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Emily Davison wearing her Holloway brooch and hunger strike medal, c. 1910–1912

Emily Wilding Davison (11 October 1872 – 8 June 1913) was an English suffragette who fought for votes for women in Britain in the early twentieth century. A member of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) and a militant fighter for her cause, she was arrested on nine occasions, went on hunger strike seven times and was force-fed on forty-nine occasions. She died after being hit by King George V's horse Anmer at the 1913 Derby when she walked onto the track during the race.

Davison grew up in a middle-class family, and studied at Royal Holloway College, London, and St Hugh's College, Oxford, before taking jobs as a teacher and governess. She joined the WSPU in November 1906 and became an officer of the organisation and a chief steward during marches. She soon became known in the organisation for her militant action; her tactics included breaking windows, throwing stones, setting fire to postboxes, planting bombs and, on three occasions, hiding overnight in the Palace of Westminster—including on the night of the 1911 census. Her funeral on 14 June 1913 was organised by the WSPU. A procession of 5,000 suffragettes and their supporters accompanied her coffin and 50,000 people lined the route through London; her coffin was then taken by train to the family plot in Morpeth, Northumberland.

Davison was a staunch feminist and passionate Christian, and considered that socialism was a moral and political force for good. Much of her life has been interpreted through the manner of her death. She gave no prior explanation for what she planned to do at the Derby and the uncertainty of her motives and intentions has affected how she has been judged by history. Several theories have been put forward, including accident, suicide or an attempt to pin a suffragette flag to the king's horse.

Biography

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Early life and education

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Davison in 1908

Emily Wilding Davison was born at Roxburgh House, Greenwich, in south-east London on 11 October 1872. Her parents were Charles Davison, a retired merchant, and Margaret née Caisley, both of Morpeth, Northumberland.[1] At the time of his marriage to Margaret in 1868, Charles was 45 and Margaret was 19.[2] Emily was the third of four children born to the couple; her younger sister died of diphtheria in 1880 at the age of six.[3][4][5] The marriage to Margaret was Charles's second; his first marriage produced nine children before the death of his wife in 1866.[1]

The family moved to Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, while Davison was still a baby; until the age of 11 she was educated at home. When her parents moved the family back to London she went to a day school, then spent a year studying in Dunkirk, France.[6] When she was 13 she attended Kensington High School and later won a bursary to Royal Holloway College in 1891 to study literature. Her father died in early 1893 and she was forced to end her studies because her mother could not afford the fees of £20 a term.[7][a]

On leaving Holloway, Davison became a live-in governess, and continued studying in the evenings.[9] She saved enough money to enrol at St Hugh's College, Oxford, for one term to sit her finals;[b] she achieved first-class honours in English, but could not graduate because degrees from Oxford were closed to women.[11] She worked briefly at a church school in Edgbaston between 1895 and 1896, but found it difficult and moved to Seabury, a private school in Worthing, where she was more settled; she left the town in 1898 and became a private tutor and governess to a family in Northamptonshire.[11][12][13] In 1902 she began reading for a degree at the University of London; she graduated with third-class honours in 1908.[14][c]

Activism

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See also: Suffragette bombing and arson campaign

Davison joined the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) in November 1906.[16] Formed in 1903 by Emmeline Pankhurst, the WSPU brought together those who thought that militant, confrontational tactics were needed to achieve their ultimate goal of women's suffrage.[17][d] Davison joined in the WSPU's campaigning and became an officer of the organisation and a chief steward during marches.[19] In 1908 or 1909 she left her job teaching and dedicated herself full-time to the union.[1] She began taking increasingly confrontational actions, which prompted Sylvia Pankhurst—the daughter of Emmeline and a full-time member of the WSPU—to describe her as "one of the most daring and reckless of the militants".[20][21] In March 1909 she was arrested for the first time; she had been part of a deputation of 21 women who marched from Caxton Hall to see the prime minister, H. H. Asquith,[22] the march ended in a fracas with police and she was arrested for "assaulting the police in the execution of their duty". She was sentenced to a month in prison.[23][24] After her release she wrote to Votes for Women, the WSPU's newspaper, saying that "Through my humble work in this noblest of all causes I have come into a fullness of joy and an interest in living which I never before experienced".[25]

A woman in prison is tied to a chair while four members of staff force-feed her
A suffragette being force-fed in Holloway prison, c. 1911

In July 1909 Davison was arrested with fellow suffragettes Mary Leigh and Alice Paul for interrupting a public meeting from which women were barred, held by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, David Lloyd George; she was sentenced to two months for obstruction. She went on hunger strike and was released after five and a half days,[22][26] during which time she lost 21 pounds (9.5 kg); she stated that she "felt very weak" as a result.[27] She was arrested again in September the same year for throwing stones to break windows at a political meeting; the assembly, which was to protest at the 1909 budget, was only open to men. She was sent to Strangeways prison for two months. She again went on hunger strike and was released after two and a half days.[28] She subsequently wrote to The Manchester Guardian to justify her action of throwing stones as one "which was meant as a warning to the general public of the personal risk they run in future if they go to Cabinet Ministers' meetings anywhere". She went on to write that this was justified because of the "unconstitutional action of Cabinet Ministers in addressing 'public meetings' from which a large section of the public is excluded".[29][30]

Davison was arrested again in early October 1909, while preparing to throw a stone at the cabinet minister Sir Walter Runciman; she acted in the mistaken belief the car in which he travelled contained Lloyd George. A suffragette colleague—Constance Lytton—threw hers first, before the police managed to intervene. Davison was charged with attempted assault, but released; Lytton was imprisoned for a month.[31] Davison used her court appearances to give speeches; excerpts and quotes from these were published in the newspapers.[32] Two weeks later she threw stones at Runciman at a political meeting in Radcliffe, Greater Manchester; she was arrested and sentenced to a week's hard labour. She again went on hunger strike, but the government had authorised the use of force-feeding on prisoners.[23][33] The historian Gay Gullickson describes the tactic as "extremely painful, psychologically harrowing, and raised the possibility of dying in jail from medical error or official misjudgment".[27] Davison said that the experience "will haunt me with its horror all my life, and is almost indescribable. ... The torture was barbaric".[34] Following the first episode of forced feeding, and to prevent a repeat of the experience, Davison barricaded herself in her cell using her bed and a stool and refused to allow the prison authorities to enter. They broke one of the window panes to the cell and turned a fire hose on her for 15 minutes, while attempting to force the door open. By the time the door was opened, the cell was six inches deep in water. She was taken to the prison hospital where she was warmed with hot water bottles. She was force-fed shortly afterwards and released after eight days.[35][36] Davison's treatment prompted the Labour Party MP Keir Hardie to ask a question in the House of Commons about the "assault committed on a woman prisoner in Strangeways";[37] Davison sued the prison authorities for the use of the hose and, in January 1910, she was awarded 40 shillings in damages.[38]

