The First World War was a national event with local implications. As in other major towns, Cambridge residents provided hospital care for the wounded, suffered chronic privation and witnessed women successfully carrying out jobs usually reserved for men. As one of the earliest universities to offer education for women, Cambridge was also the source of some extraordinary female scientists, doctors and engineers who helped to ensure victory. Confronting danger, prejudice and disease, they took responsibility in factories, laboratories and hospitals, both at home and overseas. After the Armistice, as returning soldiers reclaimed their positions, the old stereotypes returned and women were squeezed out once again. But Britain had changed forever: now the country knew that women were fully capable of taking over work traditionally performed by men.

About our speaker

Patricia Fara, an Emeritus Fellow of Clare College, has an Oxford degree in physics and is a historian of science. Formerly President of the British Society for the History of Science, she is currently President of the Antiquarian Horological Society and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. As well as academic lecturing and supervising, she writes popular books and articles, and is a regular contributor to In our Time and other radio/TV programmes. Her most recent book is Life after Gravity: Isaac Newton’s London Career (2021), while her prize-winning Science: A Four Thousand Year History (2009) has been translated into nine languages.

The Evening

Guests should arrive from 6.30pm to meet for a drink and get comfortable before we move to the lecture room for the talk and discussion starting at 7pm sharp. The talk will be finished by 8pm at which point we can move back to the quiet bar area for drinks and more chat. There will be a cash bar before and after the talk.