Portrait of Charlotte Blacklock

This portrait of British suffragette Charlotte Blacklock was painted by her cousin, British artist Amy Sawyer. It was painted sometime between the years 1900-1912, when Charlotte was middle-aged. Charlotte Blacklock was an active suffragette who joined the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU), a militant suffrage group active at the start of the 20th century. In 1912 Charlotte took part in a window smashing raid during which dozens of suffragettes threw missiles through the windows of shops in the heart of London. She was subsequently arrested, sentenced to four months in prison, and went on hunger strike as a sign of protest. On her release the WSPU awarded her a hunger strike medal as testimony to her courage and tribulations in prison.