In April 1910 Davison decided to gain entry to the floor of the House of Commons to ask Asquith about the vote for women. She entered the Palace of Westminster with other members of the public and made her way into the heating system, where she hid overnight. On a trip from her hiding place to find water, she was arrested by a policeman, but not prosecuted.[39][40] The same month she became an employee of the WSPU and began to write for Votes for Women.[41][42][e]

A bipartisan group of MPs formed a Conciliation Committee in early 1910 and proposed a Conciliation Bill that would have brought the vote to a million women, so long as they owned property. While the bill was being discussed, the WSPU put in a temporary truce on activity. The bill failed that November when Asquith's Liberal government reneged on a promise to allow parliamentary time to debate the bill.[44] A WSPU delegation of around 300 women tried to present him with a petition, but were prevented from doing so by an aggressive police response; the suffragettes, who called the day Black Friday, complained of assault, much of which was sexual in nature.[45][46] Davison was not one of the 122 people arrested, but was incensed by the treatment of the delegation; the following day she broke several windows in the Crown Office in parliament. She was arrested and sentenced to a month in prison. She went on hunger strike again and was force-fed for eight days before being released.[47][f]

On the night of the 1911 census, 2 April, Davison hid in a cupboard in St Mary Undercroft, the chapel of the Palace of Westminster. She remained hidden overnight to avoid being entered onto the census; the attempt was part of a wider suffragette action to avoid being listed by the state. She was found by a cleaner, who reported her presence; Davison was arrested but not charged. The Clerk of Works at the House of Commons completed a census form to include Davison in the returns. She was included in the census twice, as her landlady also included her as being present at her lodgings.[49][50][g] Davison had continually written letters to the press to put forward the WSPU position in a non-violent manner—she had 12 published in The Manchester Guardian between 1909 and 1911—and she undertook a campaign between 1911 and 1913 during which she wrote nearly 200 letters to over 50 newspapers.[51][52] Several of her letters were published, including about 26 in The Sunday Times between September 1910 and 1912.[53]

Davison in 1912 or 1913

Davison developed the new tactic of setting fire to postboxes in December 1911. She was arrested for arson on the postbox outside parliament and admitted to setting fire to two others. Sentenced to six months in Holloway Prison, she did not go on hunger strike at first, but the authorities required that she be force-fed between 29 February and 7 March 1912 because they considered her health and appetite to be in decline. In June she and other suffragette inmates barricaded themselves in their cells and went on hunger strike; the authorities broke down the cell doors and force-fed the strikers.[54] Following the force-feeding, Davison decided on what she described as a "desperate protest ... made to put a stop to the hideous torture, which was now our lot" and jumped from one of the interior balconies of the prison.[55] She later wrote:

... as soon as I got out I climbed on to the railing and threw myself out to the wire-netting, a distance of between 20 and 30 feet. The idea in my mind was "one big tragedy may save many others". I realised that my best means of carrying out my purpose was the iron staircase. When a good moment came, quite deliberately I walked upstairs and threw myself from the top, as I meant, on to the iron staircase. If I had been successful I should undoubtedly have been killed, as it was a clear drop of 30 to 40 feet. But I caught on the edge of the netting. I then threw myself forward on my head with all my might.[55]

She cracked two vertebrae and badly injured her head. Shortly afterwards, and despite her injuries, she was again force-fed before being released ten days early.[23][56] She wrote to The Pall Mall Gazette to explain why she "attempted to commit suicide":

I did it deliberately and with all my power, because I felt that by nothing but the sacrifice of human life would the nation be brought to realise the horrible torture our women face! If I had succeeded I am sure that forcible feeding could not in all conscience have been resorted to again.[57]

As a result of her action Davison suffered discomfort for the rest of her life.[21] Her arson of postboxes was not authorised by the WSPU leadership and this, together with her other actions, led to her falling out of favour with the organisation; Sylvia Pankhurst later wrote that the WSPU leadership wanted "to discourage ... [Davison] in such tendencies ... She was condemned and ostracized as a self-willed person who persisted in acting upon her own initiative without waiting for official instructions."[58] A statement Davison wrote on her release from prison for The Suffragette—the second official newspaper of the WSPU—was published by the union after her death.[1][59]

In November 1912 Davison was arrested for a final time, for attacking a Baptist minister with a horsewhip or dogwhip, while on a stationary train in Aberdeen railway station; she had mistaken the man for Lloyd George. She was sentenced to ten days' imprisonment and released early following a four-day hunger strike.[23][60] It was the seventh time she had been on hunger strike, and the forty-ninth time she had been force-fed.[61]

Fatal injury at the Derby

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Davison's collision with Anmer
Newsreel footage of the 1913 Epsom Derby from Pathé News. The events involving Davison occur between 5:51 and 6:15.
Davison and Anmer on the ground following their collision
Shortly after the collision

On 4 June 1913 Davison obtained two flags bearing the suffragette colours of purple, white and green from the WSPU offices; she then travelled by train to Epsom, Surrey, to attend the Derby.[62] She positioned herself in the infield at Tattenham Corner, the final bend before the home straight. At this point in the race, with some of the horses having passed her, she ducked under the guard rail and ran onto the course; she may have held in her hands one of the suffragette flags. She reached up to the reins of Anmer—King George V's horse, ridden by Herbert Jones—and was hit by the animal, which would have been travelling at around 35 miles (56 km) per hour,[63][64] four seconds after stepping onto the course.[65] Anmer fell in the collision and partly rolled over his jockey, who had his foot momentarily caught in the stirrup.[63][64] Davison was knocked to the ground unconscious; some reports say she was kicked in the head by Anmer, but the surgeon who operated on Davison stated that "I could find no trace of her having been kicked by a horse".[66] The event was captured by three newsreel cameras.[67] The result of the race was not deemed to be void.[h]

Second class return part of the ticket, for Epsom to Victoria, number 0315, dated 4 June 1913
The return stub of the ticket Davison used on her journey to Epsom

Bystanders rushed onto the track and attempted to aid Davison and Jones until both were taken to the nearby Epsom Cottage Hospital. Davison regained partial consciousness in hospital; she was operated on two days after the collision. While in hospital she was sent hate mail.[69][70][71][i] She died on 8 June, aged 40, from a fracture at the base of her skull.[74][75] Found in Davison's effects were the two suffragette flags, the return stub of her railway ticket to London, her race card, a ticket to a suffragette dance later that day and a diary with appointments for the following week.[76][77][j] The King and Queen Mary were present at the race and made enquiries about the health of both Jones and Davison. The King later recorded in his diary that it was "a most regrettable and scandalous proceeding"; in her journal the Queen described Davison as a "horrid woman".[79] Jones suffered a concussion and other injuries; he spent the evening of 4 June in London, before returning home the following day.[80] He could recall little of the event: "She seemed to clutch at my horse, and I felt it strike her."[81] He recovered sufficiently to race Anmer at Ascot Racecourse two weeks later.[77]

