The Great Leader Series No. 6 - Eleanor Roosevelt

“The First Lady of the World” was the name given to Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, by Harry Truman.

Eleanor Roosevelt, as she was known, was the niece of Teddy Roosevelt, former president, who gave his name, in a well publicised event, to the teddy bear!

She was born on 11 October 1884 to parents from prominent families and had a very happy early childhood. Sadly her mother died of diphtheria when Eleanor was eight years old and two years later, her father also died. She was seemingly unaffected by her mother’s death, but her father’s death caused her to become withdrawn, refusing to interact with her friends. She was cared for after that by her dour grandmother and her aunt.

At fifteen she was sent to finishing school in London. She thrived on her new environment, absorbing a self discipline that would remain with her all her life. She returned home a confident young woman, ready to make her debut into Society. It was during this time that her distant cousin entered her life. She married him, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in 1905, after a three year courtship.

She idolised him for the rest of her life.

She did not plan for a future as a politician’s wife, but five years after their marriage, FDR decided to run for the New York State Legislature. As any loving wife would in those days, she gave him all her support. She did not behave as most people expected a politician’s wife to. Eleanor was a constant presence in her husband’s political life.

In 1921, FDR was struck down by poliomyelitis and never walked again! Eleanor became even more involved in her husband’s political life as she knew he would have to rely on information from people around him because of his disability. She became involved in state politics, travelling extensively and working for political causes she considered to be important.

She invited people from all walks of life, social workers, union leaders and writers to dinner. These people were able to keep FDR involved with current political events. All this also brought Eleanor in to contact with many prominent political figures.

She advocated better working conditions for women. She wanted to see an end to children working. She supported birth control, decent housing and world peace.

FDR ran for president in 1932.  Eleanor, later, declared “I did not want my husband to be president” “It was pure selfishness on my part, and I never revealed my feelings on the subject to him.”  She believed that her role as First Lady signalled “the end of any personal life of my own.” But she embraced her role wholeheartedly, continuing her support of her husband.

After America joined the Second World War she supported American troops at home and abroad, even visiting England at the behest of Queen Elizabeth. She even gained the respect of Winston Churchill!

Her extensive travels enabled her to meet great leaders the world over. This stood her in good stead for what was to come.

In April 1945 FDR died. Eleanor was not at his bedside at the end. His former mistress and friend was there. FDR had hurt Eleanor with his infidelity.  Indeed her family tried to lie about his end in order to protect her. Despite this Eleanor kept faith with her husband’s beliefs and values and wanted to continue with his work.

To this end she kept close council with many of his close friends, including Democratic politicians. At this point I feel that there could be many different viewpoints on her achievements. The Americans, at least the Democrats, see her as a great American heroine. Some people may see her differently!

But none of this shows her as a great leader. I feel that it was after the Second World War that her great qualities gave her the chance to become a great leader. During her life as First Lady, Eleanor, as already stated, travelled extensively meeting world leaders. As she tried to continue her husband’s work, she put herself forward in many areas of the Democratic party’s machinations. She continued a friendship with Winston Churchill.

Harry Truman, as president, made her a delegate to the newly formed United Nations, the only female. Eleanor had, throughout her late husband’s presidency, attended international  political conferences.

The UN had started as the Inter-Allied Declaration, which had been signed in London on 12 June 1941. It was followed by the Atlantic Charter at which a set of principles for international collaboration in maintaining peace and security was proposed by Winston Churchill and FDR. In 1942 representatives of twenty six Allied nations fighting the Axis Powers pledged their support for the Atlantic Charter by signing the “Declaration by United Nations. It was in this document that the term United Nations was used for the first time, suggested by FDR. Following this meeting a further declaration was signed in Moscow in 1943, by the governments of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and China. It called for the early establishment of an international organisation to maintain peace and security. This was reaffirmed in Teheran on 1 December 1943. The conferences continued at Dumbarton Oaks on 21 September to 7 October 1944, followed by The Yalta Conference attended by Churchill, Stalin and Roosevelt. It was here that they resolved to establish “a general international organisation to maintain peace and security.”

So it was important to Eleanor to continue her husband’s work. She accepted her appointment not really understanding the enormity of the task. Whilst the other delegates along with a huge number of State Department officials arrived at a Manhattan pier to catch the Queen Elizabeth from a special train in a motorcade with flashing lights and sirens. Eleanor arrived accompanied by her personal friend and secretary. They made their goodbyes and Eleanor, carrying her own bag proceeded to walk up the gangway on her own. She was soon recognised and taken to her stateroom where she spent an hour reading official documents. This reading, filled as it was with gobbledygook, became a daily struggle.

One day she was greeted by the one of the other delegates. “Mrs Roosevelt, we would like to know if you would serve on Committee Three.” Concerned that she had not been involved in any discussions leading to this request she, did, however, manage to set this aside for a while in order to agree. She did request as much information as possible on Committee Three as she had no idea what Committee Three might be. After much reading she discovered that that committee covered humanitarian, cultural and educational topics. She felt that the other delegates felt it was a safe place for her where she could do no harm.

This turned not to be the case. Eleanor was to chair a committee that would require all her tenacity, skills and personal qualities. It was this task which would stretch her leadership abilities to their fullest extent.

After much time spent talking and listening to delegates and politicians, eventually Eleanor was acclaimed chairman of the United Nations Committee on Human Rights. This meant writing an international bill of rights.

Imagine the skills involved in agreeing the wording of this with so many countries, just after World War II. Constant, patient perseverance was the order of the day. It was not a task to be undertaken lightly. She, and her committee, had to negotiate with USSR led by Stalin, China, Japan, Europe, the Jews and Palestine.

Three sentences to cover this vast amount of work are not enough but to catalogue all the negotiations is a mammoth task.

It was Eleanor Roosevelt’s ability to lead this committee to a successful conclusion that has made me choose her as this month’s great leader. Tenacity, courtesy and the ability to negotiate are tools of a great leader. Shouting one’s successes can be important but the ability to stay the course is also vital.

The United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed 10 December 1948.

Mother R          Elliott Roosevelt and James Brough  WH Allen 1978

Roosevelt and the Royals       Will Swift   www.willswift.com

Milestones in UN History        www.un.org

Eleanor Roosevelt                 www.wic.org
 
Eleanor Roosevelt                 www.factmonster.com

Eleanor Roosevelt                 www.multied.com

Eleanor Roosevelt                  Teckla Dixon  www.users.mohio.edu

Date : 01-09-2006