Review: From Punishment to Pride, Surrey's LGBTQ+ History

Hosted by Di Stiff, from Surrey History Centre, "From Punishment to Pride" explored some of Surrey's LGBTQ+ history from its archive. Surrey's LGBT+ history is rich, but often hidden, and the purpose of the UK's LGBT+ History Month is to rediscover and celebrate the lives of those who have come before us, paving the way for acceptance and equality.

A note on terminology, before we begin - this article will be using LGBT+ and queer interchangeably throughout. The author is aware of the historic negative connotations of the term "queer", and its reclamation into a positive identity from the 1980s onwards. It should also be noted that many of the historical figures discussed in this article did not identify themselves in the terms that modern-day LGBT+ people might, or may not have identified at all with the community due to the stigma of the times they lived in.

The first recorded testimony of consensual sex between two men seen in the Surrey Archives dates from 1716. The testimony concerns one David Dartnall and one Thomas Reeves, and contains a graphic account of the event, where Dartnall didn't cry out, and did not blame Reeves for the event. It is unknown what happened to the two men after the court case. This era saw use of the Pillory - a punishment contraption used for public humiliation, however all male-male sexual activity was also punishable by death, an Act which was not abolished until 1861. To be accused of homosexuality was to court public outrage and scorn - in 1781, Edward Onslow, son of the 1st Earl of Onslow, was forced to resign his seat in Parliament after having "made advances" at a Royal Academy exhibition, and the resulting scandal circulated widely in newspapers at the time, with Edward Onslow exiled to France to live the rest of his life. Two years after his exile, he married a French noblewoman, Marie Rosalie de Bourdeilles de Brantôme, with whom he had four sons.  The Onslow family have a long history in Surrey, with their family seat at Clandon Park House.

Edward Carpenter and his partner George Merrill

We jump forwards in time to the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, where more records survive in the Surrey Archives of LGBT+ residents and their lives. In the 1880s, Edward Carpenter was a prominent social reformer, fondly referred to as one of the founding fathers of gay rights in the UK. He was a suffragist, as well as an advocate for recycling and self-sufficiency. He and his partner George Merrill lived openly together from 1898 to 1928, and were the inspiration for E.M. Forster's novel Maurice.

E.M. Forster was himself a Surrey local, and although he never publicly acknowledged his sexuality during his lifetime, he had several romantic relationships with different men throughout his life. He based several of his novels around locations in Surrey, including the villages of Abinger Hammer and Holmbury St Mary, and the town of Weybridge. He was also a core member of the Bloomsbury Group. Forster was in a relationship with Harry Daley, the first openly gay British policeman, however broke things off because he believed Daley to be "too indiscreet", as Daley openly acknowledged his sexuality in day-to-day life, whereas E.M. Forster kept his romantic interests private. Daley later wrote a memoir on his life, published as This Small Cloud, giving an invaluable first-hand experience of life as a gay man in 20th Century Britain before the decriminalisation of homosexuality. Forster later went on to have a long relationship with another policeman Bob Buckingham, which evolved into a triangular arrangement between Forster, the married Bob Buckingham and his wife May Buckingham.

Up until now, we had primarily discussed male historical figures connected to Surrey, but that isn't to say there weren't accounts of queer women in the archives as well. Sex between women was not a criminal offense, like it was between men - according to Queen Victoria it didn't exist at all. Women with means could happily live with their life partners, however their partnerships were not legally recognised, and both contemporarily and in the historical record female partnerships were typically glossed over as "best gal-pals" (big air-quotes there) rather than acknowledging the deeper meanings of their relationships.

Dame Ethel Smyth, composer, sportswoman, and prominent Suffragette, published several memoirs about her sexuality and her devotion to the Suffragette movement. She fell in love with Emmeline Pankhurst, and with Virginia Woolf - who told her "she only really loved three people: Leonard, Vanessa, and myself, which annoyed Ethel but pleased me" – Vita Sackville-West's letter to husband Harold Nicolson,(28 September 1939)" Dame Ethel Smyth has been largely overlooked in the musical sphere, and often viewed apart from her male contemporaries until recently, with a posthumous Grammy awarded in 2021, and featured prominently in the 2022 BBC Proms.

Marjorie Foster & Blanche Baddock at their poultry farm

In the small village of Frimley Green lived two women who, for all intents except legally, were life partners - Marjorie Foster and Blanche Badcock. The pair ran a poultry farm in the village and were both rifle shooters at the South London Rifle Club at Bisley. In 1930, Foster won the 1930 King's Prize, beating over 1000 competitors and becoming the first woman to win the accolade, a feat not beaten until 2000. The British Pathé film archive holds a clip of Foster raised aloft on a sedan in celebration. She later went on to represent England in shooting competitions, becoming Vice-Captain of the team in 1953, and after retiring became vice-president of the National Rifle Association.

We close out with the history of Roberta Cowell, RAF fighter pilot, racing driver, and the first person to receive male-to-female gender reassignment surgery in the UK, which paved the way for . After medically transitioning she was no longer allowed to race, but kept active in the motorsport world with her own motor engineering company based in Englefield Green, and winning the Shelsley Walsh Speed Hill Climb in 1957.

As we reach the modern day, LGBT+ history and community becomes more visible - starting in 1977 with one of Surrey's earliest LGBT+ societies, Guildford Area Gay Society (GAGS) allowed people to met locally at home, and was a gentler society than those in metropolitan areas like London or Manchester. GAGS closed in 2016, donating its records to Surrey History Centre. In the 1990s, Woking-based Outline launched as a helpline for queer people in Surrey. Outline now operates under Catalyst.

GIRES was also formed in the 1990s, by two parents aiming to provide trans children like their daughter with support and positive change. Celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2024, GIRES launched Legacy of Kindness to showcase the work it has done in the quarter century since.

The Surrey History Archive works with community groups to promote collections, including Pride in Surrey, radio interviews, training and learning. Its website provides a portal to further exploring Surrey's LGBT+ heritage, and they are always looking for more to add to their archives.