The inquest into Davison's death took place at Epsom on 10 June; Jones was not well enough to attend.[82] Davison's half-brother, Captain Henry Davison, gave evidence about his sister, saying that she was "a woman of very strong reasoning faculties, and passionately devoted to the women's movement".[83] The coroner decided that, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, Davison had not committed suicide.[84] The coroner also decided that, although she had waited until she could see the horses, "from the evidence it was clear that the woman did not make for His Majesty's horse in particular".[84] The verdict of the court was:

that Miss Emily Wilding Davison died of fracture of the base of the skull, caused by being accidentally knocked down by a horse through wilfully rushing on to the racecourse on Epsom Downs during the progress of the race for the Derby; death was due to misadventure.[83]

Front pages from publications sympathetic to the suffragette cause
Front page of the Daily Sketch with a photograph of Davison, and the headline "First Martyr for Votes for Women"
The Daily Sketch, 9 June 1913
Front page of The Suffragette showing an drawing of Davison depicted as an angel. The headline reads "In Honour and in Loving, Reverent Memory of Emily Wilding Davison. She Died for Women."
The Suffragette, 13 June 1913

Davison's purpose in attending the Derby and walking onto the course is unclear. She did not discuss her plans with anyone or leave a note.[85][86] Several theories have been suggested, including that she intended to cross the track, believing that all horses had passed; that she wanted to pull down the King's horse; that she was trying to attach one of the WSPU flags to a horse; or that she intended to throw herself in front of one of the horses.[74] The historian Elizabeth Crawford considers that "subsequent explanations of ... [Davison's] action have created a tangle of fictions, false deductions, hearsay, conjecture, misrepresentation and theory".[87]

In 2013 a Channel 4 documentary used forensic examiners who digitised the original nitrate film from the three cameras present. The film was digitally cleaned and examined. Their examination suggests that Davison intended to throw a suffragette flag around the neck of a horse or attach it to the horse's bridle.[k] A flag was gathered from the course; this was put up for auction and, as at 2021, it hangs in the Houses of Parliament.[74] Michael Tanner, the horse-racing historian and author of a history of the 1913 Derby, doubts the authenticity of the item. Sotheby's, the auction house that sold it, describe it as a sash that was "reputed" to have been worn by Davison. The seller stated that her father, Richard Pittway Burton, was the Clerk of the Course at Epsom; Tanner's search of records shows Burton was listed as a dock labourer two weeks prior to the Derby. The official Clerk of the Course on the day of the Derby was Henry Mayson Dorling.[89] When the police listed Davison's possessions, they itemised the two flags provided by the WSPU, both folded up and pinned to the inside of her jacket. They measured 44.5 by 27 inches (113 × 69 cm); the sash displayed at the Houses of Parliament measures 82 by 12 inches (210 × 30 cm).[90]

Tanner considers that Davison's choice of the King's horse was "pure happenstance", as her position on the corner would have left her with a limited view.[91] Examination of the newsreels by the forensic team employed by the Channel 4 documentary determined that Davison was closer to the start of the bend than had been previously assumed, and would have had a better view of the oncoming horses.[65][74]

The contemporary news media were largely unsympathetic to Davison,[92] and many publications "questioned her sanity and characterised her actions as suicidal".[93] The Pall Mall Gazette said it had "pity for the dementia which led an unfortunate woman to seek a grotesque and meaningless kind of 'martyrdom'",[94] while The Daily Express described Davison as "A well-known malignant suffragette,  ... [who] has a long record of convictions for complicity in suffragette outrages."[95] The journalist for The Daily Telegraph observed that "Deep in the hearts of every onlooker was a feeling of fierce resentment with the miserable woman";[92] the unnamed writer in The Daily Mirror opined that "It was quite evident that her condition was serious; otherwise many of the crowd would have fulfilled their evident desire to lynch her."[96]

The WSPU were quick to describe her as a martyr, part of a campaign to identify her as such.[97][98] The Suffragette newspaper marked Davison's death by issuing a copy showing a female angel with raised arms standing in front of the guard rail of a racecourse.[99] The paper's editorial stated that "Davison has proved that there are in the twentieth-century people who are willing to lay down their lives for an ideal".[100] Religious phraseology was used in the issue to describe her act, including "Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends", which Gullickson reports as being repeated several times in subsequent discussions of the events.[101] A year after the Derby, The Suffragette included "The Price of Liberty", an essay by Davison. In it, she had written "To lay down life for friends, that is glorious, selfless, inspiring! But to re-enact the tragedy of Calvary for generations yet unborn, that is the last consummate sacrifice of the Militant".[102]

Funeral

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A procession of Suffragettes, dressed in white and bearing wreaths and a banner reading "Fight on and God will give the victory" during the funeral procession of Emily Davison in Morpeth, Northumberland, 13 June 1913. Crowds line the street to watch.
Part of Davison's funeral procession

On 14 June 1913 Davison's body was transported from Epsom to London; her coffin was inscribed "Fight on. God will give the victory."[103] Five thousand women formed a procession, followed by hundreds of male supporters, that took the body between Victoria and Kings Cross stations; the procession stopped at St George's, Bloomsbury for a brief service[104] led by its vicar, Charles Baumgarten, and Claude Hinscliff, who were members of the Church League for Women's Suffrage.[105] The women marched in ranks wearing the suffragette colours of white and purple, which The Manchester Guardian described as having "something of the deliberate brilliance of a military funeral";[104] 50,000 people lined the route.[106] The event, which was organised by Grace Roe,[105] is described by June Purvis, Davison's biographer, as "the last of the great suffragette spectacles".[97] Emmeline Pankhurst planned to be part of the procession, but she was arrested on the morning, ostensibly to be returned to prison under the "Cat and Mouse" Act (1913).[83][104][l]

The coffin was taken by train to Newcastle upon Tyne with a suffragette guard of honour for the journey; crowds met the train at its scheduled stops. The coffin remained overnight at the city's central station before being taken to Morpeth. A procession of about a hundred suffragettes accompanied the coffin from the station to the St. Mary the Virgin church; it was watched by thousands. Only a few of the suffragettes entered the churchyard, as the service and interment were private.[104][108] Her gravestone bears the WSPU slogan "Deeds not words".[109]

Approach and analysis

[edit]
Davison towards the end of her life, showing the effects of hunger strikes and force feeding[110]

Davison's death marked a culmination and a turning point of the militant suffragette campaign. The First World War broke out the following year and, on 10 August 1914, the government released all women hunger strikers and declared an amnesty. Emmeline Pankhurst suspended WSPU operations on 13 August.[111][112] Pankhurst subsequently assisted the government in the recruitment of women for war work.[113][114] In 1918 Parliament passed the Representation of the People Act 1918. Among the changes was the granting of the vote to women over the age of 30 who could pass property qualifications.[m] The legislation added 8.5 million women to the electoral roll; they constituted 43% of the electorate.[115][116] In 1928 the Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act lowered the voting age for women to 21 to put them on equal terms with male voters.[117][118]

