March, Women, March

"Hard Was The Struggle" explores the women's movement in Britain, from the passing of the Marriage and Divorce Act in 1857 to women attaining the vote in 1928. Published to commemorate the centenary of the death of the suffragette Emily Wilding Davison, who threw herself under King George V's horse during the Derby and thus sustained fatal injuries, this fascinating book uses anecdotes and accounts by both famous and hitherto lesser known suffragettes and suffragists to explore how the voice of women came to be heard throughout the land in the pursuit of equal votes for females. Using diary extracts and letters, the main protagonists of the women's movement are brought back to life as Lucinda Dickens Hawksley explores how they were portrayed in literature and art as well as the media reports of the day.