16 Facts About Elsie Duval

Elsie Duval was arrested many times throughout her life and in 1913 became the first woman to be released from Holloway Prison under the so-called 'Cat and Mouse Act'.

Elsie Duval died from heart failure on 1 January 1919 caused by septic pneumonia during the influenza epidemic.

Elsie Duval was born in 1892 into a family of passionate supporters of the suffrage campaign in the United Kingdom.

Elsie Duval was one of six children born to Ernest and Emily Duval and her family were involved in the campaign for women's voting rights.

Elsie Duval herself became involved in the movement when she signed up to the Woman's Social and Political Union in 1907, although she was too young to partake in any militant action herself.

At first Elsie Duval was not allowed to partake in militant activism but on 23 November 1911 she was arrested for the first time after she was charged with obstructing the police.

However, Elsie was not the only member of the Duval family to be arrested as her mother, two of her sisters, and brother Victor were charged.

In July 1912, Elsie Duval broke a window in Clapham Post Office and was sentenced to serve one month in Holloway prison, her first of a few sentences served there.

Elsie Duval had been given a Hunger Strike Medal 'for Valour' by WSPU.

Elsie Duval became the first female released under the act and was supposed to be free for just fourteen days but did not come back to Holloway.

In Europe, Elsie Duval went under the alias Eveline Dukes and had many fake references allowing her to get employed in various countries.

Elsie Duval then spent three months in Brussels learning French and doing office work, followed by two months in Switzerland.

Elsie Duval became engaged to Hugh in March 1913 and blamed the 'Cat and Mouse Act' for their disrupted love life saying: "the Cat and Mouse Act rendered our plans too unsettled to marry".

In 1917, Elsie Duval joined the new Women's Party which was formed by Christabel and Emmeline Pankhurst after they had dissolved WSUP.

Elsie Duval continued to campaign for a women's right to vote and eventually in 1918 the Representation of the People Act was passed and some women were given the right to vote for the first time.

In 1919, Elsie Duval died aged 26 partly due to her experience of force-feeding in prison but because of heart problems caused by septic pneumonia which she contracted during the 1918 influenza epidemic.