“The sight of the Indian princess in her expensive furs with a satchel strapped across her body…shouting ‘Votes for Women’ caused a scandal at the very highest levels.” – Anita Anand

Sophia: Suffragette Princess

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Introduction

Princess Sophia Alexandra Duleep Singh was born on August 8, 1876 to Maharaja Duleep Singh, the last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, and Maharani Bamba Müller, the daughter of a German father and Abyssinian mother who had grown up in Cairo and spoke only Arabic at first. Her parents had met when the Maharaja stopped in Cairo in 1863 on his way back to England from scattering his mother’s ashes in India. Duleep Singh saw Bamba teaching at a Christian missionary and struck by her looks, he had pursued her until she finally relented. The couple married in Alexandria, Egypt on June 7, 1864 and their union bore six children, of whom Princess Sophia Duleep Singh was the youngest.

The Maharaja Duleep Singh’s life was not an easy or smooth one. In 1843, he ascended the throne of the Maharaja of Punjab at the tender age of five. For some time, his mother ruled as the Regent before she was deposed and imprisoned, and her son was separated from her. He was just nine years old and they would not meet again for 13.5 years. Then in 1849, following the annexation of Punjab by the British, the deposed Maharaja Duleep Singh was put into the care of Dr John Login, under strict instructions that no Indians were to meet him. In 1854, at the age of 15, he was sent into exile to the United Kingdom (UK).

The Queen Mother’s Crown, featuring the Koh-i-Noor diamond

By this time, the Maharaja had already been tricked out of an important symbol of the Sikh people, the famous Koh-i-Noor diamond, when the young motherless boy was coerced into signing it over at the Last Treaty of Lahore. This diamond has since been fixed onto the special crown made for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in 1937. Known as The Queen Mother’s Crown, it is now part of the Crown Jewels on display at the Tower of London.

Originally from a Sikh background, Maharaja Duleep Singh converted from Sikhism to Christianity in the UK and eventually settled there. He became a naturalised British citizen and was given a British pension. It was not an easy transition for the Maharaja and he never came to terms with abdicating his kingdom to the British at the age of 10. He converted back to Sikhism during the later stage of his life and supported the Indian independence movement when he realised that he had been deceived out of a large empire.

The last Maharaja of Takht E Lahore, Duleep Singh. Click to enlarge.

The young Maharaja was sent to the UK at the behest of Queen Victoria because she was charmed by the descriptions of his beauty and perfect manners. She was impressed during their first meeting as she saw in him what she had heard: he was a handsome, well-mannered, and fluent English-speaking prince. She was so taken aback by him that she made him a platonic friend. However, this relationship soon degenerated.

Maharaja Duleep Singh married Bamba Müller, the daughter of Ludwig Müller, a German merchant banker who worked for Todd Müller and Company, and his wife Sofia, of Abyssinian descent. The couple had six children together – three boys and three girls – and the family settled in Elveden Hall in Norfolk. It was here that Princess Sophia was born in 1876. The harmonious family life was not to last, as the Maharaja became bored, and descended into excessive drinking, gambling and cavorting, eventually disowning his family. To make matters worse, he claimed that he was no longer responsible for the debts he had driven them into.

Elveden Hall before its transformation into a palace. Maharaja Duleep Singh, a small figure to the bottom right of the image, stands in front of it.

Abandoned by their father, the children found themselves financially destitute. They lived in a shell of a house that was surrounded by packing crates. The family’s misfortune was the source of gossip, while the Maharaja had extramarital relationships with various women in Paris. It is said that the Maharaja at this time lived with Ada Douglas Wetherhill, his mistress who would later become his second wife.

The young Maharani Bamba Duleep Singh, who was Princess Sophia’s mother. Click to enlarge.

