourished children and free medical examinations for all those in elementary schools.

In the 1890s Annie Besant became a supporter of Theosophy, a religious movement founded by Madame Blavatsky in 1875. Theosophy was based on Hindu ideas of karma and reincarnation with nirvana as the eventual aim. Annie Besant went to live in India but she remained interested in the subject of women's rights.

She founded the Central Hindu College at Benares (Varanasi) in 1898. And herself received a degree in Sanskrit literature, English literature and Indian history from this institution.

She continued to write letters to British newspapers arguing the case for women's suffrage (i.e. voting rights) and in 1911 was one of the main speakers at an important Suffrage rally in London.

While in India, Annie joined the struggle for Indian Home Rule, and in 1916 established the Indian Home Rule League and became its president. She was president of the Indian National Congress in 1917, but later split with Gandhi. At times during the First World War was interned by the British authorities.

President of the Theosophical Society from 1907, she wrote an enormous number of books and pamphlets on theosophy. She traveled (1926-27) in England and the United States with her protégé Jiddu Krishnamurti, whom she announced as the new Messiah. However, by 1929 the young man himself denounced all claims about himself as the World Teacher. Annie Besant died in India in 1933 at the age of 86.

 

More on the Life of Annie Besant

Autobiographical Sketches

 

1875 – 1891 A fragment of Autobiography

 

History of the Theosophical Society

 

Welsh Theosophists protest against the Internment of Annie Besant 1917

 

Annie Besant visits Cardiff 1924

 

The Theosophical Order of Service

 

Writings of Annie Besant

 

Memories Of Past Lives

 

Reincarnation

 

The Seven Principles Of Man

 

Mysticism

 

Study in Karma

 

The Ancient Wisdom

 

Dharma

 

In The Twilight

Series of Articles Published 1898 -1913

 

Theosophy

 

Study in Consciousness

 

Esoteric Christianity

 

Autobiography

 

Writings by Annie Besant on the Great War

 

Great Britain and the War

 

War is Declared

 

The Deeper Issues of the War

 

"God’s Temples"

 

India and England

 

Sacrilege

 

The Horrors of War

 

Two World Empires

 

India and the Future

 

Divine Incarnation

 

The Theosophical Society and the War

 

Christ and War

 

A Bishop and Animals

 

St George for England – and Why

 

East and West-The destinies of Nations

 

Britain's Place in the Great Plan

Lectures delivered in 1921 with a positive message for the future in the aftermath of the Great War

 

Annie Besant and Indian Home Rule

 

England and India 1906

 

Annie Besant and

The Indian National Congress

 

The Case for India

 

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