Adela Constantia Mary Walsh ( Pankhurst; 19 June 1885 – 23 May 1961) was a British-born

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 ...

who worked as a political organiser for 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 founded in 1903. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership and p ...

(WSPU) in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. In 1914 she moved to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

where she continued her activism and was co-founder of both the

Communist Party of Australia The Communist Party of Australia (CPA), known as the Australian Communist Party (ACP) from 1944 to 1951, was an Australian communist party founded in 1920. The party existed until roughly 1991, with its membership and influence having been ...

and the

Australia First Movement The Australia First Movement (AFM) was an Extremism, extremist political movement founded in Sydney in October 1941, which advocated for isolationism and collaborationism during World War II and supported fascism and Nazism. It grew out of the ...

Early life

Pankhurst was born on 19 June 1885 in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England, into a politicised family: her father, Richard Pankhurst, was a socialist and candidate for

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, and her mother,

Emmeline Pankhurst Emmeline Pankhurst (; Goulden; 15 July 1858 – 14 June 1928) was a British political activist who organised the British suffragette movement and helped women to win in 1918 the women's suffrage, right to vote in United Kingdom of Great Brita ...

(née Goulden), and sisters, Sylvia and Christabel, were leaders of the British suffragette movement. Her mother was of Manx descent.Bartley, p. 16; Liddington and Norris, p. 74. Pankhurst attended the all-woman Studley Horticultural College in

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

, and

Manchester High School for Girls Manchester High School for Girls is an English Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school for girls and a member of the Girls School Association. It is situated in Fallowfield, Manchester. The head mistress is Helen Jeys who took ...

UK

As a teenager, Pankhurst became involved in the militant

(WSPU) founded by her mother and sisters. In June 1906, Pankhurst disrupted a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

meeting and was sentenced to seven days in prison. Later that year, she was part of a group who entered the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

, wishing to speak with members. Nine women were arrested, including

Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence, Baroness Pethick-Lawrence (; 21 October 1867 – 11 March 1954) was a British women's rights activist, suffragist and pacifist. Early life Pethick-Lawrence was born in 1867 in Clifton, Bristol as Emmeline Pethick. He ...

Anne Cobden-Sanderson Julia Sarah Anne Cobden-Sanderson (; 26 March 1853 – 2 November 1926) was an English socialist, suffragette and vegetarian. Life Cobden was born at Westbourne Terrace in London in 1853. Her parents were Richard Cobden, radical MP and leader ...

Charlotte Despard Charlotte Despard (née French; 15 June 1844 – 10 November 1939) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish suffragist, socialist, pacifist, Sinn Féin activist, and novelist. She was a founding member of the Women's Freedom League, the Women's Pe ...

Teresa Billington-Greig Teresa Billington-Greig (15 October 1876 – 21 October 1964) was a British suffragette who was one of the founders of the Women's Freedom League in 1907. She had left the Women's Social and Political Union - also known as the WSPU – as she ...

Mary Gawthorpe Mary Eleanor Gawthorpe (12 January 1881 – 12 March 1973) was an English suffragette, socialist, trade unionist and editor. She was described by Rebecca West as "a merry militant saint". Life Gawthorpe was born in Woodhouse, Leeds to John G ...

Dora Montefiore Dorothy Frances Montefiore (; 20 December 1851 – 21 December 1933), known as Dora Montefiore, was an English-Australian women's suffragist, socialist, poet, and autobiographer active in Britain. Early life Born Dorothy Frances Fuller at Ke ...

. Pankhurst and

Jessie Kenney Jessica "Jessie" Kenney (1887–1985) was an English suffragette who was jailed for assaulting the Prime Minister and Home Secretary in a protest to gain suffrage for women in the UK. Details of a bombing campaign to support their cause were di ...

formed The Young Hot Bloods in 1907 who were an inner secret branch of the suffragettes involved in "danger duty".Christensen, McKenzi (2019).
"Baby Suffragettes": Girls in the Women's Suffrage Movement across the Atlantic
. ''The Thetean: A Student Journal for Scholarly Historical Writin''g. 48 (1): 20. Retrieved 21 March 2025. Pankhurst was active in

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

, North Yorkshire, from 1908 and protested during the visit of

Sir Edward Grey Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon (25 April 1862 – 7 September 1933), better known as Sir Edward Grey, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who was the main force behind British foreign policy in the era of the Fir ...