Crawford sees the events at the 1913 Derby as a lens "through which ... [Davison's] whole life has been interpreted",[11] and the uncertainty of her motives and intentions that day has affected how she has been judged by history.[98][119] Carolyn Collette, a literary critic who has studied Davison's writing, identifies the different motives ascribed to Davison, including "uncontrolled impulses" or a search for martyrdom for women's suffrage. Collette also sees a more current trend among historians "to accept what some of her close contemporaries believed: that Davison's actions that day were deliberate" and that she attempted to attach the suffragette colours to the King's horse.[119] Cicely Hale, a suffragette who worked at the WSPU and who knew Davison, described her as "a fanatic" who was prepared to die but did not mean to.[120] Other observers, such as Purvis, and Ann Morley and Liz Stanley—Davison's biographers—agree that Davison did not mean to die.[121][122]

Davison was a staunch feminist and a passionate Christian[123][124] whose outlook "invoked both medieval history and faith in God as part of the armour of her militancy".[125] Her love of English literature, which she had studied at Oxford, was shown in her identification with Geoffrey Chaucer's The Knight's Tale, including being nicknamed "Faire Emelye".[126][127] Much of Davison's writing reflected the doctrine of the Christian faith and referred to martyrs, martyrdom and triumphant suffering; according to Collette, the use of Christian and medieval language and imagery "directly reflects the politics and rhetoric of the militant suffrage movement". Purvis writes that Davison's committed Anglicanism would have stopped her from committing suicide because it would have meant that she could not be buried in consecrated ground.[125][128] Davison wrote in "The Price of Liberty" about the high cost of devotion to the cause:

In the New Testament, the Master reminded His followers that when the merchant had found the Pearl of Great Price, he sold all that he had in order to buy it. That is the parable of Militancy! It is that which the women warriors are doing to-day.
Some are truer warriors than others, but the perfect Amazon is she who will sacrifice all even unto the last, to win the Pearl of Freedom for her sex.[102][129]

Davison held a firm moral conviction that socialism was a moral and political force for good.[130] She attended the annual May Day rallies in Hyde Park and, according to the historian Krista Cowman, "directly linked her militant suffrage activities with socialism".[131] Her London and Morpeth funeral processions contained a heavy socialist presence in appreciation of her support for the cause.[131]

Legacy

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Plaque dedicated to Davison. In addition to her name and dates, the text reads "It was from this place, on the 4th June 1913, that suffragette Emily Wilding Davison sustained injuries that resulted in her death at Epsom Cottage Hospital. Her lifelong dedication to women's suffrage and the contribution she made to the lives of British women past and present, is remembered.
Plaque to Davison at Epsom Downs Racecourse
Davison's statue in Epsom High Street, by Christine Charlesworth

In 1968 a one-act play written by Joice Worters, Emily, was staged in Northumberland, focusing on the use of violence against the women's campaign.[132] Davison is the subject of an opera, Emily (2013), by the British composer Tim Benjamin, and of "Emily Davison", a song by the American rock singer Greg Kihn.[133] Davison also appears as a supporting character in the 2015 film Suffragette, in which she is portrayed by Natalie Press. Her death and funeral form the climax of the film.[134] In January 2018 the cantata Pearl of Freedom, telling the story of Davison's suffragette struggles, was premiered. The music was by the composer Joanna Marsh; the librettist was David Pountney.[135]

In 1990 the Labour MPs Tony Benn and Jeremy Corbyn placed a commemorative plaque inside the cupboard in which Davison had hidden eighty years earlier.[136][137] In April 2013 a plaque was unveiled at Epsom racecourse to mark the centenary of her death.[138] In January 2017 Royal Holloway announced that its new library would be named after her.[139] The statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square, London, unveiled in April 2018, features Davison's name and picture, along with those of 58 other women's suffrage supporters, on the plinth of the statue.[140] The Women's Library, at the London School of Economics, holds several collections related to Davison. They include her personal papers and objects connected to her death.[76] In June 2023 English Heritage unveiled a blue plaque at 43 Fairholme Road, Kensington, London where she lived when at Kensington High School in 1880s.[141][142] A statue of Davison, by the artist Christine Charlesworth, was installed in the marketplace at Epsom in 2021, following a campaign by volunteers from the Emily Davison Memorial Project.[143]

See also

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Notes and references

[edit]
[edit]
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Emily Davison

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Emily Wilding Davison (11 October 1872 – 8 June 1913) was a British and militant activist associated with the (WSPU), renowned for her repeated acts of , including and disruption of public events, which led to multiple imprisonments and hunger strikes. Born in , she pursued higher education, earning honours in English literature from institutions including and the , before dedicating herself fully to suffrage campaigning after 1909. Her most notable action occurred on 4 June 1913 at the , where she entered the racetrack and attempted to seize the reins of Anmer, the horse ridden by King George V's jockey, resulting in fatal injuries from being trampled. Davison's activism exemplified the WSPU's shift toward confrontational tactics under , involving stone-throwing at political buildings, setting fire to postboxes, and interrupting speeches by government officials such as . Arrested at least eight times between 1909 and 1912, she endured during hunger strikes in prisons like Strangeways, where she also attempted self-harm to protest treatment. In 1911, she evaded the by hiding in a broom cupboard within the , symbolically asserting her political presence. These actions reflected her belief, expressed in writings, that personal sacrifice could compel government attention to suffragette demands and halt punitive measures like . The incident has sparked debate over Davison's intentions, with empirical evidence—including her purchase of a return railway ticket from to , a ticket to a dance later that day, and planned travel —suggesting she did not anticipate . She carried two WSPU flags, consistent with a plan to attach a to the horse's bridle as a , a tactic she had rehearsed; footage and accounts indicate she may have misjudged the horse's speed amid the chaos. The coroner's ruled her an , though WSPU leaders later promoted a of deliberate martyrdom to galvanize the movement. This portrayal, amplified in contemporary press and Pankhurst memoirs, contrasted with contemporary skepticism and the absence of a or farewell communications.

Early Life and Education

Family Background and Childhood

Emily Wilding Davison was born on 11 October 1872 at Roxburgh House, Vanbrugh Park Road, in Blackheath, southeast , to Charles Edward Davison, a born around , and his second wife, Margaret Caisley, born in 1848. The family occupied a comfortable middle-class residence consistent with the prosperity of her father's trade. As the youngest of four children from her parents' marriage, Davison was part of a large blended household that included nine half-siblings from her father's prior union, fostering a dynamic of extended familial ties typical of Victorian merchant families. She was baptized two months after her birth at St Alfege's Church in Greenwich, an Anglican parish, reflecting her early immersion in the traditions prevalent among middle-class English families of the era. Charles Davison's sudden death in February 1893, when Emily was 20, imposed severe financial hardship on the family, as Margaret Davison had scant involvement in or knowledge of the business and estate management, resulting in diminished resources and increased dependence on relatives. This reversal curtailed the prior stability of her childhood environment, highlighting the precarious economic position of widows in late Victorian society without independent means.

