1912 WOMEN'S HUNGER STRIKE MEDAL

The battle for women’s suffrage was long, hard-fought and at times bitter, and the acclaimed Brotherton Library at the University of Leeds is home to several historic items that help relay the story of this struggle. They include a magazine called Votes For Women, issued by the Women’s Social and Political Union, and a rare medal dating back to 1912, presented to a suffragette called Alice Davies for taking part in a hunger strike in protest against the treatment of women.

There is also an original women’s voting registration form relating to the 1918 General Election.

Richard High, Collections Engagement Librarian at Leeds University Library, says it’s an important document. “It was such a significant moment for women and this is the most interesting item for me because it is the real thing, it’s what somebody, we don’t know who for sure, would have been sent and had in their possession,” he says.

“We see today from different places in the world where countries are opening up to democracy and people can vote for the first time, just how enthusiastic they are with long queues at polling stations, and it must have been the same a hundred years ago in this country when women were taking part and voting for the very first time.”

The medal was issued to women who’d been arrested during various demonstrations and who then took part in a hunger strike,” says High.

It was awarded by the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU), the leading militant organisation campaigning for Women’s suffrage at the time, and is tied to a green, white and purple ribbon (representing hope, purity and dignity), which were the colours of the organisation.

To read the complete article, see:
Historic items in Leeds that chart the struggle for women’s votes in 1918. (https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/analysis/historic-items-in-leeds-that-chart-the-struggle-for-women-s-votes-in-1918-1-9003599)

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