Statues of dogs are great but where are all the statues of women in Edinburgh?
By Roisin Kenny // BBC The Social contributor // 8 March 2021
Wherever you go in Edinburgh you will find statues our most famous citizens – philosophers, writers, scientists and artists. On the Royal Mile alone you will find six statues of men. There’s even a statue of Alexander the Great, who wasn’t Scottish and never came to Scotland.
We even celebrate our animals – Greyfriars Bobby on George IV Bridge, and Wojtek the Bear and Bum the Dog in Princes Street Gardens are well known statues in the city. Meanwhile, there are named statues of only two women – Helen Crummy, who founded the Craigmillar Festival Society, and Queen Victoria for… being Queen Victoria. This of course means Edinburgh has more statues of animals than named women.
Don’t get me wrong – dogs are class. I’m just saying – women? Also class. Here are some Edinburgh women who would be well worthy of a statue.
Edinburgh Is Full Of Statues, But Where Are All The Women? | Roisin Kenny
Statues of dogs are great...but where are all the statues of women?
Chrystal MacMillan
She was the first female science graduate at Edinburgh university. She founded the women’s international league for Peace and Freedom, which to this day campaigns to end war. The Chrystal MacMillan building in George Square is the only Edinburgh university building named after a woman.
Agnes Yewande Savage
Agnes was a Scottish born Nigerian woman who was the first West African woman to qualify in orthodox medicine, obtaining her medical degree in 1929. She obtained first class honours in all subjects and was awarded the prize for the best female graduate in her class. Despite facing gender and race discrimination, she forged a successful medical career and helped establish a nursing college in Ghana.
Elsie Inglis
In WW1 Elsie founded the Scottish Women’s Hospitals, providing care to solders on the frontline. With her team she saved thousands of lives in France, Russia and Serbia.
Dame Muriel Spark
Born and raised in Edinburgh, she wrote many successful novels including The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. She is widely considered one of the greatest modern British authors.
The Edinburgh 7
The next one is a bit of a cheat since it’s technically seven women. The first ever matriculated undergraduate female students at any British University. They studied medicine and throughout their studies they were targeted by abuse, threats and vandalism. Despite qualifying, Edinburgh University refused to give them their degrees, so they had to qualify abroad. One of the women, Sophia Jex-Blake, became the city’s first female doctor.
Jane Smeal and Eliza Wigham
Finally, there’s Jane and her stepdaughter Eliza, pioneering Scottish suffragists and abolitionists. They also founded one of the first three women’s suffrage societies in Britain. As members of the Scottish Women’s Emancipation Society they raised thousands for the US underground railroad, which helped slaves in the US escape to Canada.
Some people might ask – why does this matter? Well without the women, the story of Edinburgh is incomplete.
When people see a statue they ask who it is, they want to know the story behind it. And I think it’s time we started telling the story of Edinburgh’s amazing women, because there’s a lot of them, and they’re absolutely worth celebrating.
