Emily Davison

Emily Wilding Davison (October 11, 1872 Blackheath – June 8, 1913 Epsom) is remembered as the woman who died by "throwing herself" under the hoofs of Anmer, King George V's horse on June 4, 1913 at the Epsom Derby in support of the British suffragette movement. She was trampled and died a few days later, never having regained consciousness. Facts surrounding the event, including newsreel footage, have led experts and many historians to doubt the popular notion that she intended to kill herself. Image File history File links B17suf. ... Image File history File links B17suf. ... October 11 is the 284th day of the year (285th in leap years). ... 1872 (MDCCCLXXII) was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Blackheath is the name of a number of places: Blackheath, London, England Blackheath, West Midlands, England Blackheath, New South Wales, Australia See also Blackheath Rugby Club – founded 1858. ... June 8 is the 159th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (160th in leap years), with 206 days remaining. ... 1913 (MCMXIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Epsom is a town adjoining Ewell in the Epsom and Ewell borough of Surrey in South East England and near to the southern boundary of Greater London. ... Anmer was a horse famous for causing the death of Emily Wilding Davison, an outspoken suffragette, in 1913. ... George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert) (3 June 1865–20 January 1936) was the last British monarch of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, changing the name to the House of Windsor in 1917. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (156th in leap years), with 210 days remaining. ... 1913 (MCMXIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Epsom Derby, Théodore Géricault, 1821. ... Suffragette with banner, Washington DC, 1918 The title of suffragette was given to members of the womens suffrage movement in the United Kingdom. ... A Newsreel is a documentary film that is regularly released in a public presentation place containing filmed news stories. ...

Emily Davison was born in Blackheath, London, and had a university education, having studied first at Royal Holloway College in London. She later studied English Language and Literature at St Hugh's College, Oxford, and obtained first-class honours in her final exams, though women were not at that time admitted to degrees at Oxford. She joined the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) in 1906, and immediately involved herself in their more militant activities. She was arrested and imprisoned for various offences, including a violent attack on a man she mistook for the Chancellor of the Exchequer, David Lloyd George. She went on hunger strike and was force-fed in Holloway prison, where she attempted suicide as a protest. Blackheath is the name of a number of places: Blackheath, London, England Blackheath, West Midlands, England Blackheath, New South Wales, Australia See also Blackheath Rugby Club – founded 1858. ... For other uses, see London (disambiguation) and Defining London (below). ... Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL) is one of the larger colleges of the University of London. ... St Hughs College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. ... The Womens Social and Political Union (WSPU) was the leading organisation campaigning for womens suffrage in the United Kingdom. ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The Rt. ... David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor, OM, PC (January 17, 1863 – March 26, 1945) was a British statesman and the last member of the Liberal Party to be Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest or to achieve a goal such as a policy change. ... HM Prison Holloway is a womens prison in the London Borough of Islington, London, United Kingdom. ... Suicide (from Latin sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the act of willfully ending ones own life. ...

On the night of the 1911 census, Davison hid in a cupboard in the Palace of Westminster overnight in order that she could legally give her address on the census form as the "House of Commons". Tony Benn has revealed that he secretly placed a plaque in the cupboard. 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... A census is the process of obtaining information about every member of a population (not necessarily a human population). ... A cupboard is a type of cabinet, often made of wood, used indoors to store household objects such as food and crockery. ... The Palace of Westminster, known also as the Houses of Parliament, is where the two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (the House of Lords and the House of Commons) conduct their sittings. ... British House of Commons Canadian House of Commons In some bicameral parliaments of a Westminster System, the House of Commons has historically been the name of the elected lower house. ... Tony Benn about to join March 2005 anti-war demo in London The Right Honourable Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (born April 3, 1925), known as Tony Benn, formerly 2nd Viscount Stansgate, is a British politician on the left of the Labour Party. ... The word plaque can have different connotations and can also be spelt placque: Look up Plaque on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Dental plaque is a yellowish biofilm that builds up on the teeth formed by bacteria embedded in a matrix of polymers of bacterial and salivary origin. ...

Emily's Davison's Funeral

Davison's purpose in attending the Derby of June 4 1913 is unclear. Much has been made of the fact that she purchased a return rail ticket, suggesting that suicide was not, on this occasion, her initial intention. Film of the incident shows her stepping out in front of the horse, Anmer, as it rounded Tattenham Corner, with Davison carrying the banner of the WSPU. But instead of stopping, Anmer trampled her, knocking her unconscious. Eyewitnesses at the time were divided as to her motivation, with many believing that she had simply intended to cross the track, believing that all horses had passed; while others reported that she had attempted to pull down the King's horse. She died 4 days later in hospital, due to a fractured skull. Image File history File links Emily_1. ... Image File history File links Emily_1. ... Suicide (from Latin sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the act of willfully ending ones own life. ...

Davison is buried in the church yard of St. Mary the Virgin, Morpeth, Northumberland. The funeral attracted much attention as a large crowd congregated to watch the procession. Her gravestone bares the WSPU slogan, "Deeds not words." Map sources for Morpeth at grid reference NZ2085 Morpeth is a small market town in Northumberland, England. ... Northumberland is a traditional, ceremonial and administrative county in northern England. ...

Sources

• A transcript of the Morning Post, June 5 1913, describing the incident that led to Emily Davison's death.
• Short text including a video of the incident.