Academic Pursuits and Influences

Davison attended High School from 1885 to 1891, earning a Higher Certificate of Education and demonstrating academic excellence in a period when for girls emphasized domestic skills over rigorous scholarship. In 1891, at age 19, she won a to study English literature at Royal Holloway College, a women's institution affiliated with the , where she enrolled around 1892 and pursued coursework in literary analysis and related subjects. Her studies were interrupted in early 1893 by the death of her father, Charles Davison, which depleted family finances and compelled her to withdraw after approximately two years without obtaining a degree, highlighting the economic vulnerabilities faced by middle-class women dependent on relatives for support. This reflected broader barriers in late Victorian higher education, where even scholarships offered to women like Davison—rare amid institutional resistance—often proved insufficient against personal hardships or outright exclusions, such as the University of Oxford's refusal to award degrees to female students until 1920 despite their completion of examinations. Following her departure from Royal Holloway, Davison briefly attended classes at St Hugh's College, Oxford, where she reportedly achieved first-class honours in English, yet received no formal qualification due to the university's policies barring women from full membership and degrees. To sustain her mother and siblings, she entered teaching, serving as a and instructor, including a position educating the children of a family, roles that underscored the constrained professional avenues available to educated women, who were largely relegated to low-paid pedagogical work amid limited certification and employment prospects. Her literary training cultivated a deep engagement with poetry, medieval texts, and philosophical themes of power and resistance, evident in her later scholarly inclinations toward historical analysis, though contemporaneous records of pre-professional writings remain sparse. These pursuits informed an intellectual framework prioritizing textual evidence and ethical inquiry, distinct from the era's prevailing utilitarian education for women. In 1908, after years of part-time study while teaching, she earned a third-class honours in modern languages from the , one of the few institutions then granting degrees to women externally.

Entry into the Suffrage Movement

Initial Engagement with Women's Rights

Davison's exposure to women's rights issues began in the context of her conservative family background and the broader debates of the and early , where discussions of roles were increasingly prominent through and public discourse. Born into a middle-class family with Unionist political leanings, she encountered traditional views on women's place in society, yet her own pursuits challenged these norms. A pivotal influence stemmed from her academic experiences, underscoring gender-based restrictions. From 1891 to 1895, Davison studied English literature at , achieving first-class honors, but the university barred women from receiving degrees, denying her formal recognition despite her scholarly excellence. This exclusion exemplified the era's institutional barriers, limiting women's access to credentials essential for professional legitimacy. These educational constraints extended into her employment, where Davison worked as a and in positions such as at Crescent College in , facing constrained opportunities, lower pay relative to male counterparts with similar qualifications, and scant prospects for advancement. Such personal encounters with inequality fostered her recognition that political disenfranchisement perpetuated women's subordination in and work, motivating a gradual ideological shift toward for as a remedy. By around 1906, at age 34, Davison's reflections converged with the intensifying national campaign, drawing her initially toward non-militant engagement focused on intellectual and organizational persuasion rather than confrontation, reflecting a progression from passive awareness to active commitment. This phase emphasized persuasion through debate and petition, aligning with broader constitutional efforts before her embrace of more direct action.

Joining the Women's Social and Political Union

Davison joined the (WSPU) in November 1906, at age 34, amid growing frustration with the Liberal government's failure to advance despite electoral pledges following their 1906 landslide victory. The , founded by in 1903, had shifted toward militant tactics by 1906 to pressure the government, emphasizing deeds over words after constitutional petitions yielded no results. Davison, previously engaged in moderate efforts, aligned with this approach, viewing it as necessary to counter institutional resistance to female enfranchisement. In her initial role, Davison undertook organizational tasks such as arranging meetings and distributing suffrage literature across , contributing to the WSPU's mobilization. Her commitment quickly elevated her status within the group; she became an officer and chief steward for marches, roles that involved coordinating participants and maintaining order during public demonstrations. These duties reflected the WSPU's hierarchical structure, where dedicated members advanced based on proven reliability in amplifying the demand for votes for women. Davison's dedication manifested in symbolic protests, such as her evasion of the 1911 census by concealing herself overnight in a broom cupboard within the ' Chapel of on 2 April, ensuring her official residence was recorded there to highlight women's political exclusion. On the form, she inscribed "Here men and brothers only," underscoring the chamber's male-only domain and her resolve to claim parliamentary space symbolically. This act, undetected until morning, exemplified her early ingenuity in non-violent disruption to advance WSPU aims without immediate confrontation.

Militant Activism

Arson, Vandalism, and Public Disruptions

Davison participated in the Women's Social and Political Union's (WSPU) escalation toward militant tactics, including stone-throwing and window-breaking campaigns between and 1912, often targeting , political meetings, and politicians' vehicles to protest women's disenfranchisement. In alone, she faced five arrests, twice for obstruction and twice for stone-throwing, with one incident involving hurling stones at a Liberal Club in , resulting in a sentence at Strangeways. Another arrest stemmed from throwing stones at Chancellor during a meeting, interpreted by the WSPU as direct confrontation with opponents of . On 19 November 1910, Davison threw a through a window in a Division lobby of the , an act of vandalism aimed at disrupting parliamentary proceedings and symbolizing exclusion of women from governance. She also engaged in public disruptions such as hiding inside the Houses of Parliament on three occasions between 1910 and 1911, including in a hot-air shaft and the crypt, to evade detection and evade the 1911 census as a form of against state enumeration without representation. These actions contributed to her accumulating over nine arrests by 1913 for offenses including obstruction, assault, and . In December 1911, Davison committed arson by igniting paraffin-soaked packets in multiple postboxes, including those on , near Mansion House, , and Parliament Street, disrupting postal services as a against the of imprisoned suffragettes. Convicted on 9 January 1912 at the Central Criminal Court, she received a six-month sentence for placing dangerous substances in letter-boxes and attempting to cause fires. Later that year, in late November 1912, she assaulted a Baptist minister in with a dog whip, mistaking him for Lloyd George, leading to a brief . The WSPU leadership, including , endorsed such tactics as necessary to assail "symbols of male power," though these acts objectively constituted criminal damage to public infrastructure and , alienating some potential supporters.

Arrests, Imprisonments, and Hunger Strikes

Emily Davison faced repeated arrests between 1909 and 1913 for militant actions, including stone-throwing at political targets, window-breaking, and setting fire to postboxes, offenses classified under laws against and public order disturbances. These led to at least eight imprisonments, primarily at Holloway Prison in , with sentences ranging from one month to six months each. Cumulative time served approached two years, though frequently shortened by protests. From her first significant imprisonment in September 1909 at Strangeways Prison for stone-throwing at the Manchester Liberal Club, Davison initiated hunger strikes to demand treatment as a rather than a common criminal. She refused food during subsequent terms, such as a one-month sentence in June 1910 for breaking windows and a six-month term in January 1912 for on a . Prison authorities responded with , a procedure involving restraint and insertion of tubes through the nose or mouth to administer liquid nourishment, which inflicted physical pain including bruising, vomiting, and risk of aspiration. In personal writings, Davison portrayed as a deliberate torment akin to , yet justified her endurance as a to expose government brutality and advance the cause. She underwent the process multiple times, documenting its invasive nature while affirming her resolve against capitulation. The escalation prompted the Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill-Health) Act of April 1913, dubbed the Cat and Mouse Act, which authorized temporary release of hunger-striking prisoners upon medical危危, followed by rearrest once health recovered sufficiently to resume sentences. Davison experienced this cycle during her January 1913 six-month sentence for mailbox arson: after hunger striking and weakened her, she was discharged, only to be rearrested shortly thereafter for further activism. This mechanism prolonged her effective detention without resolving underlying demands for political status.

