“only be ye strong and very courageous”: the militant suffragism of lady constance lytton

Abstract

A popular figure of the suffragette movement during the Edwardian period, Lady Constance Lytton has since failed to be of interest to contemporary feminist historians. This article puts forward reasons for this lack of concern and suggests that a detailed study of Constance Lytton is needed if we are to gain an informed understanding of her motivations for militant suffragism. Thus, the aim of this article is to examine the life of Lady Constance before her involvement with the women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), as well as her conversion to ‘the Cause’, and subsequent militant action. In an assessment of her militancy the article will explore whether Lady Constance's actions as a suffragette can be linked to her social position as an upper-class woman, and the extent to which militancy represented an escape from the restricted life imposed upon women of this class