Hunger Strike Medal
Medal awarded to British suffragettes / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Hunger Strike Medal was a silver medal awarded between August 1909[1] and 1914[2] to suffragette prisoners by the leadership of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). During their imprisonment, they went on hunger strike while serving their sentences in the prisons of the United Kingdom for acts of militancy in their campaign for women's suffrage. Many women were force-fed and their individual medals were created to reflect this.[2]
![]() The Hunger Strike Medal with enamel bar and ribbon in the suffragette colours of green, white and purple. The medal was awarded by the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) to suffragette prisoners who had gone on hunger strike during their imprisonment. This example with the enamel bar for force-feeding was awarded to Myra Sadd Brown in 1912 |
The WSPU awarded a range of military-style campaign medals to raise morale and encourage continued loyalty and commitment to the cause. The Hunger Strike Medals were designed by Sylvia Pankhurst and first presented by leadership of the WSPU at a ceremony in early August 1909 to women who had gone on hunger strike while serving a prison sentence. Later the medals would be presented at a breakfast reception on a woman's release from prison.[2]