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 Hurst Park Racecourse was a racecourse at Moulsey Hurst, West Molesey, Surrey, near the River Thames. It was first laid out in 1890 and held its last race in 1962. There was racing at nearby Hampton, London, Hampton for many years until 1887. T ...

in 1913, and for her "

cat and mouse Cat and mouse, often expressed as cat-and-mouse game, is an English-language idiom that means "a contrived action involving constant pursuit, near captures, and repeated escapes." The "cat" is unable to secure a definitive victory over the "mous ...

" imprisonment.

Biography

Giveen was born in 1887 in

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

, Ireland. According to her

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

biography, she was radicalised by witnessing the brutal treatment of women at the hands of the police at the 1910 Black Friday demonstration outside the

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

, and joined 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). She took part in a number of WSPU actions, including a 1910 demonstration in

Downing Street Downing Street is a gated street in City of Westminster, Westminster in London that houses the official residences and offices of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. In a cul-de-sac situated off Whiteh ...

where she was arrested for obstruction but not charged. She was arrested again on 21 November 1911 and imprisoned for five days for breaking windows at a local government board office. She was once again arrested and imprisoned, this time for four months, along with

Violet Aitken Violet Aitken (21 January 1886 – November 1987) was a British suffragette. She was born Marion Violet Aitken and raised in Bedfordshire, and she was the daughter of William Aitken, who became Canon of Norwich Cathedral. She had a sister, Rose, ...

, for window-breaking at Jay's store in

Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George IV of the United Kingdom, George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash (architect), J ...

on 1 March 1912. On 8 June 1913, with actress and activist

Kitty Marion Kitty Marion (born Katherina Maria Schäfer, 12 March 1871 – 9 October 1944) was an activist who advocated for women's suffrage and birth control. Born in the German Empire, she immigrated to England in 1886 when she was fifteen. She sang i ...

, she mounted an arson attack on the grandstand of Hurst Park Racecourse causing (variously) £7,000 or £12,000 of damage. This was four days after the death of

Emily Davison Emily Wilding Davison (11 October 1872 – 8 June 1913) was an English suffragette who fought for Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, votes for women in Britain in the early twentieth century. A member of the Women's Social and Polit ...

Epsom Downs Racecourse Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse in a hilly area near Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course has a crowd capacity of 130,000 including ...

. The pair were arrested the following day and subsequently imprisoned for three years with hard labour. Like many imprisoned suffragettes, she refused food and was eventually released under the terms of the Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill Health) Act 1913. According to the Women’s Suffrage Project, she thereafter evaded re-arrest. Giveen was awarded 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. In 1914, she married Philip Brewster, brother of suffragette Bertha Brewster. She was later active in

Peaslake Peaslake, Hoe, and Colman's Hill are in the centre of the Surrey Hills National Landscape and mid-west of the Greensand Ridge about ESE of Guildford. Surrounded by denser pine and other coniferous forest-clad hills, the three conjoined settl ...

Women's Institute The Women's Institute (WI) is a community-based organization for women in the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. The movement was founded in Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada, by Erland and Janet Lee with Adelaide Hoodless being the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giveen, Clara Elizabeth 1887 births Irish suffragettes 1967 deaths People from Coleraine, County Londonderry British suffragettes Irish women activists Women's Social and Political Union Hunger Strike Medal recipients