Guest Blogs

Deeds not Words!

We’re clearly soldiers in petticoats And dauntless crusaders for woman’s votes Though we adore men individually We agree that as a group they’re rather stupid!   In 1903 Emmeline Pankhurst, her daughters, Christabel and Sylvia, and a small group of other supporters founded the Women’s Social and Political Union (WPSU). The group adopted the slogan … Read more

A ‘Dastardly Outrage’: Mary Richardson and the Rokeby Venus

On the morning of 10 March 1914, ‘a small woman… attired in a tight-fitting grey coat and skirt’ entered the National Gallery in London. Wandering through the rooms, she stopped occasionally to sketch the paintings. She came to Velásquez’s The Toilet of Venus (known as the Rokeby Venus), and stood in front of the painting … Read more

Constance Markievicz: The First Female Member of Parliament

Constance Gore-Booth (1868-1927), a leading figure in the Irish Revolution and a prominent campaigner for women’s suffrage, was the first woman elected to Westminster. The eldest of five children, Constance came from a privileged, upper-class Irish Protestant family. Prior to embarking on her political career, Constance studied art in London and Paris. In Paris, she … Read more

‘Alliance Not Defiance’: Christiana Herringham and the Women’s Suffrage Movement

On Saturday 13th June 1908, the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS) held a great procession. Its intention was to display the mass support for women’s suffrage. Ten thousand women marched through the streets of London, carrying over 70 banners. These banners were designed by Mary Lowndes, the founder of the Artists’ Suffrage League, … Read more