Evaline Hilda Burkitt (19 July 1876 – 7 March 1955) was a British

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

and member of the

Women's Social and Political Union The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom from 1903 to 1918. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership and ...

(WSPU). A militant activist for

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

, she went on

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...

in prison and was the first suffragette to be forcibly-fed. Between 1909 and 1914 she was force-fed 292 times and was the last woman to be so treated in

Holloway Prison HM Prison Holloway was a closed category prison for adult women and young offenders in Holloway, London, England, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. It was the largest women's prison in western Europe, until its closure in 2016. Hist ...

. She was a recipient of the WSPU's

Hunger Strike Medal The Hunger Strike Medal was a silver medal awarded between August 1909 and 1914 to suffragette prisoners by the leadership of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). During their imprisonment, they went on hunger strike while serving th ...

Life and Activism

Evaline Hilda Burkitt was born in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...

in 1876, the fifth of nine children born to Laura ''née'' Clews (1843–1909) and Reuben Lancelot Burkitt (1847–1928). The children were well educated, including the girls. Burkitt was interested in reading, needlework and gardening. She lived with her wealthy grandparents Clarissa and Charles Burkitt until she was 25 years old, and then rejoined her family, who had moved to Birmingham. She moved in with her elder sister Christobel, her husband Frederick, and their baby, Kathleen. Hilda Burkitt began work as a secretary living in

Sparkbrook Sparkbrook is an inner-city area in south-east Birmingham, England. It is one of the four wards forming the Hall Green formal district within Birmingham City Council. Etymology The area receives its name from Spark Brook, a small stream that f ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

and joined the

in 1907 after hearing Nell Kenney and later

Emmeline Pankhurst Emmeline Pankhurst ('' née'' Goulden; 15 July 1858 – 14 June 1928) was an English political activist who organised the UK suffragette movement and helped women win the right to vote. In 1999, ''Time'' named her as one of the 100 Most Impo ...

speak. When the Birmingham branch of the

WSPU The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom from 1903 to 1918. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership and ...

opened in 1908 Burkitt took charge of the publicity campaign in the Midlands. During her militant period she often used the surname "Byron". Another sister, Ida Lillian Burkitt (1872–1962) was an actress, photographer and suffragette, who under her stage name of "Ida Cunard" received a six-week sentence in

for being one of six women who attempted to enter the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

in 1908. Lillian and Christobel were among 50 women arrested on 11 February 1908, following the "Women's Parliament". Burkitt was arrested four times in 1909, the last occasion being in September when she threw a stone at the window of the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928), generally known as H. H. Asquith, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom f ...

's train as it pulled out of

Birmingham New Street Station Birmingham New Street is the largest and busiest of the three main railway stations in Birmingham city centre, England, and a central hub of the British railway system. It is a major destination for Avanti West Coast services from , and vi ...

after he visited Birmingham to attend an all-male budget meeting at

Bingley Hall Bingley Hall in Birmingham was the first purpose-built exhibition hall in Great Britain. It was built in 1850 and burned down in 1984. The International Convention Centre now stands on the site. Precursor The precursor of Bingley Hall was an " ...

. Despite a heavy police presence suffragettes had managed to climb onto a nearby roof from where they hurled slates down at him. During court appearances, Burkitt emphasised the political motivation for her actions. On arriving in the prison van at

Winson Green Prison HM Prison Birmingham is a Prison security categories in the United Kingdom, Category B men's prison, located in the Winson Green area of Birmingham, England. The prison was operated by G4S from 2011, before it was returned to HM Prison and Probat ...

to begin their sentences Burkitt,

Mabel Capper Mabel Henrietta Capper (23 June 1888 – 1 September 1966) was a British suffragette. She gave all her time between 1907 and 1913 to the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) as a 'soldier' in the struggle for women's suffrage. She was imp ...

Mary Leigh Mary Leigh (née Brown; 1885–1978) was an English political activist and suffragette. Life Leigh was born as Mary or Marie Brown in 1885. She was born in Manchester and was a schoolteacher until her marriage to a builder, surnamed Leigh. She j ...

