The Life and Work of Rosa May Billinghurst
By Charlie Whittle, Third Year Classical Studies
Image of Rosa May Billinghurst from the LSE Library.
You may have seen photos of a suffragette in a wheelchair before and wondered, who is this? Rosa May Billinghurst (more commonly known as May) was born on the 31st of May 1875 in Lewisham, London, and was the second-born of nine children. May was disabled from paralysis due to polio at a young age, but that did not stop her from advocating for women's rights throughout her life. Billinghurst used a combination of crutches and leg irons or her wheelchair, made from a modified tricycle, to get around. Her mobility aids were decorated with ribbons and flowers in the colours of women's suffrage.
Activity in the Women's Suffrage Movement
Little is known about Billinghurt’s early life, but her journey into women’s suffrage began by joining the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in 1907 and founding the Greenwich branch only two years later.
On November 18th, 1910, Billinghurst was a part of the ‘Black Friday’ demonstrations where 300 women marched to the Houses of Parliament to campaign for women’s voting rights. This demonstration led to violent assaults on women and over 115 being arrested, including Billinghurst, whose wheelchair was tipped over by police. All suffragettes imprisoned that day were released shortly after and all charges were dropped following a statement by Winston Churchill.
Only a year later, in 1911, Billinghurst was arrested again for obstructing police in Parliament Square. However, this arrest was not officially recorded in the Home Office’s index of suffragettes arrested.
In 1913, one of the most well-known suffragettes, Emily Davison threw herself in front of the King’s horse and tragically died four days later. On the 14th of June, her memorial service took place, which May attended. From the LSE library.
Moving a year forward, Billinghurst was once again arrested for her participation in a window-smashing campaign. As well as smashing windows, Billinghurst used the rug over her legs as a way to hide a supply of stones. Arrests at this campaign ranged from 14 days to 6 months and luckily, May was only sentenced to one month of hard labour.
However, later that year she was less lucky. As a part of a wider arson campaign between 1912-1914, Billinghurst was arrested for damaging pillar boxes in Deptford in December. She was sentenced to eight months in prison. Throughout these eight months, Billinghurt joined the number of suffragettes who partook in prison hunger strikes.
Suffragette hunger strikes were a response to not being classified as political prisoners. In response, prisons began force-feeding those on hunger strikes, often leading to injury and trauma. Billinghurst was force-fed during her time in prison, suffering a broken tooth and a ripped nostril which was reported in the newspapers. Large public outcry at Billinghurst’s treatment led to her release.
The same year as her release, the ‘Cat and Mouse’ Act was passed which allowed for the release of ill prisoners until they were back to health when they were taken back to prison to continue their sentence. This law was considered highly controversial due to the cruel nature of releasing a prisoner only to recapture them.
The last major recorded act during Billinghurst’s time in the WSPU was in 1914. As a part of a wider demonstration, Rosa May Billinghurst chained herself in her tricycle to the railings at Buckingham Palace. Unlike her previous actions, Billinghurst was not imprisoned for this activity.
In 1918, May helped fellow suffragette Christabel Pankhurst in her attempt to represent ‘The Women’s Party’ in the House of Commons. This same year, the Representation of the People Act was passed. This law allowed women aged over 30 who occupied land with a rateable value above £5 (or who had a husband who did so) to vote. Although this was not the final step for votes for women, it was significant progress.
Life After the WSPU
After the Representation of the People Act was passed, Rosa-May Billinghurst retired from women's suffrage activities. In 1922, she left life in Lewisham and moved to Regents Park Village to live with her brother, Alfred. In 1928, she attended the funeral of Emmeline Pankhurst and the subsequent unveiling of her statue in 1930.
As with her early life, Billinghurst’s later life is widely undocumented. She died in 1958 at 83, leaving her body to science.
Although Rosa May Billinghurst is only known for her activities in the WSPU, those activities illustrate Billinghurst’s character. Her involvement in the fight for women’s rights has changed the lives of thousands and reminds us to fight for equality and democracy.