Mary Blathwayt (1 February 1879 – 25 June 1961) was a British feminist,

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 social reformer. She lived at Eagle House in

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 ...

. This house became known as the "Suffragette's Rest" and contained a memorial to the protests of 60 suffragists and suffragettes. The memorial was bulldozed in the 1960s.

Early life

Mary Blathwayt was born 1 February 1879 in

Worthing Worthing ( ) is a seaside town and borough in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 113,094 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Br ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, the daughter of Colonel Linley Blathwayt, an army officer who had served in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, and his wife, Emily, who were first cousins. Upon retiring from active service, Colonel Blathwayt and his family moved from India to Eagle House,

Batheaston Batheaston is a village and civil parish east of the English city of Bath, on the north bank of the River Avon. The parish had a population of 2,735 in 2011. The northern area of the parish, on the road to St Catherine, is an area known as ...

, on the outskirts of

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 ...

. Her younger brother, William, trained as an electrical engineer and taught English in Germany for many years before returning to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

at the beginning of the

First World War 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 ...

. Mary, remained at home and attended Bath High School.

Campaigning for women's suffrage

Blathwayt and her mother started attending meetings of the

Bath Women's Suffrage Society 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 ...

. In July 1906, Blathwayt gave three shillings to

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 first met

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 ...

at a WSPU meeting in Bath, which she attended with her friend Aethel Tollemache, and agreed to help Kenney,

Elsie Howey Rose Elsie Neville Howey (1 December 1884 – 13 March 1963), known as Elsie Howey, was an English suffragette. She was a militant activist with the Women's Social and Political Union and was jailed at least six times between 1908 and 1912. Ear ...

, Clara Codd and Mary Phillips organise the women's suffrage campaign in her area. Blathwayt was given an allowance by her family to support her in her work for women's rights. Many women who supported the cause bought merchandise supporting the WSPU such as 'branded' china or

brooches A brooch (, ) is a decorative jewellery item designed to be attached to garments, often to fasten them together. It is usually made of metal, often silver or gold or some other material. Brooches are frequently decorated with enamel or with gem ...

, and in Blathwayt's diary she had bought tea ( tea leaves) which she had to return to Bath WSPU - as it was "off". Blathwayt met many of the key people from the suffragette movement who were invited to stay at her parental home and to plant a tree to celebrate a prison sentence. Blathwayt participated in non-militant activism such as the suffragette boycott of the 1911 census. She evaded in a property rented for the night by Mildred Mansel. However, when Vera Wentworth and

assaulted the Prime Minister, this proved too much for Blathwayt's family. Her mother, Emily, resigned from the WSPU and her father, Linley, wrote letters of protest to

Christabel Pankhurst Dame Christabel Harriette Pankhurst (; 22 September 1880 – 13 February 1958) was a British suffragette born in Manchester, England. A co-founder of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), she directed Suffragette bombing and arson ca ...

, Howey and Wentworth. Pankhurst was told that Howey and Wentworth could not visit their house again. Wentworth sent them a long reply expressing regret at their reaction but noting that "if Mr. Asquith will not receive deputation they will pummel him again".

Death and legacy

Following her retirement from the WSPU, Blathwayt lived a quiet life with her family at Eagle House until her death on 25 June 1961. The sixty trees that were planted at Eagle House were removed to make way for a housing estate. Other trees have been planted to mirror the lost memorials. Blathwayt's diary reveals that she probably had an affair with Cristabel Pankhurst before Pankhurst moved on to

. Blathwayt made notes of Kenney's sleeping partners when she stayed at Eagle House and jealousy has been proposed as the reason. In 1961 the Local Planning Authority overruled local objections and allowed the gardens to be redeveloped. The house was kept but its contents were auctioned and this included a Boadicea brooch given by Annie Kenney to Blathwayt. The garden did not completely go unnoticed as a local journalist noted that the contents of the house were unimportant when compared to the suffragette's garden. The national archives has records belonging to a diarist of Batheaston who had a younger brother named William who worked in Germany who knew Margaret Hewitt.

References

External links

Read Mary Blathwayt's diaries at the National Archives.

View an (out of copyright) picture of Mary Blathwayt, Emily Blathwayt and Annie Kenney at Pankhurst Pond in 1910.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blathwayt, Mary 1879 births 1961 deaths British suffragists British social reformers British lesbians British women's rights activists Eagle House suffragettes

Early life

Campaigning for women's suffrage

Death and legacy

See also

References

External links