A desire to see a ‘true Cornish heroine’ given the recognition she deserves has led one man to make a heartfelt appeal.

Mike Smith has spent the last three years planning a permanent memorial to Emily Hobhouse, which he hopes to see installed in the churchyard of her home village of St Ive.

With the agreement of both St Ive District Church and the Diocese of Truro, and with planning permission in place, Mike is now fund-raising for the £20,000 his vision will cost to create.

The memorial will consist of a granite column around two metres in height, mounted on a granite slab, and inlaid with slate inscribed with words in English, Cornish and Afrikaans.

A humanitarian and pacifist, Emily went to South Africa during the Boer War and worked to improve conditions for Boer women and children both during and after the war.

Her lifting the lid on the horrific conditions inside the British prisoner of war camps, and her desire to assist ‘the enemy’, led to her being widely vilified in this country.

Emily is revered in South Africa. Her ashes are interred at the national women’s memorial and there are several towns, streets and buildings that bear her name.

To support the Emily Hobhouse memorial appeal visit www. gofundme.com/a-memorial-for-emilyhobhouse