Ethel Snowden - Viscountess

Viscountess

Philip Snowden was seriously ill in early 1931, and apparently decided not to stand again for Parliament but to go to the House of Lords. He confirmed his decision to stand down in August, shortly before the collapse of the Labour Government, and was not a candidate in the general election although playing an active part in the campaign. When the award of a Viscountcy was announced in the Dissolution Honours List, Ramsay MacDonald was reported to have said that Snowden's desire for a Peerage came from his wife. Ethel became Viscountess Snowden on 24 November 1931.

The Snowdens found their financial position gradually eroding after 1931. Ethel's five-year appointment at the BBC expired at the end of 1931 and was renewed for only one year, but after Philip Snowden resigned from office over the principle of free trade this was their only regular income. When the appointment came up again, MacDonald did not renew it, a move which was ascribed to personal spite. The Snowdens had to fund Eden Lodge, a London flat, and the costs of caring for Philip who now needed constant medical attention. Philip Snowden turned back to journalism, penning increasingly bitter attacks on MacDonald. By 1936 he was immobile and being cared for by Ethel and some nurses whom she supervised at Eden Lodge; he continued to keep up with politics. Ethel attended the Coronation ceremonies of 12 May 1937 without him; Philip died three days later. She had him cremated, and the ashes scattered on the open moor at Ickornshaw above his birthplace; his books were given to Keighley Public Libraries where they formed the 'Viscount Snowden Memorial Library'. She destroyed his remaining papers.