Vandals spray 'Nazi' on statue of Nancy Astor in Plymouth

A statue of Nancy Astor, the first female MP to take her seat in parliament, has become the latest monument to be targeted by vandals.

The word 'Nazi' has been spray painted on the plinth of the statue, along with an Antifascist Circle, a political symbol associated with the Social Democratic Party of Germany in the 1930s.

The statue was only unveiled last year, and sits outside Nancy Astor's former house on Plymouth Hoe.

The statue was paid for by a £100,000 crowd-funding campaign and was unveiled by former Prime Minister Theresa May in November 2019.

Lady Nancy Astor made history after she was elected to represent Plymouth Sutton in Parliament on November 28 1919 - more than 100 years ago.

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Lady Astor was celebrated as a pioneer of equality and reforms in welfare and education, but is said to have held anti-Catholic and anti-Semitic views and been sympathetic to the Nazis in the period before the Second World War.

Last week a statue of Sir Francis Drake - also on Plymouth Hoe - was placed in chains and bore a sign that read 'decolonise history'.