Charlotte Marsh Charlotte Augusta Leopoldine Marsh (3 March 1887 – 21 April 1961), known as Charlie Marsh, was a militant British suffragette. She was a paid organiser of the Women's Social and Political Union and is one of the first women to be force fed ...

Laura Ainsworth Laura Frances Ainsworth (1885 – 1958) was a British teacher and suffragette. She was employed by the Women's Social and Political Union and was one of the first suffragettes to be force-fed. She left the WSPU in 1912 in protest at the ejection ...

Ellen Barnwell Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen A ...

Leslie Hall Leslie Merritt Hall (born November 15, 1981) is an American satire, satirical rapping, rap artist and front-woman for the band Leslie and the LY's. She also operates a "gem sweater museum". She is best known for the YouTube hits like "How We Go O ...

and

Patricia Woodlock Patricia Woodlock (born Mary Winifred Woodlock; 25 October 1873 – after 1930) was a British artist and suffragette who was imprisoned seven times, including serving the longest suffragette prison sentence in 1908 (solitary confinement for th ...

were "singing, shewing defiance, threatened to assault prison authorities, and said they would not go in cells or undress until they were placed in the First Division". All immediately went on

and were forcibly fed, with Burkitt being the first; she would endure this for a total of 292 times between 1909 and 1914.Three Black Country suffragettes feature in unique Birmingham station artwork - ''Birmingham Express and News'', 15 November 2018
/ref> During her time in prison she spoke out against what she described as inhumane treatment. On her release from Winson Green prison on 18 October 1909 she shouted a defiant "Votes for Women' to a small crowd including reporters. At a reception on 5th November, Burkitt was presented with the WSPU

, "for Valour". In 1912 she was sentenced to four months imprisonment for window-smashing but was released on medical grounds after going on

. She was arrested in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

in November 1913 charged with

Clara Giveen Clara Elizabeth Giveen, also known as Betty Giveen, later Mrs Betty Brewster (1887–1967) was a British suffragette. She was known for an arson attack on the grandstand at the Hurst Park Racecourse in 1913, and for her " cat and mouse" impriso ...

attempting to burn down the grandstand at Leeds Football Ground; she again went on hunger strike and was released from prison in December 1913. Burkitt also organised the

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...

WSPU branch for a few months that year.

Arson in Suffolk

Following her release from Leeds Prison under the

Cat and Mouse Act The Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill Health) Act, commonly referred to as the Cat and Mouse Act, was an Act of Parliament passed in Britain under H. H. Asquith's Liberal government in 1913. Some members of the Women's Social and Political ...

Burkitt managed to evade recapture until in 1914 she and fellow-suffragette

Florence Tunks Florence Olivia Tunks (19 July 1891 – 22 February 1985) was a militant suffragette and member of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) who with Evaline Hilda Burkitt, Hilda Burkitt engaged in a campaign of arson in Suffolk in 1914 for wh ...

burnt down two wheat stacks at Bucklesham Farm valued at £340, the Pavilion at the

Britannia Pier Britannia Pier is a pier located at the seaside town of Great Yarmouth in the English county of Norfolk. History Planning and construction A new pier in Great Yarmouth was first proposed in 1856 with building work commencing in September 1857 w ...

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

and the Bath Hotel in

Felixstowe Felixstowe ( ) is a port town in Suffolk, England. The estimated population in 2017 was 24,521. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest container port in the United Kingdom. Felixstowe is approximately 116km (72 miles) northeast of London. His ...

, causing £36,0000 of damage to the latter. There were no occupants in either the Pavilion or the hotel. The two women refused to answer questions in Court and sat on a table chatting throughout the proceedings with their backs to the magistrates.

Force-feeding

On 29 May 1914 Burkitt was sentenced to two years imprisonment in HM Prison

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...