The Epsom Derby Incident

Preparations and Stated Intentions

In 1913, the (WSPU) intensified its militant tactics amid Prime Minister H. H. Asquith's ongoing opposition to legislation and the government's enactment of repressive policies, including the Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill Health) Act—commonly known as the Cat and Mouse Act—which permitted the temporary release and subsequent rearrest of hunger-striking suffragettes to circumvent legal accountability for deaths in custody. This escalation involved coordinated acts of disruption at public events to embarrass authorities and highlight the cause, though specific operations were often decentralized to evade detection. Emily Wilding Davison, a committed WSPU militant with prior experience in and , prepared independently for the on 4 June 1913 without informing WSPU leadership of her precise intentions. On 3 June, she attended the WSPU's Summer Fête at Kensington Town Hall, where she obtained two flags emblazoned with the organization's colors—purple, white, and green—symbolizing dignity, purity, and hope, respectively. The following morning, she departed her dressed formally, with one such flag tucked in her pocket and a tricolored pinned inside her coat. She traveled by train to , purchasing a second-class return ticket from Epsom to Victoria station (No. 0315, dated 4 June 1913), which indicated an expectation of departure from the event. Davison's personal writings and WSPU tracts, such as those documenting her repeated imprisonments and force-feedings, reflected a broader philosophy of unyielding commitment to , including acceptance of personal suffering or ultimate as necessary to compel political change. However, she issued no contemporaneous statements explicitly detailing a suicidal intent or specific plan for the Derby, framing her activism instead in terms of calculated defiance against systemic denial of enfranchisement.

The Collision with Anmer

On 4 June 1913, during the race near Tattenham Corner, Emily Davison ducked under the railings from the spectator area onto the track as the horses approached at high speed. She positioned herself in the path of Anmer, the horse owned by King George V and ridden by Herbert Jones, and reached upward toward its or . Anmer struck Davison with its chest, knocking her to the ground; the horse then stumbled, fell, and trampled her with its hooves before rising and continuing the race without its , who had been thrown and dragged briefly. Jones sustained a , cuts, bruises, and possibly broken but freed himself and recovered physically. Anmer completed the course but collapsed afterward from exhaustion. The incident was captured on film by cameras positioned nearby.

Immediate Medical Response and Hospitalization

Following the collision at the Epsom Derby on June 4, 1913, bystanders rushed to assist Emily Wilding Davison, who lay unconscious on the track; she was transported by motor car to the on-course ambulance station before being admitted to Epsom Cottage Hospital. Medical examination confirmed severe injuries, including a depressed fracture at the base of the skull, cerebral compression, and internal bruising. At the hospital, surgeons operated to trepan the skull and relieve , but the injuries proved irremediable, with prognosis indicating likely fatality from brain damage. Davison remained unconscious throughout her four-day hospitalization, receiving no documented visitors who could elicit response, though associates later decorated her room with flowers. No or contemporary accounts indicate prior arrangements by Davison for specialized medical contingencies, such as or pre-designated care, aligning with evidence of her independent execution of the Derby action without coordinated support.

Death and Aftermath

Final Days and Inquest Verdict

Davison was admitted to Cottage Hospital immediately after the collision on June 4, 1913, suffering from a fractured , severe , and internal injuries sustained when struck by Anmer's hooves. She underwent surgery to relieve but remained unconscious throughout her hospitalization, with medical staff noting no signs of recovery. No visitors, including associates, reported any lucid statements from her, and she died from these injuries on the evening of June 8, 1913, without regaining consciousness. An conducted post-mortem confirmed that the primary was a depressed of the and associated trauma inflicted by the horse's hooves, compounded by hemorrhage; no of pre-existing conditions or self-inflicted wounds beyond the incident was identified, and no or preparatory materials indicative of intentional were found among her possessions. The Epsom coroner's , convened shortly after her death and featuring testimony from medical personnel, the Herbert Jones, and eyewitnesses, emphasized the unpredictable timing of her track incursion relative to the race, describing it as an unintended mishap rather than a calculated act. The jury returned a verdict of "" on June 10, 1913, explicitly rejecting notions of or temporary , as supported by accounts from Davison's brother and others attesting to her sound mental state prior to the event. This finding contrasted with contemporaneous assertions by the that Davison had deliberately sought martyrdom for , for which the proceedings uncovered no corroborating proof such as advance declarations or coordinated planning.

Funeral and Contemporary Reactions

The funeral procession for Emily Wilding Davison, organized by the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), took place in London on 14 June 1913, drawing around 5,000 suffragettes and supporters who marched alongside her coffin, draped in the organization's purple, white, and green colors. Banners reading "Fight on and God will give the victory" emphasized her death as a sacrificial act for women's enfranchisement, with participants wearing white dresses, purple sashes, and black armbands to symbolize mourning and militancy. The event was designed to elevate Davison to martyr status within the movement, culminating in the coffin's transport by train to Morpeth, Northumberland, for burial, where a secondary procession occurred amid local crowds. Suffrage-aligned media portrayed Davison's demise as noble heroism, with The Suffragette newspaper's 13 June 1913 edition dedicating coverage to her as a reverent figure who "died for women," and the Daily Sketch hailing her as the "first martyr for votes for women" on its front page. These outlets, closely tied to the WSPU, framed the Epsom incident as purposeful self-sacrifice advancing the cause, despite lacking direct evidence of premeditated suicide from Davison herself. In contrast, mainstream newspapers and public sentiment largely condemned the act, prioritizing the welfare of King George V's horse Anmer and jockey Herbert Jones over Davison's injuries, and decrying it as fanatical disruption of a national tradition intertwined with the . Coverage often highlighted suffragette militancy's excesses, with some editorials dismissing the death as a deranged that alienated moderates rather than garnering sympathy. officials and anti-suffrage voices expressed outrage at the toward royal property, viewing it as emblematic of the movement's strategic overreach, while Davison received anonymous in reflecting widespread public revulsion. This division underscored the polarized reception, where WSPU mourning clashed with broader perceptions of irresponsibility.