When Princess Sophia was 10 years old, her father’s fortune in London was quickly disappearing. He attempted to move to India with Princess Sophia and her sisters without luck. During their journey they were turned back when they reached Aden in Yemen, due to arrest warrants being issued against the Maharaja. In the same year, Princess Sophia developed typhoid. While attending to her illness, her mother also contracted the disease and fell into a coma. She died a year later on September 17, 1887. Upon hearing the news, her father sent her eldest brother a telegram: “Heartbroken – will write next week.” Two years later, the Maharaja married a chambermaid, Ada Wetherill, on May 31, 1889 whom he had two daughters with.

Princess Sophia’s five biological siblings included Victor Duleep Singh, Frederick Duleep Singh, Albert Edward Duleep Singh, Bamba Duleep Singh and Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh who was also a suffragette. Six years after her mother’s death, Princess Sophia inherited a substantial sum of money from her father who passed away on October 22, 1893, after a period of ill health in a rundown Paris hotel. He was 55 years old. In addition to this, she also received a grace-and-favour apartment called Faraday House at Hampton Court. It was gifted by Queen Victoria in 1898, and she would continue to live here for most of her adult life. An annual allowance of £200 was also granted for the upkeep of the house. The Queen was fond of Maharaja Duleep Singh and his family, especially Princess Sophia whom she had taken as goddaughter. The Queen also encouraged Princess Sophia and her sisters to become socialites. Subsequently, Princess Sophia, Princess Catherine and Princess Bamba were introduced as elite debutantes at Buckingham Palace in 1895.

Four of the six siblings. Click to enlarge.

Being a socialite, Princess Sophia bred championship dogs and was very fond of them. She loved to dress up and wore the latest Parisian fashions, attended parties, pursued photography and was a keen cyclist. Her stunning outfits were often featured in newspapers, and she became seen as somewhat of a fashion icon. Meanwhile, her sister Princess Bamba had the opportunity to study at Northwestern Women’s Medical College, in Chicago, USA. Midway through her studies however, the college decided that training as a surgeon was too much for the sensitivities of women, and decided that women would no longer be allowed to become doctors. Princess Bamba’s disappointment would come to be felt by Princess Sophia too. The experienced affected her deeply, as she watched how her strong, independent sister was not in control of her own life in a world run by men. This and many other experiences would go on to contribute to Princess Sophia’s eventual fearsome fight for the emancipation of women.

But that would be in the future. In her youth, the young Princess was seemingly content to enjoy all that high society London had to offer. But it was this same standing and background that gave her access to high society London, which would also later give her the privilege of being heavily involved in the women’s suffrage movement which she dedicated her life towards.

A Lifetime Dedicated to Women’s Rights

Aerial view of Lahore in the early 1900s

Princess Sophia was unable to speak Punjabi, having had a very English upbringing just like her siblings. Yet this did not stop her from visiting India and communicating through a translator. She first travelled to India in 1903 to attend the Delhi Durbar with her sister, Princess Bamba, to mark the coronation of King Edward VII in 1903. At this time, the British government had lessened their vigil on her and thought her to be quiet, shy and grief-stricken but they underestimated her.

The turning point in her life occurred during her second trip to India in 1906-1907, when she visited relatives in Amritsar and Lahore, the capital city of Punjab. It was there that she learned what her family had lost by surrendering to the British government, and she faced the realities of poverty. She also encountered Indian freedom fighters such as Gopal Krishna Gokhale and Lala Lajpat Rai, who were pushing for India’s secession from the British. Princess Sophia had a special admiration for Rai and his imprisonment by the British on “charges of sedition”.

Princess Sophia’s biological siblings: Princess Bamba Sophia Jindan (1869-1957) on the left and Princess Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh (1871-1942) on the right.

