91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Event    From 2/7/1888  To 16/7/1888

Matchgirls' strike

Matchgirls' strike

A strike of the women and teenage girls working at the Bryant and May Factory. Annie Besant had published an article about the poor working conditions at the factory, 'White Slavery in London'. This angered the management who tried to get the workers to formally refute the article. When they refused the management sacked one of them and the strike was on. They held meetings at Christ Church Hall and were supported by Eleanor Marx, Annie Besant and members of the Fabian Society including Shaw and Sidney Webb. Charles Bradlaugh spoke in Parliament supporting the strike.

has a much fuller account.

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Matchgirls' strike

Commemorated ati

Annie Besant - E3

This plaque was lost sometime July 2021 - August 2022. 

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Bowler plaque - Match Girls

The plaque punningly represents "match girls" - very nice. Hanbury Hall is wh...

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Fairfield Works

Fairfield Works Fairfield Road. The scene of the match girls strike of 1888. ...

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Hanbury Hall - blue oval plaque

This plaque has a shortened version of the text on the old white plaque.

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Hanbury Hall - white plaque - removed

Christ Church Hall Built in 1719 as a French Hugeonot {sic} church it stood b...

91³Ô¹ÏÍø

Other Subjects

Minnie Lansbury

Minnie Lansbury

Suffragette and Poplar alderman. Daughter-in-law to George Lansbury. Her early death was brought about by being imprisoned, with other councillors, for refusing to levy a full rate, and catching pn...

Person, Gender Issues, Politics & Administration

5 memorials
Sophia Duleep Singh

Sophia Duleep Singh

Princess Sophia Alexandrovna Duleep Singh was a prominent suffragette in the UK. Her father was Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, who had been taken from his kingdom of Punjab to the British Raj, and was ...

Person, Gender Issues, Royalty, India

1 memorial
Fanny Wilkinson

Fanny Wilkinson

Fanny Rollo Wilkinson was the first professional female landscape designer in Britain. Designed many of London's open spaces. Born Manchester. By the end of 1883 she had completed an 18-month cour...

Person, Gardens / Agriculture, Gender Issues

2 memorials
Priss Fotheringham

Priss Fotheringham

Some details of Priss's sorry life are given at HistoryWeird: Born in Scotland, she was in London by 1656 and had married Edmund Fotheringham.  "In the late 1650s Priss took up residence in a taver...

Person, Gender Issues, Scotland

1 memorial
Caroline Martineau

Caroline Martineau

Born Caroline Anne, daughter of Richard Martineau, a director and partner of the Whitbread Brewery. Early on she was interested in the study of natural science, attending lectures at the Royal Ins...

Person, Education, Gender Issues, Politics & Administration

1 memorial