The Suffragette Derby of 1913

The Suffragette Derby of 1913


A momentous act of self sacrifice is caught on camera - Emily Davison is trampled by the King's horse at the 1913 Epsom Derby.

This newsreel footage captures a milestone event in the campaign for women's suffrage: the trampling to death of activist Emily Davison under the hooves of the King's horse at the 1913 Epsom Derby. The film begins, much like any other of Derby day, with scenes before the off - bobbies having their luncheon and cars arriving at the scene, including the carriage of King George V, mobbed with onlookers. As the race gets underway and the riders round Tattenham Corner, the camera is trained firmly on the track. Emily steps out.

Emily died from her injuries a few days later. A hundred years on, her motives are still debated. Certainly, the suffragettes were adept at harnessing the media to highlight their struggle. Emily's previous attention-grabbing antics included throwing stones at future Prime Minister David Lloyd George, and taking part in prison hunger strikes. She would have been fully aware of the scale of press coverage leveraged on the day and the presence of multiple newsreel cameras (Topical Budget also caught the fateful moment).


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Make More Noise: Suffragettes on Film

"You have to make more noise than anybody else!," cried Suffragette pioneer Emmeline Pankhurst. But how to make more noise in silent film?

Pankhurst's strategy was simple but clever: at every public meeting or gathering, Suffragettes should stand up and shout "votes for women!". But how to make more noise in silent film? With moving images becoming increasingly important, the suffragettes needed to be not just heard, but seen. Newsreels were noticeably more neutral in their reporting than newspapers, so their cameramen were invited to big demonstrations, where banners and placards were carefully placed for the cameras.

Suffragettes (often played by men in drag) were common objects of ridicule in film comedies. But some characterisations were more ambiguous, and comedy could even - sometimes - give its female protagonists the freedom to make one hell of a noise.


24 videos in this collection

The campaign for women's suffrage steps up as Emmeline Pankhurst is arrested at the gates of Buckingham Palace.
1

Palace Pandemonium

Three cheers for women's right to vote! Thousands of 'peaceful, law-abiding Suffragists' - and their hat-waving supporters - converge on Hyde Park.
2

"Law Abiding" Suffragists

A momentous act of self sacrifice is caught on camera - Emily Davison is trampled by the King's horse at the 1913 Epsom Derby.
3

The Suffragette Derby of 1913

The fight for women's suffrage momentarily falters on a gloomy day in January 1913.
4

Scenes outside the House of Commons

BFI's silent film curator, Bryony Dixon, explores the BFI National Archive's holdings around women's suffrage.
5

Meet the Suffragettes: The Original Media-Disruptors

Mischievous sisters Tilly and Sally borrow a fire engine and take it for a joy ride in this spirited film comedy.
6

Tilly and the Fire Engines

The leading organisation fighting for women's suffrage changes tack, as Christabel and Emmeline Pankhurst launch the Women's Party.
7

Will There Be Women M.P.s? Topical Budget 324-2

Three cheers to our gallant soldiers, proclaim suffragette marchers as they rally to show their willingness to help the war effort.
8

Women's March Through London; Topical Budget 204-1

Militant suffragettes torch Levetleigh, St Leonards, former home of Arthur Du Cros, Conservative MP for Hastings and Rye.
9

St Leonards Outrage

Votes for Women protesters swamp Trafalgar Square, brandishing placards and petitions.
10

Mass Meeting of Suffragettes

Left with the kids while his wife campaigns for women's votes, an aggrieved husband dreams of punishing all suffragettes.
11

Milling the Militants; A Comical Absurdity

The funeral procession of suffragette Emily Davison - fatally injured at the Epsom Derby - passes through London to her final resting place in Morpeth.
12

Miss Davison's Funeral

Incendiary images from Plymouth, at the sharp end of the campaign for women's votes.
13

Suffragettes Again

Multitudes of women protest on the streets of London in a demonstration organised by the Women's Social and Political Union on 18 June 1910.
14

Scenes in Record Suffragette Demonstration in London

Supporters of the Women's Social and Political Union campaign in the North East.
15

Scenes from Suffragette Demonstration at Newcastle

Panic on the streets of London: a women's suffrage protest breaks into violence.
16

Suffragette Riots at Westminster

A budding mini-suffragette is determined to turn a local policeman into the butt of her jokes.
17

Didums Diddles the P'liceman

Irrepressible sister act Tilly and Sally throw a party - of sorts - in this chaotic comedy caper.
18

Tilly's Party

19

Tilly the Tomboy Visits the Poor

A henpecked husband plots revenge on his boastful bachelor friend by marrying him to a seemingly meek girl who turns out to be anything but.
20

Wife the Weaker Vessel

Female activists get the blame - unfairly? - for a devastating fire at Yarmouth Pier.
21

Yarmouth. Suffragettes? Yarmouth Pier and Pavilion Burnt Down

Suffragettes advance from Bow to Baker Street, jostling with the London traffic on their way to the Portman Rooms.
22

Womens March through London Topical Budget 208-1

Trusted, tried and true? A Labour MP takes a principled stand on women's right to vote
23

The Suffragette Election

Women's Suffrage campaigners make their mark in a key by-election
24

The Bolton Election Result

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