Beatrice Webb
Martha Beatrice Webb, Baroness Passfield, (née Potter; 22 January 1858 – 30 April 1943) was an English sociologist, economist, socialist, labour historian and social reformer. It was Webb who coined the term "collective bargaining". She was among the founders of the London School of Economics and played a crucial role in forming the Fabian Society. Early life Beatrice Potter was born in Standish House in the village of Standish, Gloucestershire. She was the youngest of nine daughters of businessman Richard Potter and Laurencina Heyworth, a Liverpool merchant's daughter; Laurencina was friends for a time with the prolific Victorian novelist Margaret Oliphant during the 1840s. Both women were campaigned in Liverpool at the time (see Margaret Oliphant, Autobiography, edited by Elizabeth Jay, pages 25–26). Her paternal grandfather was Liberal Party MP Richard Potter, co-founder of the Little Circle, which was key in creating the Reform Act 1832. Beatrice faced tragedy with her sisters: one, Blanche, died by suicide in 1905 in her own house; her oldest sister, Lallie, then died due to overdose the next year in 1906. It was believed at the time that both incidents were caused by their marital relationships. Yet, Beatrice struggled with this idea because of