Emily Wilding Davison

Emily Wilding Davison (1872–1913), the militant suffragette, who was knocked over by King George V’s horse, when she ran on to the racecourse at the 1913 Epsom Derby and later died from her injuries. This steel statue depicts Davison on hunger strike in prison emptying the food from her bowl. The steel scrolls are inscribed: VOTES / FOR / WOMEN; and: SHE KNEW. / KNEW THEY WOULD COME / WITH A FUNNEL AND PIPE / THAT THEY WOULD COME / MOB HANDED. / RESTRAINING HER BODY BUT / STRENGTHENING HER / CONVICTION. / THEIR MISGUIDED METHODS. / SMALL BRUTAL VICTORIES / ACHIEVING THEIR GREATER / DEFEAT. / AND SHE WAS CONTENT. Davison’s parents both came from Morpeth and she is buried in the family plot there in the churchyard of St Mary the Virgin. The statue was commissioned by Northumberland County Council and Morpeth Town Council.

Location: Carlisle Park, Morpeth, Northumberland.