Northumberland's Lawless Lassie

Emily Wilding Davison  1872 - 1913    Suffragette

After Chris, Roy and I had seen two of Ray Lonsdales statues on Thursday we looked online to see where his others were and discovered there was one in Morpeth commemorating the life of suffragette Emily Wilding Davison.  None of us had heard of it.  It was only unveiled in September last year.  Emily grew up in Morpeth and the statue stands in Carlisle Park in the town.

So I decided to go there today to see it. Morpeth is not an easy place for me to get to - and it was raining - but I wanted to make the effort.  I had to wait in for a parcel but as soon as it was delivered ( around 11.30am ) I was off. 

I went to Newcastle to catch the bus to Morpeth but I made the mistake of getting the number 43 instead of one of the Express buses.  The number 43 went everywhere.  So it took ages to get to Morpeth.  By the time I got there the rain had stopped.  I headed straight for Carlisle Park.  Its big and I had no idea where the statue was so I asked a dog walker.

I came across the statue from behind - and even from behind I could tell how wonderful it was.  Its really lovely.  I have added another collage showing some of the details in close up.  The dish  she is tipping over signifies the 49  times that she went on hunger strike. I found that very moving.

Emily Wilding Davison is accepted as a hero of the women’s suffrage movement, one of those responsible for securing the right to vote for women. In her lifetime, she was known as a radical who was brutally imprisoned and tortured by the state.  Her name became known around the world in June 1913 when she stepped onto the Epsom race track and was struck by the thundering hooves of the King George V’s horse Anmer. She never recovered from her injuries and died four days later in hospital. She is buried in St Mary’s Churchyard in Morpeth.

The musical accompaniment is JET by Paul McCartney and Wings.  It does include the word " suffragette ".

The song's use of the word "suffragette" was described by McCartney as "crazy" and "silly", not having any deep inspiration. " I make up so much stuff. It means something to me when I do it, and it means something to the record buyer, but if I'm asked to analyze it I can't really explain what it is. 'Suffragette' was crazy enough to work. It sounded silly, so I liked it."

I have tagged my blip for Silly Saturday purely because of Paul McCartney's words.  A tenuous link but the best I could come up with today. Thanks to admirer for hosting.

Carlisle Park is a lovely place.  Lots of flowerbeds which are full of colour at the moment  - and an aviary which houses birds rehomed from people who no longer want them. I have added some photos from the park in my Extras.

I had to cross the river to get to the park and I was lucky enough to spot a heron - see it in my Extras.  I have also added a shot of the bridge over the river and also one of the Fish Pass which helps salmon and trout to migrate.

After getting all my photos I had a look in the charity shops and then caught the express bus back to Newcastle.

So another " Royal Day " for me.  And Becky had a good day too.  She ran in the Tilgate Park ParkRun this morning and she was the first lady to finish. She doesn't do that ParkRun very often as its a tough one so she was really pleased to get that result.

Steps today - 10,013