Name/TitlePin flag: Clara Butt's Joan of Arc Day
About this objectSmall pin flag with a fleur-de-lis pictured against a blue background on one side, and the words 'Clara Butt's Joan of Arc Day in aid of the Three Arts Women's Employment Fund' on the other.
Date Made1917
Period1910s
Medium and MaterialsOrganic, paper
Inorganic, metal
Inscription and MarksTop of flag, in pen: "May 1917"
MeasurementsH: 46 x W: 39 mm
Subject and Association Keywordsmusic, musicians, musical performers
Subject and Association KeywordsFirst World War
Subject and Association DescriptionDame Clara Ellen Butt, DBE (1 February 1872 – 23 January 1936) was an English contralto and one of the most popular singers from the 1890s through to the 1920s. During the First World War, Butt organised and sang in many concerts for service charities, and for this was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 1920 civilian war honours: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clara_Butt
The singer was an outspoken supporter of the mobilization of women for England's labor force during World War I. At one point, she organized a demonstration of 30,000 to 50,000 women demanding to be mobilized for the war effort. Speaking to the press, she pointed out that 80,000 women had signed up for wartime duty but only 3,000 had been asked to contribute their labor. She found it ridiculous that the government was not putting this ready resource to better use. To demonstrate personally what women could accomplish, Dame Clara also raised funds for various war charities, amounting to hundreds of thousands of English pounds. She organized a series of concerts at hospitals, workhouses, community halls, and other sites throughout the United Kingdom, paying the artists small sums to perform to raise money for the Red Cross: https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/butt-clara-1872-1936
Named CollectionGlasgow Women's Library
Object TypeFlag
Object numberGWL-2022-25
Copyright LicenceAll rights reserved