, Foreign Secretary for the Liberal government, who was giving a talk at the Scarborough Liberal Association. She worked with Dr

Marion Mackenzie Marion Ellen Mackenzie (c.1873–1951) was a British medical doctor and suffragette based in Scarborough, North Yorkshire. Life Mackenzie was born in 1873 in Normanton, West Riding of Yorkshire. She worked as a medical doctor and contribute ...

to build a local WSPU branch in Scarborough, and gave talks in

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

organised by the local WSPU branch secretary

Annie Coultate Annie Coultate (''née'' de Lacy, ''c''. 1856 – 1931) was a teacher and leading suffragist in York, England. Life Coultate was born in Fulford, North Yorkshire, in 1856. She trained as a pupil-teacher and was later employed as assistant hea ...

. In November 1909 she joined a protest that interrupted a talk by

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

at his constituency in

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

. She was arrested for "breaking the peace" along with Helen Archdale,

Catherine Corbett Catherine Isobel Ida Corbett ( Vans Agnew; 1869–1950) was a British suffragette, one of those imprisoned and awarded the Hunger Strike Medal, for the cause of the Women's Social and Political Union. Life Catherine Corbett was born Catherin ...

and

Maud Joachim Maud Joachim (1 August 1869 – 16 February 1947) was a member of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), one of the groups of suffragettes that fought for women to get the right to vote in the United Kingdom. She was jailed several time ...

. Pankhurst had slapped a policeman who was trying to evict her from the building. Although she went on hunger strike there, she was not force-fed as prison governor and medical supervisor assessed her "heart's action as violent and laboured". Eagle House near

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

had become an important refuge for

suffragettes 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 women's suffrage, the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in part ...

who had been released from prison.

Mary Blathwayt Mary Blathwayt (1 February 1879 – 25 June 1961) was a British feminist, suffragette and social reformer. She lived at Eagle House in Somerset. This house became known as the "Suffragette's Rest" and contained a memorial to the protests o ...

's parents planted trees there between April 1909 and July 1911 to commemorate the achievements of suffragettes including Pankhurst's mother and sister, Christabel as well as

Annie Kenney Ann "Annie" Kenney (13 September 1879 – 9 July 1953) was an English working-class suffragette and socialist feminist who became a leading figure in the Women's Social and Political Union. She co-founded its first branch in London with Minnie ...

Millicent Fawcett Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett (; 11 June 1847 – 5 August 1929) was an English political activist and writer. She campaigned for Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, women's suffrage by Law reform, legal change and in 1897–1919 led Brita ...

and Lady Lytton. The trees were known as "Annie's Arboreatum" after Annie Kenney. There was also a "Pankhurst Pond" within the grounds. Pankhurst was invited to Eagle House in 1909 and 1910. She planted a

Himalayan Cedar ''Cedrus deodara'', the deodar cedar, Himalayan cedar, or deodar, is a species of cedar native to the Himalayas. Description It is a large evergreen coniferous tree reaching tall, exceptionally with a trunk up to in diameter. It has a conic c ...

on 3 July 1910. A plaque was made and her photograph was recorded again by Colonel Linley Blathwayt. Her mother's favourite was Christabel and the two of them took the

as their own organisation. They fell out with many of their leading volunteers and supporters and this included

Sylvia Pankhurst Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst (; 5 May 1882 – 27 September 1960) was an English Feminism, feminist and Socialism, socialist activist and writer. Following encounters with women-led labour activism in the United States, she worked to organise worki ...

and Adela Pankhurst. Both of the latter believed in socialism whereas Emmeline and Christabel were pushing for the vote for middle-class women. Sylvia was ejected from the party and she set up her own splinter group in East London. Christabel is reported to have said to Sylvia "I would not care if you were multiplied by a hundred, but one of Adela is too many." Pankhurst was given £20, a ticket to Australia and a letter introducing her to

Vida Goldstein Vida Jane Mary Goldstein (pron. ) (13 April 186915 August 1949) was an Women's suffrage in Australia, Australian suffragist and social reformer. She was one of four female candidates at the 1903 Australian federal election, 1903 federal election ...

. Pankhurst was among the first group of suffragettes to go on hunger strike when in prison. She was being targeted by the police, as a high-profile activist. Pankhurst had been given a

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, many went on hunger strike while serving the ...

'for Valour' by WSPU.

