Arabella Scott facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Arabella Charlotte Scott
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| Born | 7 May 1886 |
| Died | 27 August 1980 (aged 94) |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Alma mater | University of Edinburgh |
| Occupation | School teacher |
| Known for | Suffragette |
| Political party | Women's Social an Political Union (WSPU), Women's Freedom League (WFL), Edinburgh National Society for Women's Suffrage |
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| Relatives | Isabella Harriet Scott (died at birth), Isabella Harriet Scott (sister), Alice Margaret Scott (sister), Muriel Eleanor Scott (sister), Agnes Buchanan (sister, died at eight months), William Buchanan Scott (brother), Agnes Mary Scott (sister). |
Arabella Scott (born May 7, 1886 – died August 27, 1980) was an important Scottish teacher and campaigner. She was a suffragette, which means she fought for women to have the right to vote.
Arabella was part of groups like the Women's Freedom League (WFL) and the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). She took part in protests and was arrested many times. When she was in prison, she often went on hunger strike to protest. This meant she refused to eat. Because of this, she was sometimes force-fed. She was also released and re-arrested under a special law called the Cat and Mouse Act. After the First World War began, Arabella moved to Australia. She wrote about her life in a book called A Murky Past.
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Her Early Life
Arabella Charlotte Scott was born on May 7, 1886, in Dunoon, Scotland. Her mother was a teacher, and her father was a captain in the British army.
She studied at the University of Edinburgh and earned a Master of Arts degree. After finishing university, she became a school teacher. She lived with her family in Edinburgh. Arabella and her sisters strongly believed that women should have the right to vote. They often spoke in public across Scotland to support this important cause.
Fighting for Women's Right to Vote
In 1909, Arabella and her sister Muriel were arrested in London. They were trying to give a petition to the British Prime Minister, H. H. Asquith. They were charged with blocking the way and spent 21 days in HM Prison Holloway.
Over the next few years, Arabella Scott was arrested and released many times. This happened under a law called the Cat and Mouse Act. This law allowed suffragettes who were on hunger strike to be released from prison if they became too weak. But once they recovered, they could be re-arrested to finish their sentence.
On April 6, 1913, Arabella was arrested again. This time, it was for trying to set fire to a racecourse stand at Kelso Racecourse. She was with Agnes and Elizabeth Thomson, Edith Hudson, and Donald McEwan. After their trial, Arabella Scott, Edith Hudson, and Donald McEwan were sentenced to nine months in prison. Elizabeth Thompson received three months, and Agnes was released. They were sent to Calton Gaol, and the women immediately went on hunger strike. Arabella was released under the Cat and Mouse Act on May 24. However, when her release period ended, she did not go back to Calton Gaol.
Scott was caught again on June 12, 1913, and sent back to Calton Gaol. There, she started another hunger strike. On June 16, a doctor said she was too weak, so she was released again. But she still did not return to jail. Scott was found in London on August 24 and taken back to Calton Gaol. She began a hunger and thirst strike. On August 28, the doctor recommended she be released right away because of her health. She had to be removed from the jail by force because she did not want to be released under the Cat and Mouse Act again. Her release period ended on September 10, 1913, but Scott was not found until the next year.
Scott continued to work for the Women's Social and Political Union in Brighton. She used the name 'Catherine Reid'. In May 1914, she was found and resisted arrest. Police from Scotland Yard and Brighton had to help the Scottish police arrest her. She refused to walk and had to be carried onto trains. She started her hunger and thirst strike on May 2 when she was arrested. By May 8, she was ill and allowed to leave Calton Gaol under licence. On May 17, Scott went to London to help the WSPU campaign against a politician in Ipswich. She was supposed to return to jail on May 22. She was found on June 19 during a police raid at a suffragette house. She was re-arrested and forced to return to jail.
The WSPU gave Scott a Hunger Strike Medal 'for Valour' (bravery) for her actions.
Her Time in Perth Prison
Scott was taken to Perth Prison on June 20, 1914. She was released on July 26, 1914. During her time there, she was force-fed three times a day. This happened even though Janie Allan had asked the prison not to force-feed her. Scott was not allowed to have visitors or receive letters while she was in prison.
In her autobiography, My Murky Past, Arabella described the difficult experience of force-feeding. She said a tube was put into her stomach. She also remembered a doctor asking her to give up her protest. He offered to send her to Canada. But she told him that giving up would mean all her protests were for nothing. She refused to stop fighting for what she believed in.
Scott was released again under the Cat and Mouse Act. Her sister Muriel gathered about 3,000 people outside the prison to protest. Arabella was released on June 26, 1914. Two days later, Archduke Franz Ferdinand was killed, which led to the start of the First World War. The UK declared war on Germany on August 4. The WSPU then announced they would stop their militant actions. On August 10, the Secretary of Scotland announced that all suffragette sentences in Scottish courts, including Scott's, would be reduced.
A play based on Arabella Scott's experiences has been written by Ajay Close. The play uses information from official reports and interviews with Arabella Scott.
Later Life
Later in her life, Arabella Scott, using her married name Colville-Reeves, moved to Australia.
She passed away on August 27, 1980. Her memorial is in the Palmdale Lawn Cemetery in New South Wales.
See Also