Debates on Intent and Martyrdom

Historical Theories: Suicide, Accident, or Protest Stunt

The suicide theory maintains that Emily Wilding Davison intentionally positioned herself under Anmer to achieve martyrdom for women's suffrage, a narrative advanced by the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) through depictions of her as a deliberate sacrificial figure whose "deeds, not words" exemplified ultimate commitment to the cause. This perspective, rooted in WSPU commemorations following her death on June 8, 1913, interpreted the Epsom Derby collision as a planned act of self-immolation, drawing parallels to her earlier prison hunger strikes where she reportedly threw herself down stairs in protest against force-feeding. Proponents, including WSPU leaders, emphasized her religious fervor and writings invoking sacrificial themes, framing the incident as a calculated escalation of militancy rather than impulsivity. In contrast, the accident theory argues that Davison miscalculated the timing of her intervention, leading to an unintended fatal collision without premeditated suicidal motive, as determined by the coroner's verdict of "" delivered on June 10, 1913. This view was bolstered by testimony from her half-brother and medical evidence indicating no prior signs of mental instability, alongside Herbert Jones's account that she made no attempt to seize the , suggesting an error in gauging the horse's speed rather than deliberate embrace of death. Contemporary reports, including those from race officials, reinforced this by attributing the tragedy to reckless but non-fatal disruption akin to prior actions, without evidence of broader self-destructive planning. The protest stunt theory proposes that Davison sought to symbolically disrupt the race by draping a WSPU over Anmer—the horse owned by King George V—as a high-visibility , involving calculated risk but not intent to die, consistent with her possession of two suffragette-colored flags at the scene. Police documentation from June 4, 1913, noted these items hidden on her body, implying an aim to affix one to the bridle or neck for propaganda effect during the nationally broadcast event, mirroring non-lethal tactics like banner displays at public spectacles. Advocates of this interpretation highlight her purchase of a return train ticket from to Victoria, dated June 4, 1913, as indicating expectation of survival post-protest.

Evidence from Eyewitnesses and Film Analysis

Eyewitness testimonies of the June 4, 1913, collision at Tattenham Corner exhibited notable inconsistencies, reflecting the chaotic scene amid a crowd of over 500,000 spectators. Some accounts described Davison emerging from the crowd to grasp Anmer's reins or wave a suffragette flag, interpreting her actions as an deliberate attempt to halt or symbolize protest against the king, while others perceived her merely darting across the track without evident targeting of the horse. Police examination of her body afterward uncovered two suffragette flags tucked into her clothing, which some witnesses linked to a premeditated display, though not all reports corroborated visibility of such items during the incident. Jockey Herbert Jones, thrown from Anmer and sustaining a , later stated that Davison seized the reins, causing the horse to stumble over her, a recollection he maintained despite the physical shock. His son, however, dismissed later embellishments of psychological torment as unfounded family lore, emphasizing Jones's professional resilience. These personal narratives, while vivid, diverged from collective observations, with some bystanders attributing to momentary panic rather than coordinated intent. A 2013 frame-by-frame reassessment of British Pathé newsreel footage, digitized from original nitrate reels across three cameras and analyzed with modern engineering software for the documentary Secrets of a Suffragette, clarified Davison's movements beyond eyewitness limitations. The enhanced analysis showed her ducking under the track railing after most horses passed, positioning herself with line-of-sight to the field, then extending an arm with a —likely bearing a —toward Anmer's in a reach to affix it as a emblem. This technical scrutiny revealed Anmer approaching farther than Davison gauged, prompting the horse to veer and shy abruptly as she lunged, with its shoulder delivering the fatal impact rather than a direct frontal collision or reins-pull. The findings indicate a calculated but perilously imprecise tactic, corroborated by reports of suffragettes rehearsing horse-interception drills and drawing lots for Derby participation, rather than verifiable evidence of suicidal resolve—undermined further by her retention of a return rail ticket from to Victoria and scheduled subsequent engagements. No footage or conclusively proves premeditated , positioning the event as a high-stakes disruption gone awry.

Critique of Suffragette Militancy

Purported Achievements in Advancing Suffrage

The (WSPU) contended that their militant tactics, including property damage, arson, and public disruptions, compelled the government to address by generating unrelenting pressure and visibility absent from constitutional methods. described these efforts as deploying "a army in the field," framing them as a deliberate to escalate until concessions were unavoidable, as evidenced by events like the October 1908 rush on involving approximately 60,000 participants that highlighted the movement's scale and determination. asserted in 1908 that gains were "got by hard fighting and... could have been got no other way," attributing partial enfranchisement under the Representation of the People Act 1918—which extended votes to women over 30 meeting property qualifications—to this sustained agitation that revitalized the campaign and forced official reckoning. WSPU proponents argued that Emily Davison's June 4, 1913, collision at the Epsom Derby served as a symbolic catalyst, elevating her to martyr status and galvanizing supporters amid the pre-World War I truce on militancy. Her death, framed in WSPU publications as a sacrificial act for women's votes, reportedly inspired renewed commitment, with her June 13, 1913, funeral procession drawing thousands in a display of unified resolve that reinforced the narrative of heroic dedication. This event, coupled with contemporaneous incidents, correlated with heightened media engagement, as newspapers provided extensive coverage that amplified discourse on suffrage demands leading into wartime considerations.

Evidence of Public Backlash and Strategic Shortcomings

The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU)'s escalation to arson and bombings between 1912 and 1914, targeting empty buildings such as churches, railway stations, and private homes to minimize casualties while maximizing disruption, provoked widespread public condemnation as acts of terrorism rather than legitimate protest. Over 100 such incidents occurred in 1913 alone, including the February 19 explosion at Chancellor David Lloyd George's under-construction bungalow in Walton-on-the-Hill, Surrey, which damaged property but alienated moderates who viewed the tactics as disproportionate and un-British. Contemporary newspaper accounts, such as those in The Times, described militant suffragettes as "demented creatures" amid the rising violence, reflecting a shift in public sentiment from sympathy toward revulsion at property destruction that undermined the rule of law. Emily Davison's June 4, 1913, collision at the intensified this backlash, with reports of sent to her hospital bed labeling her actions as madness and fanaticism; one letter dated June 5, 1913, signed by "an Englishman," decried her as having "thrown away" her life pointlessly and warned of . While WSPU-aligned publications like The Suffragette framed her death as martyrdom, broader public and press reactions highlighted the incident as emblematic of extremism that repelled potential supporters, with privately expressing disgust at the militants' "reckless and violent" methods, which he believed made political compromise impossible. Militancy also fractured the suffrage movement internally, as the non-militant National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS), led by Millicent Garrett Fawcett, publicly condemned WSPU tactics for provoking repressive government measures like the 1913 "Cat and Mouse Act" (Prisoners, Temporary Discharge for Health, Act), which allowed of hunger strikers only to rearrest them upon recovery, thereby delaying progress by associating the entire cause with chaos. The NUWSS, prioritizing constitutional and petitions, expanded to over 600 branches by 1914 compared to the WSPU's 80, arguing that eroded elite and working-class sympathy; Fawcett noted in 1912 that militancy had "created a prejudice against the whole idea of " among those who might otherwise support it. This division weakened unified pressure on , contrasting with the constitutionalists' steady advocacy. Strategically, suffragette violence arguably postponed enfranchisement by hardening opposition in Westminster and the press, where editorials post-1912 arson waves warned that such "outrages" would "postpone indefinitely" the vote by portraying women as unfit for . Historians citing government records note that Asquith's Liberal administration, facing over 1,000 arrests in 1913 alone, prioritized quelling disorder over reform, with militancy credited by contemporaries for stalling bills like the 1910 Conciliation Bill that had neared passage. Empirical assessments link the 1918 Representation of the People Act, granting partial to women over 30, more directly to wartime contributions—such as 1.6 million women in munitions and roles from 1915–1918—than to pre-war militancy, which had subsided upon the war declaration when both WSPU and NUWSS suspended campaigns to support national effort.

