Emmeline Pankhurst: A Biography

Emmeline Pankhurst, a middle-class mother of five from Manchester, England, changed history when, in 1903, she formed the Women's Social and Political Union. Under her fiery and unorthodox leadership, this militant group-given to church burning, window smashing, and royal slurs-won the parliamentary vote for women. Today, Pankhurst is immortalized for the defiance and strength that led the suffrage movement to victory and made her a twentieth-century heroine. Who was she, before and after suffrage, and how did her actions influence the Second Wave of feminists in the 70s? Historian June Purvis, with vivid language and a storyteller's skill, brings this celebrated leader to life in the context of her times. In the first full-length biography in seventy years, Purvis utilizes a host of original sources to paint the fullest picture yet of Pankhurst: from young womanhood and political awakening to her war work and activism until her death in 1928. Here too is the passion, fear, kindness andinvincibility that have made this twentieth-century everywoman one of the most influential people of our time.Emmeline Pankhurstbrings a vibrant new understanding to her life.