October 11 : Feast day of Saint James the Deacon (Anglicanism); National Coming Out Day
![]() | Emily Davison (11 October 1872 – 8 June 1913) was a suffragette who fought for votes for women in the United Kingdom in the early 20th century. Davison grew up in a middle-class family and studied at Royal Holloway College, London, and St Hugh's College, Oxford, before taking jobs as a teacher and governess. A staunch feminist and passionate Christian, she deemed socialism to be a moral and political force for good. She became an officer of the Women's Social and Political Union and a chief steward during its marches. Her tactics included breaking windows, throwing stones, setting fire to postboxes, and, on three occasions, hiding overnight in the Palace of Westminster – including on the night of the 1911 census. Davison was arrested nine times, went on hunger strike seven times, and was force fed on forty-nine occasions. She died after being hit by King George V's horse Anmer at the 1913 Epsom Derby when she walked onto the track during the race. This studio portrait, showing Davison wearing her Hunger Strike Medal and Holloway brooch, was taken in the early 1910s. Photograph credit: Andrew William Dron; restored by Adam Cuerden Recently featured: |