This workshop is based on files kept by the Home Office on militant suffragette activities. Some of the most important original documents on this topic are kept here, including the Metropolitan Police file on Emily Davison's protest at the Derby.
The workshop begins with a close study of a rather unusual document found in a police file. Students use their research and analysis skills to work out what the document is and what it tells us about tactics used by Suffragettes. This leads to a case study of two suffragettes that students will research using additional material from the file. This will help students to really engage with the suffragettes' ideas, and the attitudes of the authorities and other members of the public towards them, to understand the impact of militant activities on the suffragettes' cause.
Students are then given an original file on an individual suffragette or particular incident to broaden their research into the types of people involved in the movement, what other methods the suffragettes used and how the government dealt with them. The education officer will bring together their findings to debate the use of militant tactics by the suffragettes and whether this helped or hindered their cause.
If you wish to stay on and make a day of your research, we can provide you with references for additional documents on suffragettes that you can order up and continue to research in the reading rooms. We will also explain how to search the catalogue, order documents and give you a tour of the reading rooms.
Session options
This session can be delivered as a
Workshop
