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Suffrage and the Pankhursts - Part 1 - Page 2

© Katie Anne Gustafsson

Over the years that followed, many women throughout England were imprisoned for their actions on the suffrage question. Often such imprisonment came for something as simple as intentionally breaking a window. Emily and her followers tried to claim political prisoner status but were unsuccessful on many occasions, although eventually events led to there being a change in how the prisoners were treated. Before this however would come a black period in both British and Women's History. The women decided that they would hunger strike as a protest against the way they were treated in the prisons. This challenge was met by the prison authorities instigating a method of force feeding the women (and some men who also actively supported the suffrage movement). This caused medical problems and even death in some cases, and was completely unsupported by the medical profession as a whole.

Law graduate Christabel fled to France to avoid imprisonment in 1912 where she continued her high-profile support for the suffrage movement, which was becoming increasingly militant at this stage, without fear of further incarceration. One of her main duties was with regard to the newspaper "Suffragette" which was produced by the WSPU for its members. In 1915 the paper changed and became "Britannia" and spread its focus to attack any activity or political individual thought to be anti-war.

....to be continued/

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