She was similarly inspired by the tales she heard of her grandfather, the Maharaja Ranjit Singh who was extremely respected throughout the Punjab for having united many local kingdoms into one Sikh Empire. She learned how Ranjit Singh’s reign introduced reforms, modernisation, investment into infrastructure, and overall prosperity, and how the arts flourished under his reign. Everywhere she went, thousands of people paid their respects to her as the granddaughter of the great Ranjit Singh, the “Lion of Punjab” who ruled the region for almost 40 years. Indeed, during World War I, when Princess Sophia came to don the uniform of the Red Cross, the Sikh soldiers she tended to could hardly believe “that the granddaughter of Ranjit Singh sat by their bedsides in a nurse’s uniform.”

Princess Sophia’s grandparents: Maharani Jind Kaur and Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Princess Sophia was especially disturbed by the poverty she witnessed in India. While Ranjit Singh was in power, the people of Punjab never went hungry. She learned that the amount of land being farmed for food and other agricultural purposes had declined under British rule, and the local Indians were suffering as a result of this. These experiences turned the princess against the British Empire when she saw how the Empire treated the people of her homeland. Princess Sophia’s trip to India had ignited the warrior spirit of her grandfather in her, and it had turned a girlish debutante into a fierce campaigner for social justice.

Princess Sophia’s activism began when she took up the cause of the lascars, who were sailors of Indian origin involved with cargo transportation. They were treated with unimaginable cruelty. She helped to establish the Lascars’ Club in East London which was dedicated to serving these seamen and in the first five years, they helped nearly 5,000 lascars.

Although Princess Sophia was highly involved in supporting Indians in the UK, her main focus was the women’s suffrage movement. She joined and became an active campaigner of the Women’s Social and Political Union’s (WSPU) branch in Richmond, Surrey in 1909 under the persuasion of Una Dugdale, a close friend of the Pankhurst sisters (famous suffragettes). She campaigned for votes for women nationally and was often seen selling The Suffragette newspaper outside Hampton Court Palace where she lived. Together with Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, Emmeline Pankhurst and many others, she led a 400-strong group demonstration to the House of Commons on ‘Black Friday’ (November 18, 1910) where over 150 women were physically attacked. Princess Sophia was also among 60,000 female suffragettes who took part in the 1911 crowning parade.

Princess Sophia’s summonses were published in the newspaper. Click to enlarge.

Princess Sophia also joined the Women’s Tax Resistance League (WTRL) whose slogan was ‘No Vote, No Tax’. She was public and vocal in refusing to pay taxes on the basis that since women did not have the right to vote to determine the usage of taxes, they should not have to pay. This stance led to her being prosecuted a number of times, resulting in her jewellery being impounded. She authorised her impounded possessions to be auctioned, and donated the proceedings to benefit the WTRL. Princess Sophia was very committed in campaigning for women’s rights, and actively raised funds for the movement and solicited subscriptions to the cause. These actions contributed to her high profile stance for the women’s movement.

On May 22, 1911, Princess Sophia was summoned to appear at the Spelthorne Petty Sessions Court for keeping a carriage, a male helper, and five dogs, as well as using a roll of arms illegally. She was fined £3 which she protested about paying since she did not have the right to vote. Two months later, a bailiff was called to her house to collect an unpaid fine of 14 shillings that she also refused to pay. As a consequence, her diamond ring was confiscated and was sent to auction a few days later. All her items that were auctioned were brought back to her by her friends at the WTRL. On December 13, 1913, Princess Sophia was again fined £12.10 for her refusal to pay license fees for her two dogs, a carriage and a servant. She appeared in court together with other WTRL members.

“Taxation without representation is a tyranny…I am unable to pay money to the state, as I am not allowed to exercise any control over its expenditure…”

~ Princess Sophia Duleep Singh

The princess was not content to take a backseat in the movement. Once, the princess also threw herself at Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith’s car, slamming against his window a poster that read “Votes for women!” The Prime Minister was furious but it was too late. The press had caught wind of the moment and soon, the incident made headline news. Princess Sophia had managed to deliver her message – it was time for the British government to emancipate women and give them the right to vote. She was promptly arrested for her act but the government were unable to decide what to do with her. Although she had protested and embarrassed them, she was also the Queen’s goddaughter. In the end, Princess Sophia was released without charge. Although her activities continued to be carefully monitored by the administration, she continued to be vocal in her support for various causes, including the manufacture of bombs and anarchy in the UK. Such was the privilege of being the Queen’s favourite goddaughter.