Australia

Pankhurst emigrated to Australia in 1914 following estrangement from her family and frequent incarceration. Her experience of activism enabled her to be recruited during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

as an organiser for the

Women's Peace Army Formed in Melbourne, Australia in 1915, the Women’s Peace Army was an Australian anti-war socialist movement that sought to mobilise and unite women, regardless of political or religious beliefs, in their opposition to war. Autonomous branches ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

. Pankhurst wrote a book called ''Put Up the Sword'', penned a number of anti-war pamphlets, and addressed public meetings, speaking against war and conscription. In 1915, With Cecilia John from the Women's Peace Army, she toured Australia, establishing branches of the Women's Peace Army. In 1916 she travelled through

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

addressing large crowds, and again toured

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

and

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

arguing the importance of feminist opposition to militarism. In 1917, she spearheaded a protest in Melbourne against rising food prices. She was arrested for her involvement in the protest but released on bail until her trial. During this period of remand, she married her husband Tom Walsh. Reverend Fredrick Sinclaire married the couple on 30 September 1917. Prime Minister Billy Hughes offered to commute her sentence under the condition that she never gave a speech again. Pankhurst refused Hughes' terms and only weeks after being married returned to jail to serve her four-month sentence. A petition was signed by other suffragettes advocating on behalf of her release, but it was ineffective and she served her full sentence. Upon being released in January 1918, the Walsh family moved from Melbourne to Sydney. In Sydney, Adela gave birth to their son and four daughters: Richard (born 1918), Sylvia (born 1920), Christian (born 1921), Ursula (born 1923), and Faith (born and died 1926). Her husband had three daughters from his previous marriage. In 1920, Pankhurst became a founding member of the

, from which she was later expelled. She became disillusioned with communism and founded the anti-communist Australian Women's Guild of Empire in 1927. In 1941 Pankhurst became one of the founding members of the far-right nationalistic,

. She visited

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

in 1939, and was arrested and interned in March 1942 for her advocacy of peace with Japan. She was released in October. Tom Walsh died in 1943; afterwards, Pankhurst withdrew from public life. In 1960, she converted to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. She died on 23 May 1961, and was buried according to Catholic rites.

Posthumous recognition

Her name and picture (and those of 58 other women's suffrage supporters) are on the

plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...

of the

statue of Millicent Fawcett The statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square, London, honours the British suffragist leader and social campaigner Dame Millicent Fawcett. It was made in 2018 by Gillian Wearing. Following a campaign and petition by the activist Caroli ...

Parliament Square Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London, England. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and ...

, London, unveiled in 2018. Pankhurst Crescent, in the

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

suburb of

Gilmore Gilmore or Gillmore may refer to: *Gilmore (surname) Places Australia *Gilmore, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Tuggeranong * Gilmore Avenue, a road in southern Perth, Western Australia *Division of Gilmore, a ...

, is named in her honour. Brian Harrison recorded an oral history interview about Adela Pankhurst with her granddaughter, Susan Hogan, as part of the Suffrage Interviews project, titled ''Oral evidence on the suffragette and suffragist movements: the Brian Harrison interviews.'' The interview includes details of Pankhurst's family life in Australia and of her later life. The collection also contains an interview about her mother, Emmeline Pankhurst.

References

External links

*
Adela Constantia Pankhurst
at

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

*
Adela Pankhurst, Peace Negotiator: World War 1, Queensland
in ''Outskirts'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Pankhurst, Adela 1885 births 1961 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism Australian feminists Australian people of Manx descent British feminists British emigrants to Australia Feminism and history Former Marxists People educated at Manchester High School for Girls British anti–World War II activists People from Chorlton-on-Medlock Australian fascists

Adela Adela may refer to: People * Adela (given name), a female given name, including a list of people with the name Arts and entertainment * ''Adela'', a 1933 Romanian novel by Garabet Ibrăileanu * , a 1985 Romanian film directed by Mircea Veroiu ...

Eagle House suffragettes Women's Social and Political Union Australian prisoners and detainees Communist Party of Australia members Catholic feminists Australian Roman Catholics People interned during World War II Prisoners and detainees of the Commonwealth of Australia Australian nationalists Australian women activists Australian women's rights activists Australian suffragists 20th-century Australian women

Early life

UK

Australia

Posthumous recognition

See also

References

Further reading

External links