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Nesta Helen Webster (1876-1960) was one of the most influential conspiracy theorists of the twentieth century. Although an advocate of women's rights early in her life, her conviction that a vast and dangerous conspiracy threatened the British state and Christian civilization soon overshadowed these concerns. During her lifetime, she was a woman of considerable political influence, but she is perhaps even more influential today. Her books remain in print, and her work is a foundation of many far-right ideologies, including those of the John Birch Society and the Militia and Patriot movements. Webster's life and work are illustrative of the paradoxical position of women of the far right, both in the early twentieth century and today.
Early-twentieth-century Britain saw the emergence of numerous far-right political groups. Women played a significant role in many of these movements: in 1923, Rotha Lintorn Orman founded the British Fascist!, and during the 1930s, the British Union of Fascists' membership was at least 25 percent female.1 Among these right-wing women, however, activist and author Nesta Helen Webster stood out. During her lifetime (1876-1960), she was a woman of considerable political influence and, through her many books and articles, she remains influential today. Her work is a foundation for many modern American far-right political ideologies, including those of Pat Robertson, the John Birch Society, and the Militia and Patriot movements, and it is a component of a number of radical Islamist ideologies. As an outstanding figure of her generation, she is therefore of interest to historians and, as an author influential in both the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries, she is of interest to political scientists.
Webster wrote three novels, but her works of "nonfiction" are the source of her political significance. She effectively popularized complex conspiracy theories and, in so doing, provided a framework for political action. During her lifetime, Webster published eight lengthy works of politics and history, many of which went into multiple editions and still remain in print. She wrote during a period of profound political and social change: the British Empire peaked and declined, World War I transformed European politics and society, and British women obtained the vote. Webster was a conservative writer interested in history, power, and politics, and she questioned the origin and...