Princess Sophia in her Red Cross uniform. Click to enlarge.

During World War I, Princess Sophia continued to bring attention to the contribution of Indian soldiers and lascars working in the British fleets. She would visit wounded soldiers in Brighton and eventually wore a Red Cross uniform, tending to the wounded as a nurse in Brighton Hospital. She also organised Flag Days to raise money for them, which included Indian and British women selling Indian flags decorated with stars, elephants, or other symbolic objects. Her behaviour created shock waves in the UK and in New Delhi.

The princess joined a 10,000-woman strong protest march against the banning of a female volunteer force for the war. After that, she joined the Suffragette Fellowship and remained a fellow until her death. The efforts of Princess Sophia and her fellow suffragettes began to bear fruit. After the war and the 1918 enactment of the Representation of the People Act, women over 30 years old were allowed to vote but this was limited to women who were householders, married to a householder or held a university degree. In September the following year, the Princess hosted peace contingent Indian soldiers at her home in Hampton Court.

Princess Sophia (second left) and fellow friends collect funds to help soldiers at the front during the First World War. Photograph: Topical Press Agency/Getty Images

In 1923, she visited India again with her sister Princess Bamba and Colonel Sutherland, her brother-in-law (Princess Bamba’s husband). Many came to see their former maharaja’s daughters during their visits to Amritsar, Kashmir, Lahore and Murre. The visit boosted the female suffrage cause in India and her title as a princess was then proven to be useful. Princess Sophia valued her Indian heritage, yet she was not bound by allegiance to a single nation. This was shown by her support of the women’s cause in various countries, including her ancestral country of India.

During World War II, she evacuated her home in Hampton Court to live in the village of Penn in Buckinghamshire.

Achievements

After the death of the Committee of the Suffragette Fellowship’s founder, Emmeline Pankhurst on June 14, 1928, Princess Sophia became its president. During her term, royal consent was given to the Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act, thus enabling women over the age of 21 to vote on par with men. Princess Sophia was also known for supporting causes centred around equality and justice that were far removed from her royal background. She had become a prominent figure who played a significant role during a crucial point in both Indian and English history.

Mrs Emmeline Pankhurst (front right), the founder of the Suffragette Fellowship, a prominent campaigner for women’s rights and a friend of Princess Sophia, was arrested numerous times for the cause she fought for so strongly.

Princess Sophia and her close friend Emmeline Pankhurst eventually received a place of honour in the suffragette movement. In 1999 for example, Pankhurst appeared in Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most important people of the 20th Century. Princess Sophia herself came to be forgotten in the passages of time, but in recent years there has been a revival in public interest in this exotic beauty who fought for the rights of women of Britain. Like Pankhurst, Princess Sophia’s own aim in life was to work solely to achieve the advancement of women, and this is what she attained.

When the women of England are enfranchised I shall pay my taxes willingly. If I am not a fit person for the purposes of representation, why should I be a fit person for taxation?

~ Princess Sophia Duleep Singh

Death

On August 22, 1948, Princess Sophia died in her sleep in what we know today as Hilden Hall. It was formerly known as Coaltech House and was a residence once owned by Princess Catherine; Princess Sophia had it renamed after the death of her beloved sister from heart failure. Princess Catherine’s death had left Sophia inconsolable and after Catherine’s cremation, had ordered the room she died in to be sealed. Princess Sophia herself was cremated on August 26, 1948 at Golders Green Crematorium. Before her death, she expressed her wish to be cremated according to Sikh rites, and to have her ashes spread in India.

Princess Sophia (left) having a casual conversation with her sister, Princess Catherine (right).

