Kate Marsden memorial statue at Viluisk
Further to my blog of 24.07.2017, I was keen to learn more about Englishwoman Kate Marsden and her journey to Viluisk in Siberia to establish a hospital for lepers.
Naturally, I looked up Wikipedia first, and here is the introduction to what it had to say:
Kate Marsden (13 May 1859 – 26 May 1931) was a British missionary, explorer, writer and nursing heroine. Supported by Queen Victoria and Empress Maria Fedorovna she investigated the care of leprosy. She set out on a journey from Moscow to Siberia to find a cure, creating a leper treatment centre in Siberia. She returned to England and inspired Bexhill Museum, but she was obliged to retire as a trustee. Marsden was dogged after her journey by homophobia, her finances were questioned as were her motives for her journey. Her accusers almost succeeded in making her sexuality the basis for an “Oscar Wilde”-type trial. She was however elected a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. She has a large diamond named after her and is still remembered in Siberia, where a large memorial statue was erected at Sosnovka village in 2014.
However, google led me to another Kate Marsden, whose WordPress page revealed that KM The Younger has just completed a re-enactment of the original Kate Marsden’s journey and is now writing a book about the subject. You can find out a whole lot more about the two KMs by clicking on her webpage here:
https://victoriankatemarsden.wordpress.com/2016/06/10/the-kate-marsden-museum-in-vilyuisk/
