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Primary sourcePhotograph1910

The WSPU Signatures Banner

Unknown author · 1910

A photograph of an embroidered 1910 WSPU banner carried during a street procession of the suffrage movement led by Pankhurst.

Shows a procession of Pankhurst's WSPU movement carrying a banner, part of the public campaign she led.

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Sepia photograph of a crowd in a street procession. A tall dark banner with a pale rectangular panel of text is held up at centre. Brass band musicians in dark coats and hats play in front, and women in pale dresses and wide hats stand along the right. A small corner label reads Speed-O-Graph and another reads Copyright.
The WSPU signatures banner, 1910, attributed to Ann Macbeth.

About this source

What it is

This sepia photograph shows an embroidered banner made in 1910, attributed to Ann Macbeth, being carried during a street procession. A brass band and women in Edwardian dress march alongside it.

Why it matters

Banners like this were made for the marches organised by the Women's Social and Political Union, the suffrage movement led by Emmeline Pankhurst. Such public demonstrations, with music and symbolic textiles, were central to how the campaign made its case visible to the wider public.

Look closer

  • Why might marchers choose to use music and banners rather than only speeches?
  • What does the presence of a brass band suggest about the atmosphere the WSPU wanted to create?
  • What can you NOT tell from this photograph about who is marching or why?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Emmeline Pankhurst on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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