Person    | Female  Born 31/5/1875  Died 29/7/1953

Rosa May Billinghurst

Suffragette. Born in Lewisham. As a child, she survived poliomyelitis and had to use crutches or a tricycle, modified as a wheelchair. She was active in the women's suffrage movement and founded the Greenwich branch of the Women's Social and Political Union. During the window-smashing campaign in March 1912, she apparently hid stones beneath the rug that covered her knees.

She was imprisoned twice and was force-fed when she went on hunger strike. In 1913 she chained herself to the gates of Buckingham Palace, and took part in the mass deputation of suffragettes to petition King George V in 1914. Though she was not arrested, it is said that two policemen deliberately tipped her out of her wheelchair. Worked for Christabel Pankhurst’s campaign in the 1918 election then later joined Women’s Freedom League and Suffragette Fellowship. Died in a hospital in Twickenham.

Credit for this entry to: Alan Patient of www.plaquesoflondon.co.uk

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Rosa May Billinghurst

Commemorated ati

Fawcett frieze - 37, Billinghurst

Rosa May Billinghurst, 1875 - 1953

Read More

Votes for Women campaign hommage

The mural was due to be completed in 2018, to mark the centenary of votes for...

Read More

Other Subjects

Admiral Duncan pub bombing

Admiral Duncan pub bombing

Well known as a gay pub, the Admiral Duncan was the site chosen by Neo-Nazi David Copeland to detonate a nail bomb which killed three people and wounded 70. Copeland, who was also responsible for ...

Event, Commerce, Community / Clubs, Food & Drink, Gender Issues, Terrorism, Tragedy

3 memorials
Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy

Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy

Secretary of Married Women’s Property Committee, Secularist and sexual radical, lived in ‘free love’ union with Benjamin John Elmy (1838 - 1906) who worked closely with her on the campaigns. Only w...

Person, Gender Issues

1 memorial
Westfield College

Westfield College

Founded in 1882 by Constance Louisa Maynard and Ann Dudin Brown, as a residential women's college modelled on women's colleges already established in Oxford and Cambridge. The name probably came fr...

Group, Education, Gender Issues

1 memorial
Emily Davies

Emily Davies

Suffragist and promoter of higher education for women. Born Sarah Emily Davies in Southampton. She edited a feminist publication and became active on the London School Board. She was instrumental i...

Person, Education, Gender Issues

1 memorial
Sexual Avengers

Sexual Avengers

An activist gay network for resistance through direct action, solidarity & community building.

Group, Community / Clubs, Gender Issues

1 memorial