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{{Short description|British naval auxiliary officer (1915–2015)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{for|the WRNS Officer|Margaret Cooper (WRNS officer)}}
{{Infobox military person
|honorific_prefix = [[Chief Officer]]
|name = Margaret Isobel Cooper
|honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|OBE}}
|image = Chief Officer Margaret L Cooper, Deputy Director of the Women’s Royal Indian Naval Service (WRINS), with Second Officer Kalyani Sen, WRINS at Rosyth during their two month study visit to Britain.jpg
|image_upright =
|alt =
|caption = Chief Officer Margaret I. Cooper (right) with Second Officer [[Kalyani Sen]], at [[Rosyth]] during their two-month study visit to the UK (1945)
|native_name =
|native_name_lang =
|birth_name = Margaret Isobel Perkin
|other_name = Peggy Skipwith
|nickname = Peggy
|birth_date = {{birth-date|12 October 1915}}
|birth_place = [[Shillong]], [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]]
|death_date = {{death-date and age|7 December 2015|12 October 1915}}
|death_place = [[Jávea]], Spain
|burial_place =
|burial_label =
|burial_coordinates = 
|allegiance = {{ubl|United Kingdom|[[British India]]}}
|branch = {{ubl|[[Women's Auxiliary Corps (India)]]|[[Women's Royal Indian Naval Service]]|[[Royal Navy]]|[[Royal Indian Navy]]}}
|branch_label = 
|service_years = 1941–1946
|service_years_label =
|rank = Chief Officer
|rank_label =
|service_number =
|unit =
|commands = [[Women's Royal Indian Naval Service]] (WRINS)
|known_for =
|battles = [[Second World War]]
|battles_label =
|awards = [[Order of the British Empire|OBE]]
|memorials =
|alma_mater =
|spouse = 
|children =
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|other_work =
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}}

'''Margaret Isobel Cooper''' {{post-nominals|OBE}} (12 October 1915 – 7 December 2015), later known as '''Peggy Skipwith''', was a British military officer who was Chief Officer and deputy director of the [[Women's Royal Indian Naval Service]] (WRINS) during the [[Second World War]].

Cooper was born in [[Shillong]], [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]], and sent to England at the age of five years, returning to India in 1934. In 1941, based in [[Quetta]], she served the [[Women's Auxiliary Corps (India)]] (WAC(I). In 1943 she was appointed Lieutenant Colonel, the regional commander responsible for recruiting women in Indian naval offices. The role led to becoming the Chief Officer and Deputy Director of WRINS, appointed by [[Admiral (United Kingdom)|Admiral]] [[John Henry Godfrey]], then [[flag officer]] commanding the [[Royal Indian Navy]] (RIN). Together they planned an active campaign to recruit women from across [[British India]] for service in the RIN. She was also responsible for the welfare, training and housing of WRINS. In 1946, she returned to England and worked recruiting for [[MI6]] until 1948.

Following the death of her second husband in 1981, she remained in [[Xàbia|Javea]], Spain, and later made two return journeys to India in 2005 and 2013. She died in 2015 almost two months after her 100th birthday.

==Early life==

Margaret Cooper (née Perkin), affectionately known as Peggy, was born in [[Shillong]] to [[Sir (Emil) Athol Owen Perkin|Sir Athol Owen Perkin]], [[Inspector-general of police#India|Inspector-general of police]] at [[Odisha|Odissa]], and his wife, Lady Marion.<ref name=Navy2016>{{cite journal |title=Family mourn pioneer Peggy: Chief Officer Margaret Isobel Cooper |journal=Navy News |date=October 2016 |page=15 |url=https://issuu.com/navynews/docs/201610/17 |language=en}}</ref> She had three younger siblings; one brother became squadron leader [[No. 9 Squadron RAF]], another led the [[19th Punjabis|19th Punjab regiment]] at the [[Battle of Wadi Akarit]], and her sister Beryl joined the [[Intelligence Corps (United Kingdom)#Second World War|Intelligence Corps]].<ref name=Navy2016/> At the age of five years Cooper was sent to live with grandparents in England, where she completed her early education at [[Oxford High School, England|Oxford High School]].<ref name=Navy2016/>

Cooper returned to India in 1934, and married [[Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom)|Lieutenant Colonel]] R.A.B. Cooper of the [[East Yorkshire Regiment]] who was awarded an OBE for his work during the [[1934 Nepal–India earthquake|Muzaffarpur earthquake]].<ref name=Navy2016/>

