#OnThisDay, 14 Oct 1586, Mary Queen of Scots finally consents to be tried for plotting the assassination of her cousin Elizabeth, Queen of England.
Mary faces a council of 36 noblemen whilst denied any legal counsel. She was found guilty, and executed the following year.
[image (c) @blimagesonline]
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 4 Oct 1936, women join the Battle of Cable Street, in London's East End, protesting against a fascist march through the area. Of the 79 protestors arrested, eight are women, including Blanche Edwards (pictured).
Hat tip to the East End Women's Museum for this one! https://eastendwomensmuseum.org/blog/women-at-the-battle-of-cable-street
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 8 Oct 1952, USAF 2nd Lt Nurse Abbie Sweetwine uses military triage in a civilian disaster, the Harrow and Wealdstone train crash in London. She saves lives and paves the way for the UK’s use of paramedics. The British press dub her "the angel of platform 6".
Read more on our blog: https://carvehername.org.uk/abbie-sweetwine-and-the-harrow-and-wealdstone-crash/
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BlackHistory #BritishHistory #AmericanHistory #LondonHistory #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 10 Oct 1903, Emmeline Pankhurst and others form the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) in Manchester, UK. Eventually known as the suffragettes, they fought for women to have the vote.
[photo circa 1906]
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #VotesForWomen #BritishHistory #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 11 Jun 1987, Diane Abbott is elected to the British Parliament. She is the first Black woman to become an MP.
Abbott has held shadow cabinet posts in the Labour party, and is the longest serving Black MP. She is standing for re-election in the 2024 UK general election.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory
“Had she been a man she would have become Prime Minister.“
#OnThisDay, 21 Oct 1958, Stella Isaacs (Baroness Swanborough) becomes the first woman to take a seat in the UK House of Lords.
She campaigned tirelessly for the rights of refugee children.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #histodons
#OnThisDay, 27 Oct 1967, the Abortion Act gains royal assent. It allows women in the UK – except for Northern Ireland - to legally have an abortion on a range of medical grounds but stops short of making abortion legal.
It came into effect in April 1968 everywhere except Northern Ireland: NI passed their own act in 2020.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 28 Oct 1908, Muriel Matters, Violet Tillard and Helen Fox unfurl a banner and then chain themselves to the grille in the Ladies Gallery in the House of Commons, London, demanding votes for women.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #Histodons
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#OnThisDay, 15 Feb 1776, Hannah Cowley’s first play, The Runaway, opened at Drury Lane.
Cowley had written her play and sent it to David Garrick, Drury Lane’s manager, after sitting through a particularly rubbish play. Garrick cast a young Sarah Siddons in the lead.
Siddon’s character rails against the marriage vows: 'I won't hear of it, “love” one might manage that perhaps, but “honour, obey”!’
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #Histodons #BritishHistory
Meet the Prime Ministers: 10 Men Who Served Queen Victoria
https://www.thecollector.com/prime-ministers-served-queen-victoria/
Books about Queen Victoria at PG
Slaying Myths: England and St George (from the archives)
St George only become popular in England in the 15th century.
https://www.historytoday.com/archive/slaying-myths-st-george-and-dragon
St. George and the Dragon
by Francesco Salviati
#OnThisDay, 7 Jun 1968, 187 women working at the Ford car factory in Dagenham, UK, go on strike demanding recognition as skilled workers.
They are led by Rosie Boland and Lil O'Callaghan. After three weeks they win concessions as production had to be shut down. The strike was one of the triggers for the Equal Pay Act 1970 that made it illegal to pay women and men differently if they are doing the same job.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #BritishHistory #MadeInDagenham #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 23 May 1988, four women storm the BBC news studio whilst the news is live on air, protesting the introduction of Section 28. Section 28 banned the “promotion of homosexuality” by local government in the UK, and was intended to stop LGBT+ campaigns for equal rights.
It was not repealed until 2003.
Watch footage from the time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZdpNjJakiI&ab_channel=BBCStories
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #LGBTHistory #BritishHistory #Section28 #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 24 May 1976, at least 400 women walk out on strike at the Trica factory in London, demanding equal pay with their male colleagues. Around 100 men come out on strike in support of the women.
The strike lasts 21 weeks before the American owners of the factory agree to all demands.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #TradeUnionHistory #Histodons
#OnThisDay, 11 Jun 1987, Diane Abbott is elected to the British Parliament. She is the first Black woman to become an MP.
Abbott has held shadow cabinet posts in the Labour party, and is the longest serving Black MP. She currently holds the title "Mother of the House", given to the female MP with the longest uninterrupted service in the House of Commons.
#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #Histodons
Major Excavation at Tower of London Reveals Medieval Burials and Chapel History
"The most significant archaeological excavation at the Tower of London in a generation has uncovered up to 50 human remains, rare medieval grave goods, and previously unknown Tudor-era structures—shedding remarkable new light on the site’s long and complex history."
https://www.medievalists.net/2025/07/excavation-tower-of-london-rmedieval/
Books about the Tower of London at PG
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=tower+of+london
During WWII, the British used Monopoly games to help POWs escape
