Constance Peel

Constance Dorothy Evelyn Peel (; 27 April 1868 – 7 August 1934) was an English journalist and writer, known for her non-fiction books on cheap household management and cookery. She wrote with the name Mrs. C. S. Peel, taking the name of her husband, Charles Steers Peel. She is sometimes cited as Dorothy Constance Peel. After the First World War, she worked on behalf of women, sitting on governmental committees.

Early life Constance Dorothy Evelyn Bayliff was born in Ganarew, Herefordshire on 27 April 1868. She was the seventh child of Richard Lane Bayliff, a military captain, and his wife Henrietta . As a young child, Constance lived in Wyesham, Monmouthshire, before she moved to Bristol. She was primarily educated at home and suffered from breathing problems. At 17, she moved to Folkestone and had a coming out at a military ball. In her childhood, she spent much time socialising with families much richer than her own; she had actually had a fairly frugal upbringing.

Career and marriage

Bayliff began a career in journalism when she and her family moved to Twickenham. An older sister was producing illustrations for The Queen, and Bayliff won a competition to write for Woman. Arnold Bennett, then editor of the periodical, arranged for Bayliff to receive tutorship from a schoolteacher, and she also learnt from Bennett's editing. The social historian John Burnett called her "the doyenne of writers on domestic economy".