Kathleen Lonsdale came to England from Ireland when she was five. A brilliant student, she graduated in physics at London University before embarking on her research into X-ray crystallography in 1923. Following her marriage and the birth of her children, she was offered a grant to cover the cost of childcare so that she could continue her work.
She was a devout Quaker and pacifist and in 1943 Kathleen spent a month in Holloway Prison for refusing to register for civil defence duties. Besides becoming one of the first women to be admitted to full membership of the Royal Society, she was appointed Professor of Chemistry at London University in 1949. She also served as Vice- President of the Royal Society.
