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Quick Facts
- NAME: Emily Davison
- OCCUPATION: Women's Rights Activist
- BIRTH DATE: October 11, 1872
- DEATH DATE: June 08, 1913
- EDUCATION: Royal Holloway College, Oxford University, Kensington Prep School
- PLACE OF BIRTH: London, England, United Kingdom
- PLACE OF DEATH: Epsom, England, United Kingdom
- Full Name: Emily Wilding Davison
- AKA: Emily Davison
Best Known For
Militant suffragette Emily Wilding Davison fought to gain equal voting rights for British women before dying at the Epsom Derby in 1913.
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Play NowEmily Davison. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 01:05, May 22, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327.
Emily Davison. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327 [Accessed 22 May 2013].
"Emily Davison." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 22 2013, 01:05 http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327.
"Emily Davison," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327 [accessed May 22, 2013].
"Emily Davison," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327 (accessed May 22, 2013).
Emily Davison [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 22] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327.
Emily Davison, http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327 (last visited May 22, 2013).
Emily Davison. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/emily-davison-9268327. Accessed May 22, 2013.
Synopsis
Born in London, England, on October 11, 1872, Emily Wilding Davison joined the Women's Social and Political Union in 1906, then quit her teaching job to work full-time for equal voting rights. A militant member of the British suffragette movement, Davison was jailed several times for protest-related offenses and attempted to starve herself while serving time in Manchester's Strangeways Prison. In 1913, she stepped in front of a horse during the Epsom Derby and died of her injuries.
Contents
Quotes
"The idea in my mind was one big tragedy may save many others."
Early Life
Born October 11, 1872, in London, England, Emily Wilding Davison was one of Britain's most famous suffragists. She was a bright student at a time when educational opportunities were limited for women. After attending Kensington Prep School, Davison took classes at Royal Holloway College and at Oxford University, but she couldn't officially earn a degree from either institution. Women were prohibited from doing so at the time.
After leaving school, Davison found work as a teacher. She eventually started dedicating her spare time to social and political activism. In 1906, Davison joined the Women's Social and Political Union. The WSPU, established by Emmeline Pankhurst, was an active force in the struggle to win the right to vote for women in Britain.
Famous Suffragist
In 1909, Davison gave up teaching to devote herself full time to the women's suffrage movement, also known as the suffragette movement. She was unafraid of the consequences of her political actions, willing to be arrested and ended up imprisoned several times on various protest-related offenses.
Davison spent a month in Manchester's Strangeways Prison that same year. While in prison, she attempted a hunger strike. Many jailed suffragists went on hunger strikes to protest the government's refusal to classify them as political prisoners. Davison barricaded herself in a cell for a time. The guards flooded her cell with water. Later writing about the experience, Davison stated, "I had to hold on like grim death. The power of the water seemed terrific, and it was cold as ice," according to the journal Social Research.
In 1912, Davison spent six months at Holloway Prison. Suffragists were treated brutally in prison, and those who went on hunger strikes became subject to being force-fed. Davison thought she could end the abuse of her fellow suffragists by jumping off a prison balcony. She later explained her idea, stating, "The idea in my mind was that one big tragedy may save many others," according to Social Research. This action showed just how far Davison would go for her peers and her cause.
Tragic Death
It is unclear what exactly Davison had in mind on June 4, 1913. She attended the Epsom Derby with the intent of advancing the cause of women's suffrage, bringing with her two suffragette flags. After the race began, Davison ducked under the railing and strode onto the track. She put her hands up in front of her as Anmer, a horse belonging to King George V, made its way toward her. King George V and Queen Mary were watching this spectacle unfold from their royal box.
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Famous Libras 535 people in this group
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Famous Women's Rights Activists
View groupWomen and men have continued the call for full-fledged women’s rights in a number of venues, including voting access, fair treatment in the workplace and reproductive and sexual freedom. Find out more about this eclectic and electric group of global activists who include Shirin Ebadi, Coretta Scott King, Asra Nomani and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
Visit Biography.com's Women's History group to explore more biographies, photos and videos of some the world's most fascinating women.
Famous Women's Rights Activists 79 people in this group
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Famous Suffragettes
View groupWith Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony began working to establish women's right to vote in the mid-1800s. Unfortunately, Anthony never got to see the impact of her efforts—the 19th Amendment, granting women the righ to vote, was passed on August 26, 1920, more than a decade after Anthony's death—but hers remains one of the most important stories in women's history. Explpre this group to learn more about Anthony and other leading suffragettes, including Susan B. Anthony, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Louisa May Alcott, Alice Paul, Dorothy Day, Amelia Bloomer and Jeannette Rankin.
Visit Biography.com's Women's History group to explore more biographies, photos and videos of some the world's most fascinating women.
Famous Suffragettes 39 people in this group