Although the Princess is best remembered for her prominent role in the WTRL, her participation in the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) should not to be forgotten. Being an active and enthusiastic member of the WSPU, she was the single biggest individual donor to the union, not just through personal finances but also through her immense efforts in constantly raising funds and campaigning for the suffragette movement. Princess Sophia was present at the movement’s most critical moments, pushing the movement forwards at a time when suffragette socialists were known for setting fires and breaking windows.

Following the Prime Minister Herbert Asquith’s decision not to discuss, let alone grant, the Conciliation Bill during a parliamentary session, Princess Sophia stood alongside WSPU leader Emmeline Pankhurst at the forefront of the ‘Black Friday’ protest. They were a few hundred women fighting for a bill that would grant voting rights to one million wealthy and property-owning women. The protest was met by a thousand armed police officers and quickly descended into violence.

Princess Sophia Alexandra Duleep Singh, the youngest daughter of the last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, and campaigner for women’s rights.

When she saw a female protester being brutally beaten by a police officer, Princess Sophia took the risk of being beaten as well when she put herself between the office and the lady. Thankfully, the police officer recognised her and ran off, but not before Princess Sophia recorded his badge number. She then took it upon herself to write to various politicians and to the Home Ministry complaining about the police brutality she had witnessed. This incident earned her the attention and ire of the then-Home Minister Winston Churchill, who came to despise her after a woman of her standing dared to complain to him.

Princess Sophia Alexandra Duleep Singh could have led a life of ease and luxury, but instead chose to fight for the rights of the disenfranchised. Here she is pictured in Buckingham Palace at the 1894 Debutante’s Ball.

The shy princess had grown up. No longer a girl content to occupy the pages of gossip magazines and provide fodder for the paparazzi, Princess Sophia would spend the rest of her days furiously campaigning for the emancipation of women. Although a princess by birth, at heart her identity was really that of a firebrand “harridan law-breaker”, as she came to be known. Her activism and campaigning for the rights of the disenfranchised consistently extended all the way around the globe; her private diaries revealed that Princess Sophia had maintained contact with prominent leaders of the Indian nationalist movement like Lala Lajpat Rai, Sarala Devi and Gopalkrishna Gokhale, whom she had met on her first trip to India.

In the end, Princess Sophia chose defy her upbringing and sacrifice a potential life of ease and luxury, to instead make use of her platform to ensure that British women, and indeed women anywhere in the world where she could get involved, would never be treated as second-class citizens. Princess Sophia will always be remembered as one of a few Asian women who pioneered the women’s rights cause in Britain during the early 20th Century.

Photos of Princess Sophia,
Her Heritage and Background

When you delve into Princess Sophia’s family background and history, it will come as little surprise that although she was not raised in the land of her ancestors, she grew to become a fearsome warrior campaigner just like them. Princess Sophia descended from a line of major policy influencers, activists and strong women who were not afraid to stand up and fight for what they wanted.

The great Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the first ruler of the Sikh Empire, was Princess Sophia Duleep Singh’s grandfather. Known as the ‘Lion of Punjab’, he united many local kingdoms into a single Sikh Empire and introduced reforms, modernisation and invested in the infrastructure. Under his reign, the people of the Punjab prospered. It was on hearing tales of her grandfather and how he benefited the people of his kingdom, that a sense of injustice in Princess Sophia grew when she saw how local Indians were treated by their British colonisers.

The Maharani Jind Kaur, who was the Maharaja’s final wife and Princess Sophia’s grandmother. Upon the death of her husband, the Maharani broke with tradition and refused to join him on the funeral pyre, insisting that she wanted to live and see her son Duleep Singh ascend to the throne. In a cruel twist of fate, she would later be separated from her 9-year old son by the British who would then manipulate him into giving up the throne. The Maharani would not see her son again for another 13.5 years. The Maharani was renowned for her beauty, energy and determination, and until her death the British always remained fearful that she would endanger their presence in India by plotting to revive the Sikh dynasty.

