She was the only woman onboard. Because of that, news networks worldwide went wild. They couldn’t believe it! She was a well-known and renowned journalist. As such, she wrote for publications about her adventures and knowledge of aviation. The flair and intelligence she wrote with belied the danger she was in. Lady Hay aspired to be the first woman to journey across the world in a zeppelin. But would she succeed? And what would become of her?
The Lucky Woman Who Landed on Her Feet
She was about to come into a lot of money. Lady Hay was born Grace Lethbridge on September 12th, 1895 in Toxteth, Liverpool. Her father Sidney was the managing director and later chairman of Spratt’s. They made dog biscuits and animal food.
The family was well-off, but Lady Hay’s life was about to get even more comfortable. In Hampstead on June 9th, 1920 aged 25, Lady Hay married the diplomat Sir Robert Hay Drummond-Hay. He was almost 50 years older than her.
The marriage did not last long. Robert died in 1926. He left Grace £12,430. Or around half a million in today’s money. Rather than go nuts, as many of us would do, Lady Hay set about realising her dream of becoming a journalist.
And so that’s what she did.
She began her career as a journalist and travel writer. She started in England for publications such as The Sphere. She moved to America in the late 1920s and began writing for the Hearst newspaper company. She also wrote for the Chicago Herald and The Examiner.
She interviewed leading figures such as Mussolini, Mahatma Gandhi and Herman Goering.
In 1926, she met Karl Henry von Wiegand, Hearst’s chief foreign reporter. Even though he was already married, and with a family, they became lovers. Karl’s family immigrated to America from Hessen, Germany when he was a child.
Together, they loved to travel. Especially aboard the brand-new zeppelin. Lighter than air? Yes. But also not without danger…
A Brush with a Zeppelin
Grace and Karl took the first transatlantic trip of the LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin. It flew from Germany to America in October 1928. Onboard were Lady Hay and five other reporters. A storm hit the airship partway the voyage. Crockery flew off the tables. The crew had to repair the fin section halfway across the Atlantic.
The Graf Zeppelin was a hydrogen-filled airship that transported people. It was the first mode of transit to provide passengers with a commercial flying service. Lady Hay was the only female passenger on the flight.
It flew from Friedrichshafen, Germany, to New Jersey’s Lakehurst Naval Air Station. It travelled 6,168 miles or 9,926 kilometres across the Atlantic Ocean. This was the longest non-stop trip at the time. 111 hours, 44 minutes.
Lady Hay was part of a diverse group onboard from America, Austria and Spain. They were correspondents, photographers, health experts, and navy officials. But many of the cameras were on her.
She was the only woman onboard.
Still, she now had a thirst for adventure. And soon, it would take her around the world…
The Voyage around the World
Hearst co-funded the Graf Zeppelin’s round-the-world voyage. August, 1929. Once again, Lady Hay was the only woman among the 60 male passengers and crew. The zeppelin took off from Lakehurst, New Jersey. It returned 21 days later. It circumnavigated the globe with stops in Germany, Tokyo, and Los Angeles.
The journey took 21 days, 5 hours, and 31 minutes, including stops. They completed the fastest tour of the globe at the time, covering 20,651 miles or 33,234 kilometres. Lady Hay’s presence on the flight, as well as her reporting on the ship, drew a lot of attention in the media.
She also later had a brush with the Hindenburg. She was onboard its inaugural flight from Germany to America in 1936. Once more, Lady Hay was the sole female passenger on this flight of 50. Yet only a year later, the age of the passenger zeppelin came to an end with the Hindenburg disaster.
She made her name as the only woman onboard the zeppelin’s early days. But almost as soon as this golden age started, it came to a sudden end.
That was not that for Lady Hay. In the late 1930s, she embarked on a lecture tour of America. She regaled others of her adventures onboard the zeppelins.
Yet she was about to embark on a different kind of adventure. War was coming. And, as a journalist, Lady Hay wanted to be on the frontline.
The War-Time Journalist’s Sudden End
Lady Hay’s work as a reporter and correspondent compelled her to go to war zones. Throughout the fieldwork, her colleague Karl accompanied her. Some of the locations they visited included China and Ethiopia.
She was a well-known and renowned journalist at the time. Noted for her amazing beauty and wit, as well as the intelligence and flair with which she wrote.
During World War II, she travelled with Karl as a reporter to Ethiopia. Here, Emperor Haile Selassie gifted her with a priceless jewel. They were in the Philippines when the Japanese invaded on January 2nd, 1942. A bomb blast almost blinded Karl.
Japan detained Lady Hay and Karl in Santo Tomas and other Japanese prison camps. After their arrest, they face imprisonment for two years. They secured their freedom in 1943. They arrived in New York on the Swedish rescue ship the SS Gripsholm. Along with 1,500 other refugees.
Karl had terrible eyesight due to the bomb blast. Lady Hay, meanwhile, was unwell from the camp’s awful conditions. Her diagnosis was coronary thrombosis.
Lady Hay and Karl continued to work as reporters in Spain and Portugal. They returned to America in 1946 but Lady Hay’s condition had worsened.
She died of a heart attack on February 12th, 1946 at the Lexington Hotel in New York. Her death was sudden. Karl returned her ashes to England. She died of coronary thrombosis at age 50. Many people attended her funeral, including William Hearst.
Placed on her body was the priceless jewel given to her by Emperor Selassie.
Adventure around the World in a Zeppelin
Many people have forgotten Lady Hay, even though she was well-known in her time. Her name appears in many books on the history of zeppelin flights. But there is no substantial biography of her remarkable life.
When the Graf Zeppelin travelled around the world, Lady Hay was the only woman onboard. Because of that, news networks worldwide wild. They couldn’t believe it!
She was a well-known and renowned journalist. She wrote for publications about her adventures and knowledge of aviation. As well as the time she secured her pilot’s licence in the 1930s. The flair and intelligence she wrote with belied the danger of the zeppelin.
She was onboard the Hindenburg on its maiden voyage and we all know how that ended.
She was not an aviator. Yet she added to widespread knowledge of aviation in the late 1920s and early 1930s. She brought tales of the airship to the masses, many of whom could not afford to travel by air. She added a sense of glamour to airship travel, too.
She wasn’t a spokesperson for the zeppelin. Yet she made it tantalising. Her words made travelling by zeppelin seem futuristic. Exciting, even. Did she succeed in this? Yes. She went on to receive great acclaim, especially throughout the war.
While her life ended young because of her internment, we can’t forget what she did. Details on her life and adventures are scarce. But what we do know is that she was the first woman to travel around the world in a zeppelin.
It was an adventure like no other.
What do you think of Lady Hay, reader?
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My Other Blogs: The Indelible Life of Me | To Contrive & Jive
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Image Credit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Marguerite_Hay_Drummond-Hay
Post Sources
https://www.airships.net/airship-people/lady-grace-drummond-hay/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Marguerite_Hay_Drummond-Hay, https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Lethbridge-166, https://www.vintag.es/2021/03/grace-drummond-hay.html, http://kilburnwesthampstead.blogspot.com/2019/01/two-women-pioneers-of-aviation.html, https://www.womeninexploration.org/timeline/lady-grace-marguerite-hay-drummond-hay/
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