. She suggested that the judge should put on the

black cap The black cap is a plain black fabric square formerly worn as symbolic headgear by English, Welsh, Irish and Northern Irish judges in criminal cases when passing a sentence of death. When worn, the square was placed on top of the judicial wig, ...

and sentence her to death. In prison, she went on

and thirst strike and was

force-fed Force-feeding is the practice of feeding a human or animal against their will. The term ''gavage'' (, , ) refers to supplying a substance by means of a small plastic feeding tube passed through the nose ( nasogastric) or mouth (orogastric) into t ...

for the entirety of her remand period before being moved to

.Miss Evaline Hilda Burkitt - Women's Suffrage: History and Citizenship Resources for Schools
/ref> A suffragette released from Holloway at the end of July 1914 stated that Burkitt was being force-fed up to four times a day. She "suffers agonies with her nerves ... She is sick after every feeding ... Her throat is in a terrible condition." Although in good health in prison Burkitt regularly complained of chest pains at night which the prison authorities said were due to indigestion. At the same time her weight loss was recorded which had dropped to 98 lbs by mid-July 1914 - "16 lbs below average weight for her height". It was often recorded that Burkitt was "hysterical" during force-feeding. On 7 August 1914 Burkitt petitioned the Home Office for release, writing: "I’ve been in prison since April 28th and have been forcibly fed during the whole time, 292 times so far." Burkitt pleaded "reply to my Petition at once, as if I should die through my fasting, my death will lie at your door."and was "ready to lay down my life, to bring about the Freedom of my Sex". She was released from prison on 1 September 1914 after having given a guarantee that she would not again partake of militant activities.Hilda Burkitt: Suffragette who spoke out against force-feeding -

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

6 February 2018 She was the last suffragette to be force-fed in

Later years

In 1916 she married Leonard Mitchener (1889-1960).Elizabeth Crawford
''The Women's Suffrage Movement: A Reference Guide 1866-1928''
University College London Press (1999) - Google Books The marriage was later dissolved. In 1939 she was living in

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

as a "Confectioner and Cake Maker". Her family described her as a gentle quiet person, only angry when not permitted a mortgage without a male guarantor. In her later years she lived with her sister Ida Lillian Burkitt at 48 South Road in

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

. Evaline Hilda Mitchener died on 7 March 1955 in

Blackburn Royal Infirmary The Blackburn Royal Infirmary was an acute District General Hospital in Blackburn, Lancashire. It was managed by East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust. History Although the foundation stone was laid on 24 May 1858, because of the depressed state of ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

Legacy

In 2014 The Felixstowe Society unveiled a

plaque Plaque may refer to: Commemorations or awards * Commemorative plaque, a plate or tablet fixed to a wall to mark an event, person, etc. * Memorial Plaque (medallion), issued to next-of-kin of dead British military personnel after World War I * Pla ...

commemorating the burning down of the Bath Hotel in

by Burkitt and

in 1914. The plaque commemorates the centenary of the burning down of the hotel and is on what remains of the building, at the site of the former Bartlet Hospital.The Plight of the Plaques - The Felixstowe Society Newsletter, Issue Number 107, 1 September 2014
/ref> From November to December 2018 an art installation of a portrait of Burkitt was placed in

where she had thrown a stone at Asquith's train in 1909. Named "The Face of Suffrage" the artwork was a floor-based 200 metre-square photo mosaic."The Face of Suffrage" (2018) - The People's Picture website
/ref> The artwork was based on a photograph taken by Burkitt's older sister Ida Lillian Burkitt who was a suffragette as well as being an actress, photographer and nurse. Made from 3,724 photographs of women from the

West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

from the 1900s in addition to pictures of modern women, the artwork was created by artist Helen Marshall of "The People's Picture" to celebrate the centenary of women getting the vote.Face of Suffrage: Hilda Burkitt selfie mosaic unveiled -

15 November 2018

References

External links

Hilda Burkitt: Suffragette who spoke out against force-feeding (audio)
-

6 February 2018 {{DEFAULTSORT:Burkitt, Evaline Hilda 1876 births 1955 deaths English suffragists English suffragettes British feminists British women's rights activists Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom Women's Social and Political Union Prisoners and detainees of England and Wales People from Wolverhampton Hunger strikers Hunger Strike Medal recipients