WOMEN AND MEN PROTESTORS

© Museum of London Womens Freedom League Badge

​ Ivy Bon was arrested in May and June 1914.

Ivy's first arrest was for breaking windows in Grosvenor Square. Found guilty, she was sentenced to two months imprisonment. Force-fed, she was released under the Cat and Mouse Act.

Only just released from prison, Ivy was arrested for attacking two pictures at the Dore Galleries: Love Wounded by Bartolozzi and a drawing of the Grand Canal in Venice by John Chapland. The manager grabbed her to prevent any further damage, but Ivy put up a robust struggle until the police arrived. In court, Ivy refused to give her address. In evidence, a letter was produced which Ivy had left at the Galleries. In the missive, Ivy vowed that she was prepared to die for the cause, which was now a war. The case was adjourned.

At her subsequent trial, Ivy continuously screamed ‘Torturers, murderers! I will do it again and again until we get justice’. She was sentenced to six months in prison.

With the outbreak of the First World War, Ivy would have been released under the government pardon.

Nothing else has been found out as to Ivy’s identity. The name appears to be an alias; next to her entry in the Amnesty Record it says ‘unknown’.

The next two entries are Richard and Alfred Bond arrested in October 1908.

The event, at which they were arrested, had been well advertised beforehand. The WSPU hired a steam launch, decorating it with banners and flags, to announce the planned upcoming demonstration For a whole afternoon, the launch sailed up and down the Thames, eventually arriving at Putney during a well-attended sculling competition  to garner maximum attention. Handbills were also handed out on numerous street corners. The event, in question, was a delegation trying to obtain access to the Houses of Parliament. The high-profile advertising meant that the authorities were aware of the women’s intention, giving them plenty of time to prepare a response. Mrs Pankhurst was invited to discuss the situation with the authorities but, instead, hosted a meeting to rally support further.

On the evening of 18 October, the streets between Trafalgar Square and the Houses of Parliament were heaving with police, some mounted. A cordon was placed around Parliament, and the crowds were swept back at every attempt to move closer. At Trafalgar Square, where many had gathered, the mounted police climbed the steps preventing the masses from progressing towards their intended destination. A deputation left from Caxton Hall, but they too were turned back. May Billington was one of those arrested alongside Richard and Alfred.

While the Votes for Women newspaper, dated 19 October 1908, gives small biographies of most of the women arrested, at the end of the report it simply states, “and twelve men”. Both men were charged with obstruction. Found guilty, the two men were bound over to keep the peace and fined £5.

No biographical information has been found, which might shed some light on their motives. It seems though, from the press coverage, that the event was, also, attended by people with other gripes such as unemployment which might explain their involvement.

The next entry James Booty arrested on 27 July 1913.

Sylvia Pankhurst, who was on licence released from prison under the Cat and Mouse Act, was invited to speak at a Free Speech Committee rally in Trafalgar Square. The day before, in the East End of London, Sylvia addressed a gathering explaining that the invitation was conditional on her refraining from attempting to enter Downing Street to present a petition. Such an undertaking ‘would curtail my freedom of speech, for I implicitly believe that the argument of sticks and stones from the East End, will bring about a general revolt that will win for women the vote…our motto in future must be ‘Deeds not words.’

Sylvia intended to attend the rally and, at its close, march to Downing Street confident that she could ‘rely on your protection to prevent my being re-arrested’. As planned, Sylvia led over a thousand people towards Whitehall and Downing Street. A line of police officers stood firm across Whitehall. Many of the crowd attempted to burst through. Twelve women, including Sylvia and eleven men, one of whom was James, were arrested.

James was alleged to have grabbed a policeman by the throat and struck another. He was fined 40 shillings or a month imprisonment. His response, when arrested, was “I must have gone mad”. The magistrate observed that many respectable people appeared to have been swept up in the moment. 

Lilian Borovikovsky, known as Lilly, was arrested in February 1909.

She was born Lilian Bertha Dora Prust, on 30 August 1880, to Christopher and Louisa. Her father, a vaccination officer, died in 1882, leaving her widowed mother with two daughters aged one and three. As a child, Lilian appears to have attended Cheltenham Ladies College and, later, their annual reunions. Her mother, Louisa, remarried, in 1902, Charles Teague, a Cheltenham musician who played the organ at the local family church and was a well-renowned cellist. Lilian’s sister, Emily, married and moved to Finland, although she returned to live in Cheltenham in the early 1920s.

Lilian married Sergi Alexandrovitch Borovikovsky in June 1902; the groom was described as of the Russian Finance Office in Petersburg. Lilian met Sergi through her cousin, Helen, who was, first, married to a Russian called Chrouschoff. Just before the ceremony, Lilian was baptised into the Church of England. A Russian service followed the nuptials at the Russian Embassy in London. Two years later, Lilian gave birth to a son Sergei. In 1905, her husband was appointed to a commission on press censoring by the Czar. Embroiled in the Russian crisis, Lilian returned to Cheltenham and never returned to Russia.

Lilian became a member of the Women’s Freedom League. She was elected to the local committee, in January 1909, at a meeting held at the Cheltenham Vegetarian Hotel.
Lilian was part of a delegation, led by Charlotte Despard , which attempted to deliver a petition to the Houses of Parliament. They were met by a considerable police presence, including some on horseback. Lilian was arrested and charged with obstruction. Found guilty she was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment of which she served two weeks; released due to failing health. ​

---

​After her release, the Women’s Freedom League hosted a reception to welcome her home, themed as an American Tea Party and Sale. Lilian was clear that she would be more than happy to take part in another demonstration as she now felt more “suffragettish”, on this basis, she encouraged all at the gathering to accompany her next time.

Lilian was presented with the Holloway badge, given to all women who served time in the prison, and a copy of the Awakening of Women by Mrs Swiney. All the proceeds from the event were donated to the Despard Prisoners Fund.

Lilian continued to be involved with the Women’s Freedom League, becoming the Cheltenham Branch Honorary Secretary.

During the First World War Lilian trained with the Red Cross.

​Lilian died on 25 May 1926, a patient of Gloucester Mental Hospital.