Beamish Suffragette Celebrations Pt2

Hi again.

When you last accompanied me on our trip around Beamish open-air museum's Suffragette Celebrations we were waiting to take part in the re-enactment of the funeral of Emily Wilding Davison weren't we? 

Everyone at the museum was welcome to gather near the railway station to join in the procession:

And members of the general public could  mingle with the various people in the costume of the early 1900s who were waiting to follow the coffin:

The original old steam train pulled into the station and the coffin was transported to a horse drawn carriage [even knowing full well there was no one inside, it still felt like a sombre occasion].

We watched the spectacle go by for a while:

And then we joined the procession and followed on behind ...

... all the way through the grounds of the museum, along the tramway ... and into the Pit Village where the coffin was taken into the chapel and where someone [I didn't catch who the lady was] gave a wonderful speech about the legacy of the suffragettes and how fighting for equality for all is still something we need to do today, right across the world.

And then the Sweet Magenta choir sang in the street:

... then continued their performance inside the chapel:

Their performance was really moving and I had to fight back tears for much of it! [Definitely swept up in the drama of the day!]

And what a day it was ... ice-cream cornets in the morning .... suffragette funeral in the afternoon. Certainly one of life's memorable moments!

One of the most striking things to me about the day was how the whole event was a re-enactment of historical event of which women were the main protagonists.

Our culture produces a lot of films and documentaries [and outdoor re-enactments] of the events of World Wars 1 + 2, events which mainly focus on the actions of men. Event which of course have their place and of course there were [and are] women who were active in and vital to some of those war time events.

But Beamish's Suffragette Celebrations felt unique in being a wonderful, respectful and serious, recreation of a cause that was focused around and led by women.

And it made a nice change.

A positive change.

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 I don't usually blog so many posts, so close together, all about one thing, but I thought you might enjoy a good look at this unusual day out!

See you soon.

Julie