The Maharaja Duleep Singh, who was Princess Sophia’s father.

In his lifetime, the Maharaja never fully came to terms with the kingdom he had lost and even attempted to regain his empire, but to no avail. He eventually passed away in a rundown Parisian hotel. He was just 55.

The Maharaja Duleep Singh before and after his conversion to Christianity. He would convert back to Sikhism later in his life.

A formal portrait of Princess Sophia’s father, the Maharaja Duleep Singh

Princess Sophia Alexandra Duleep Singh and some of her siblings Prince Frederick, Princess Bamba Sofia Jindan Duleep Singh, and Princess Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh.

The Duleep Singh Princesses

Princess Sophia Duleep Singh in her younger days. Although she had had a difficult start in life, things began to improve for her after the patronage of her royal godmother, Queen Victoria. However, Princess Sophia eventually decided to risk all of this to campaign for the rights of women in Britain and elsewhere.

More Videos about Princess Sophia,
Her Heritage and Background

BBC1: Maharaja Duleep Singh

Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/BBCMaharajaDuleepSingh.mp4

The Black Prince

A 2017 historical drama based on the life of Princess Sophia’s father, the Maharaja Duleep Singh.

Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/TheBlackPrinceTrailer2017.mp4

BBC1 Inside Out: Maharajah Duleep Singh (2004)

Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/MaharajahDuleepSingh_BBC1.mp4

Maharaja Duleep Singh:
Ancient House Museum of Thetford Life

Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/MaharajaDuleepSinghThetfordAncientHouse.mp4

Lost Treasures of the Sikh Kingdom

Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/LostTreasuresOfTheSikhKingdom.mp4

