![suffragettes photo police scarf suffragettes photo police scarf](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/pri_42630161.jpg)
Perhaps former female informants worked with former suffragettes in the years after WW1.Ĭonsideration of the networks of surveillance and of the example of Evelyn Manesta's doctored image opens up yet another facet of the story of the suffrage campaign, one that has yet to be told in full. Both the women who started the Women Police Service (WPS) in 1915 had links to the WSPU, and women were not formally admitted to the Metropolitan Police in London until 1919. It's interesting to speculate about their experiences within the movement - were they recruited in the manner the film suggests? Did any of them commit militant acts themselves? How was their information used? How were they embedded within the movement and what happened to them after 1914? Officially, there were no women in the police service before WW1. I presume the records of the women involved in undercover police work during the suffrage agitation do exist somewhere. Richardson's friend was suspicious about her charming visitor - suspicions that were apparently confirmed by the presence of undercover police outside. They chatted, and the woman tried to entice her out into the open later that day out to speak to a potential convert to the cause. The visitor gained access because she knew and used the pseudonym or alias Richardson had within the militant campaign. 11, recorded in her autobiography Laugh a Defiance (1953) that whilst she was in hiding from the police a female visitor came to see her. Suffragette Mary Richardson, pictured above as no. While it's hard to track down information online about the use of female police informants in this period, there are anecdotal accounts of their presence. NHS, Fire Services, Sir Winston Churchill, Suffragettes & more. In the Suffragette film, the lead character is asked to spy for the police within her local militant group. Our stunning Royal Military Police Tartan scarves and range is worn by all who are proud. There are many examples given by campaigners in interviews and their own writing of their interactions with police informants and detectives. A quick google of the history of photo manipulation provides some really interesting examples of politicians, press and governments from the late 19th century onwards making changes to photographs to omit unwanted details or people. It's a fascinating glimpse into the lives of suffrage campaigners - and how the authorities treated and presented their images in public space. You can see how the doctored picture was used here (link to National Portrait Gallery website)