Byron, Annabella (1792–1860)

English philanthropist. A committed advocate of schemes for improving women's education, many of which she funded, Byron was also involved in agricultural and industrial reforms, co-operative movements, the antislavery movement (she was a friend of the US abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe), and other radical causes.

In 1854 she purchased the Red Lodge in Bristol on behalf of the social reformer Mary Carpenter (1807–1877) who opened it as a home for girl offenders. Other close friends within the radical circles she frequented included the art critic Anna Jameson (1794–1860) and Barbara Bodichon, a champion of women's rights.

Byron was born at Elmore Hall, Durham. She married in 1815, but the couple separated the following year after the birth of their daughter Ada (later the Countess of Lovelace).