Sophia Duleep Singh, the daughter of the last Sikh ruler of the Punjab, is to be honoured with a blue plaque at Hampton Court Palace for her work as a suffragette and campaigner for women's rights.

The English Heritage has announced today the first plaque recipients of 2023 who range from fields including the arts, music, social reform and activism.

The Maharajah Duleep Singh was exiled to England after his kingdom was annexed by the British in the 1840s.

Despite failed attempts to return to India, he used his financial compensation to buy Elveden Hall, where his wife and children then settled.

The family were close friends of Queen Victoria, who later provided Sophia and her sisters with an apartment at Hampton Court Palace, Faraday House.

Princess Sophia used her fame, position and tenacity in the fight for gender equality in the early 20th century and became a dedicated member of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) and the Women's Tax Resistance League (WTRL). 

The goddaughter of Queen Victoria saw her campaigning attract the attention of both the press and UK government. In 1917, the princess famously led a 400-strong demonstration to Parliament with prominent suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, a protest that became known as "Black Friday". She was also known to routinely sell copies of The Suffragette newspaper outside Hampton Court Palace.

Beyond her work fighting for women's rights, Sophia was heavily involved in raising awareness of the contribution of Indian soldiers during WWI and entertained many of them at her home after the war. The princess also organised 'flag days' to raise funds for wounded servicemen, whilst visiting many of them in hospital.

Among the other individuals to be honoured in 2023 by the English Heritage are the violinist and composer Yehudi Menuhin and Claudia Jones, dubbed 'the founding spirit of Notting Hill Carnival'.

The full list can be accessed here.