==Second World War==

In 1941, based in [[Quetta]], Cooper served the [[Women's Auxiliary Corps (India)]] (WAC(I).<ref name=Navy2016/> In September 1943, she was appointed Lieutenant Colonel, the regional commander responsible for recruiting women in Indian naval offices.<ref name=Navy2016/> The role led to her assuming the rank of Chief Officer, and being appointed deputy director of WRINS by [[Admiral (United Kingdom)|Admiral]] [[John Henry Godfrey]], then [[flag officer]] commanding the [[Royal Indian Navy]] (RIN).<ref name=Vitali2020>{{cite journal |last1=Vitali |first1=Valentina |title=The Women's Royal Indian Naval Service: picturing India's new woman |journal=Women's History Review |date=9 November 2020 |volume=29 |issue=7 |pages=1114–1148 |doi=10.1080/09612025.2019.1674468|s2cid=210364785 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09612025.2019.1674468 |issn=0961-2025|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Together they planned an active campaign to recruit women from across [[British India]] for service in the RIN.<ref name=Vitali2020/> It proved popular with middle and upper-class Indian women and most were generally very young; just out of school or in college.<ref name=Vitali2020/> Cooper wrote in 1945 that "for the Indian girls it was the experience of a life time and broadened their outlook considerably – helping towards emancipation".<ref name=Vitali2020/><ref name=WRENS>{{cite web |title=Remembering The History Of The Women's Royal Indian Naval Service (WRINS) |url=https://wrens.org.uk/remembering-the-history-of-the-womens-royal-indian-naval-service-wrins/ |website=Association of Wrens |access-date=13 January 2023 |date=13 August 2020}}</ref> She explained that "as two-thirds of the women who enrolled were Indian, two styles of uniforms were developed, one consisting of a white [[sari]] with a blue border, to suit the graceful Indian girls, and, for the British and Anglo-Indians, an attractive uniform based on that of the [[Women's Royal Naval Service]] (WRNS).<ref name=Vitali2020/> She contributed to the introduction of the publication ''Wrins and How They Served''.<ref name=Vitali2020/> In addition to recruitment and regulations she was responsible for the welfare, training and housing of WRINS.<ref name=Navy2016/> According to Cooper's writings, in order to do this she travelled over 55,500 miles, chiefly by air, to naval bases across India.<ref name=Navy2016/> According to Godfrey, most of those she recruited to WRINS were Indian so that by the end of 1945 "43% of the officers and 77% of the Wrins were Indian, and among the junior officers 80% were Indian".<ref name=Vitali2020/>

Serving WRINS, Cooper stayed in Delhi, where she would have been among [[Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell|General Wavell]], [[Claude Auchinleck|General Claude Auchinleck]], [[Cecil Beaton]], [[Peter Fleming (writer)|Peter Fleming]] and [[Ian Fleming]].<ref name=Navy2016/> In April 1945, she accompanied Second Officer [[Kalyani Sen]] to the UK, where they visited [[Auxiliary Territorial Service|A.T.S. establishments]].<ref name=Mohanan2020>{{Cite book |last=Mohanan |first=Kalesh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nPqzDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT94 |title=The Royal Indian Navy: Trajectories, Transformations and the Transfer of Power |date=2020 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-138-55495-5 |location=Abingdon, Oxford |pages=94–96 |language=en}}</ref> For her wartime service she was appointed an OBE in 1946.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=37598|supp=y |page=2765|date=13 June 1946}}</ref>

==Later life==

In 1946, Cooper left the naval service and rejoined her husband in England and worked recruiting for [[MI6]] until 1948, when she moved to Austria.<ref name=Navy2016/> In 1949, she returned to England, where she settled in [[Camberley]], Surrey, until 1959, when she moved to Malta with her husband.<ref name=Navy2016/> In retirement, she settled in France, and then in Javea, Spain, with her second husband Lieutenant Colonel J.P. de Skipwith.<ref name=Navy2016/> Following his death in 1981 she remained in Spain, and later made two return journeys to India with her daughter Carol in 2005 and 2013.<ref name=Navy2016/> In October 2015, on her 100th birthday, Javea Golf Club, where she played golf, awarded her honorary membership and created the 'Peggy Skipwith Cup'.<ref name=Navy2016/><ref name=Euro2015>{{cite web |title=Peggy Skipwith, 100th birthday celebration |url=https://euroweeklynews.com/2015/10/15/peggy-skipwith-100th-birthday-celebration/amp/ |website=Euro Weekly News |access-date=12 January 2023 |date=15 October 2015}}</ref>

==Death==

Cooper, then Peggy Skipwith, died on 7 December 2015, almost two months after her 100th birthday, and was survived by her sister, daughter, one daughter-in-law, one grandson, and a great-grandson.<ref name=Navy2016/>

==References==

{{reflist}}

==External links==

*{{YouTube|CnIBWSFDFFY|Women's Royal Indian Naval Service (WRINS)}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Margaret Isobel}}
[[Category:1915 births]]
[[Category:2015 deaths]]
[[Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:Women's Royal Naval Service officers]]
[[Category:Royal Navy officers of World War II]]
[[Category:British women in World War II]]
[[Category:People from Shillong]]
[[Category:British women centenarians]]

Margaret Isobel Cooper - Revision history

House of Dontics: adding stub