Militant suffragette Emily Wilding Davison fought to gain equal voting rights for British women before dying at the Epsom Derby in 1913.

She was quite the activist; Emily was one of the suffragettes who were found hiding in air ducts within the House of Commons, apparently just listening in to Parliament (she did this three times); she threw metal balls labelled “bomb” through windows and was sent to prison six or seven times in four years!

Emily Davison, in full Emily Wilding Davison, (born October 11, 1872, Roxburgh House, Greenwich, Kent [now part of Greater London], England—died June 8, 1913, Epsom, Surrey [now part of Greater London]), British activist who became a martyr to the cause of woman suffrage when she entered the racetrack during the 1913 …

Certainly, over the next four years, the lively Davison embarked on some of the most daring of exploits in order to highlight the importance of the women’s suffrage campaign. She was imprisoned eight times, went on hunger strike seven times, and was forcibly fed forty-nine times. Votes for women had still not been won.

three siblings

40 years (1872–1913)

Emily quit teaching to work for the WSPU full-time. On 21st June she served as a chief Steward at WSPU Women’s Sunday Rally in Hyde Park. 1909 On 30th March, Emily was imprisoned for one month for being part of a deputation of 21 women who marched from Caxton Hall to see Prime Minister Asquith.

She died on 8 June 1913. Emily had bought a return ticket – quite an expensive ticket – for her travel to Epsom. The return portion was found in her purse. The coroner returned a verdict of ‘accidental death’.

Miss Emily Wilding Davison, the militant suffragist who ran in front of the King’s horse Anmer during the race for the Derby on Wednesday and was knocked down and severely injured, was still unconscious last night and her general condition had undergone no change.