Princess Sophia Duleep Singh and
the women’s suffrage: A timeline

Year	Image	Event
1847		Anne Knight produced what is considered to be the first leaflet for women’s suffrage. She was a social reformer.
1867		Lydia Becker formed the National Society for Women’s Suffrage on November 6.
1870		The Women’s Suffrage Journal was founded by Jessie Boucherett and Lydia Becker.
1876		Princess Sophia was born at Elveden in Norfolk on August 8, to Maharaja Duleep Singh and Maharani Bamba.
1887		Princess Sophia became seriously ill from typhoid on September 17. Her mother who watched her day and night became ill too, fell into a deep coma and eventually passed away.
1889		The maharaja remarried to Ada Wetherill, whom he had known for some years, in Paris on May 21.
		Emmeline Pankhurst and her husband Richard founded the Women’s Franchise League that aimed to secure the vote for women in elections.
1893		Maharaja Duleep Singh passed away on October 22, at the age of 55 in Paris.
1894		The Local Government Act was passed due to the Women’s Franchise League’s campaign that gave land-owning women the right to vote in local elections.
1896		Queen Victoria granted Princess Sophia the three-storey Faraday House and a yearly allowance of £200 for its upkeep.
1897		Lydia Becker and Millicent Fawcett formed the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS). They were first known as the suffragists, not the suffragettes, which was a term that was only coined at a later date.
1903		The Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) was formed in Manchester on October 10. It was formed by as a militant organisation, as a response by women disappointed by the lack of progress of the NUWSS.
1905		Annie Kenney and Christabel Pankhurst interrupted a Liberal Party meeting by shouting demands for votes for women on October 13. They were imprisoned for forcibly resisting arrest. This incident brought more women to the cause.
1907		Princess Sophia secretly visited India for the first time with her sister, Princess Bamba. They travelled to Amritsar and Lahore where she met with old family members.
		NUWSS organised The Mud March on February 7 from Hyde Park to Exeter Hall. Over 3,000 women took part despite the cold weather and thick mud.
		Women were admitted to stand for election for positions within local authorities and to vote.
1908		Elizabeth Garrett Anderson was the first female mayor elected. She became the mayor of Aldeburgh in Norfolk, UK in November.
1909		Prince Frederick (Princess Sophia’s brother) bought the Thatched Cottage in Blo Norton for his sisters and rented the luxurious Blo Norton Hall in South Norfolk.
		Princess Sophia attended the Mahatma Gandhi farewell party at the Westminster Palace Hotel.
		Princess Sophia joined the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU).
		Marion Wallace Dunlop went on the first hunger strike on July. She was released after nearly four days.
		Force feeding was introduced in English prisons for those going on hunger strikes in September.
1910		Princess Sophia along with Pankhurst and other activists went to parliament on November 18 – the march became known as ‘Black Friday’. They asked to see the Prime Minister, and many of them were seriously assaulted.
1911		Princess Sophia was summoned to appear at Spelthorne Petty Sessions on May 22 for keeping a carriage, a male helper and five dogs without licences. She was fined £3.
		In July of the same year, the county of Middlesex send bailiffs to Princess Sophia’s home and demanded payment of 14 shillings for her refusal to pay taxes. They seized her diamond ring and auctioned it. The princess’s friend Mrs Jopling Rowe bought the ring and returned it immediately.
1913		The princess appeared again in court with other WTRL members in December. She was accused for keeping dogs without a licence.
		The ‘Cat and Mouse’ Act was introduced. This stopped the use of force feeding on those engaged in hunger strikes.
		To draw attention to the suffrage movement, Emily Davison walked out in front of the King’s horse at the Epsom Derby on June 4. She was trampled by the horse and died.
1914		Britain declared war on Germany on August 4, which marked the beginning of World War I.
1915		Princess Sophia joined the 10,000-strong Women’s War Work march led by Pankhurst, which was meant to convince the government to allow more women to support the war effort.
1918		The Representation of the People Act was introduced that allowed all women over the age of 30 to be given the right to vote in national elections.
1919		Princess Sophia joined the Suffragette Fellowship and remained a member to the end of her life.
1924		Princess Sophia visited India with Princess Bamba and her husband Colonel Sutherland. They travelled to Amritsar, Kashmir, Lahore, and Murree.
1928		Emmeline Pankhurst passed away on June 14, and Princess Sophia was appointed the President of the Committee of the Suffragette Fellowship.
		The Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act was given the Royal assent on July 2, allowing women the rights to vote on equal terms with men.
1934		Princess Sophia listed her only interest as “The advancement of women” in the 1934 edition of The Women’s Who’s Who.
1939		Princesses Sophia and Catherine moved to Penn in Buckinghamshire at the outbreak of World War II and stayed there throughout the war.
1942		Princess Catherine passed away at the age of 71.
1948		Princess Sophia passed away at the home previously owned by her sister Catherine on August 22. She was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium on August 26.

Addendum

The Sophia: Princess, Suffragette, Revolutionary written by BBC journalist Anita Anand was first published in 2015. Ms. Anand first noticed the only Indian, Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, in a suffragettes’ photograph. Curiosity actually set her to a further investigation that revealed a feminist life shaped by the ­British Empire that dramatically transformed the princess from privilege to revolutionary. This is the first biography of the forgotten spirited woman who is finally getting her due after almost 70 years for standing up to the British establishment.

 
Sources:

• http://historysheroes.e2bn.org/hero/3521
• http://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item124196.html
• http://www.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/makingbritain/content/sophia-duleep-singh
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophia_Duleep_Singh
• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/11345857/Incredible-suffragette-princess-was-lost-to-history…until-now.html
• http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/princess-sophia-the-forgotten-daughter-of-maharaja-dalip-singh/31103.html
• https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jan/11/sophia-princess-suffragette-revolutionary-anita-anand-review-radical-indian-royal
• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/what-to-read/sophia-princess-suffragette-revolutionary-by-anita-anand/
• http://www.info-sikh.com/RRPage2.html
• http://lahore.city-history.com/blogs/maharaja-duleep-singh-the-last-maharaja/

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