BESANT, Annie. – Theosophist, born in London in October 1847, died at Adyar (Madras) on 20 September 1933. Of Irish Protestant family, she married at the age of 21 the minister F. Besant, by whom she had two children; but disappointed and assailed by religious doubts, she separated from him (1873) to marry a freethinker, Ch. Bradlaugh, and become a militant atheist (1874). Blavatsky (v.), she devoted herself to Theosophy, and on the latter’s death (1891) succeeded her in directing the Esoteric Section, propagating and defending it through books and journals.
However, she believed her mission was to present the Messiah to humanity. Associated with the pastor C. W. Leadbeater, after a first unsuccessful attempt, she turned to a young Hindu, Krishnamurti, whom she presented in various places as the vehicle or incarnation of Christ. But the Madras court condemned Leadbeater for “immoral opinions” and ordered the young Hindu to be returned to his mother. The scandal led to schisms within the Theosophical Society, and in retaliation Besant turned to politics, initially supporting Indian self-rule for Indians, then opposing Indian attempts at independence, which greatly compromised the esteem in which she was held (v. TEOSOFIA).
Besant wrote many works; the principal ones are: An autobiography (London 1893; Italian trans., Turin 1912); The ancient wisdom (London 1897; Italian trans., Rome 1901); Esoteric christianity (London 1901; Italian trans., Rome 1912); The coming of World Teacher (London 1925). She also edited various Theosophical periodicals: Lucifer, Theosophist, The Adyar Bulletin, etc.