Long-Term Legacy

Influence on Suffrage Outcomes

The enfranchisement of women in the occurred through the Representation of the People Act 1918, which granted the vote to women over 30 who met certain property qualifications, and was extended to full equality with men via the 1928 act lowering the age to 21. This legislative shift followed the First World War, during which suffragettes largely suspended militant activities to support the war effort, with women filling essential industrial and agricultural roles that demonstrated their societal contributions and shifted perceptions of their readiness for citizenship responsibilities. Historians note that Prime Minister Asquith, previously opposed to , reversed his stance post-war, attributing the change to women's wartime service rather than pre-war disruptions by the (WSPU). Empirical evidence from public opinion polls and parliamentary records indicates that WSPU militancy, including and peaking in 1912–1914, correlated with declining support for , as it reinforced stereotypes of women as unstable. A counterfactual analysis suggests that peaceful constitutional efforts by groups like the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS), combined with broader societal changes such as increased , , and middle-class expansion, would likely have secured the vote without violence. Countries like (1893) and (1902) achieved through non-militant lobbying, underscoring that demographic pressures and gradual elite consensus—not coercion—drove reform in stable democracies. In the UK, pre-war suffrage bills had repeatedly passed second readings in via orderly advocacy, indicating momentum independent of WSPU tactics. Davison's fatal intervention at the , while elevating WSPU symbolism among committed activists, exemplified the risks of militancy in alienating moderates and portraying the movement as fanatical, potentially delaying broader acceptance. Contemporary reactions, including parliamentary condemnations of "hysteria," highlight how such high-profile acts intensified backlash without altering the government's pre-war intransigence, as evidenced by the temporary imprisonment policy (the "Cat and Mouse Act") enacted in response to escalating disruptions. Causal realism points to wartime exigencies as the decisive factor, rendering pre-1914 militancy, including Davison's, a peripheral influence at best.

Modern Reassessments and Cultural Representations

In 2013, forensic analysis of surviving footage from the , conducted by experts including the and broadcaster , concluded that Davison likely intended to attach a scarf to the King's horse Anmer rather than commit , with her positioning and the horse's speed rendering the collision accidental rather than a deliberate act of martyrdom. This reassessment, supported by her purchase of a return train ticket dated June 4, 1913, challenges earlier narratives portraying the event as heroic self-sacrifice, emphasizing instead a miscalculated amid the (WSPU)'s escalating tactics. Cultural depictions have often perpetuated the martyrdom interpretation despite such evidence. The 2015 film Suffragette, directed by and starring , dramatizes Davison's death (portrayed by ) as a pivotal, intentional symbol of sacrifice, culminating in a scene that aligns with WSPU , though the script ambiguously hints at her awareness of risks without resolving historical debates. Critics noted the film's selective emphasis on heroism over tactical flaws, potentially glossing over eyewitness accounts and biomechanical reconstructions favoring . Memorials reflect divided modern views. A bronze statue of Davison by sculptor Helen Taylor was unveiled in her hometown of Morpeth, Northumberland, on September 11, 2018, commemorating her as a suffrage pioneer. Similarly, another statue was erected in Epsom High Street on June 8, 2021, marking the incident site, amid discussions of whether such honors glorify disruptive actions that contemporaries viewed as reckless. Recent scholarship critiques the WSPU's broader militancy, including Davison's role, as strategically counterproductive, arguing that , , and public disruptions alienated potential supporters and reinforced stereotypes of female irrationality, delaying rather than hastening reforms. These analyses, drawing on archival records of public backlash, contrast with progressive hagiographies by highlighting the Pankhursts' centralized control, which prioritized spectacle over inclusive organizing and ethical consistency in non-violent alternatives.

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  46. https://www.newspapers.com/article/5774561/coroner_jury_verdict_in_davison_death/
  47. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/emily-wilding-davison-1872-1913-centennial-reflections/
  48. https://www.londonmuseum.org.uk/collections/v/object-453287/the-funeral-procession-of-emily-wilding-davison-14-june-1913/
  49. https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw174806/Procession-of-Emily-Davisons-funeral
  50. https://www.emilydavisonmemorial.org/?page_id=831
  51. https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/funeral-of-emily-wilding-davison/QAEZd6HkuQowuw?hl=en
  52. https://www.historic-newspapers.com/blogs/article/suffragette-martyr-the-death-of-emily-davison
  53. https://www.badreputation.org.uk/2011/03/30/deeds-not-words-emily-wilding-davison/
  54. https://historianruby.com/2017/10/25/a-suffragette-hate-mail-and-a-grave/
  55. https://www.investec.com/en_gb/focus/derby/emily-davison.html
  56. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13688804.2018.1520631
  57. https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v35/n13/marina-warner/death-in-plain-sight
  58. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/265808424_Emily_Wilding_Davison_Secular_Martyr
  59. https://www.scotsman.com/news/emily-davison-making-of-a-feminist-martyr-1572936
  60. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/may/26/emily-davison-suffragette-death-derby-1913
  61. https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/electionsvoting/womenvote/overview/startsuffragette-/
  62. https://www.academia.edu/56242543/Did_militancy_help_or_hinder_the_granting_of_women_s_suffrage_in_Britain
  63. https://www.johndclare.net/Women2_DidSuffragettesHelp.htm
  64. https://www.historytoday.com/history-matters/sanitising-suffragettes
  65. https://www.exploringsurreyspast.org.uk/themes/subjects/womens-suffrage/the-womens-suffrage-movement-in-surrey-new/activism-and-militant-suffragettes-in-surrey/lloyd-george-and-the-suffragette-bomb-outrage/
  66. https://www.johndclare.net/women2_Kligman.htm
  67. https://www.johndclare.net/Women2_Lang_WhyFailed.htm
  68. https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v40/n16/susan-pedersen/a-knife-to-the-heart
  69. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09612025.2019.1654638
  70. https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/what-methods-did-the-suffragettes-use-to-gain-the-vote/
  71. https://www.westernfrontassociation.com/world-war-i-articles/to-what-extent-was-the-first-world-war-the-main-reason-for-the-enfranchisement-of-women-in-britain/
  72. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oct/22/suffragette-film-carey-mulligan-maud-watts-working-class-womens-suffrage-movement-violence
  73. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10691-015-9307-3
  74. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-45482172
  75. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9664445/Statue-Suffragette-Emily-Davison-unveiled-Epsom-century-infamous-1913-Derby.html
  76. https://www.history.co.uk/article/did-the-suffragettes-do-more-harm-than-good
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