Fearless Woman

Hanna Sheehy Skeffington (1877–1946) was truly a fearless woman. At a time when women were viewed as second-class citizens in the eyes of the law, she stepped boldly into the public spotlight, founding the Irish Women’s Franchise League—a pioneering voting rights organization—in 1908, as well as taking a strong public stance against World War I and serving as an executive in the left-wing political party Sinn Féin.

Her later years saw her mount a campaign as an Irish parliamentary candidate and confront powerful figures such as Winston Churchill and Woodrow Wilson in her fight for social justice. This substantially revised and updated edition of Margaret Ward’s biography of Skeffington sheds new light on the fascinating life of a pivotal figure in the feminist, labour, and nationalist movements in Ireland.

Incorporating new archival research and featuring an array of freshly discovered images, Ward’s book also illuminates rarely-seen corners of Skeffington’s life outside the public eye, exploring both her relationship with her husband and her role as a single parent.

With social and political issues such as voting rights, gender equality, and the progressive fight for justice as vital as ever, this revised edition of Fearless Woman could hardly be timelier.