More information : Please see source for details. (1)
HMP Bristol was built during the 1880s and is one of the earliest prisons built by the Prison Commissioners. The city corporation had been accumulating land on this site from 1859 but in 1879 transferred its land to the Prison Commission. The early buildings which survive consist of a large male wing with an attached chapel/office block. These were designed in 1881 and opened probably in 1883. A smaller block in a similar style was built for women. Its design drawing from 1883 survives at the prison. Most of the other buildings on the site belong to the 20th century. The largest are the pair of T-shaped cell blocks, B Wing dating from the 1960s and C Wing dating from circa 1975. C Wing is an early example of a wing designed with integral sanitation. HMP Bristol has a particularly varied and interesting series of workshops specialising in sewing and carpentry. The workshops were constructed between 1935 and 1938. (2)
During the militant campaign for women's suffrage which began in 1905, around 1085 women served time for the cause in prisons such as Horfield. They carried out acts of militancy such as arson and window-smashing to draw attention to the campaign which, along with mass demonstrations, could lead to their arrest.
In 1909, suffragettes began to carry out hunger strikes in protest of being sentenced to the second division of prisons, rather than the first where political prisoners were held. It became a common method of protest and some women were forcibly fed by prison officials. In April1913, what became known as the 'Cat and Mouse Act' was granted Royal Assent, enabling the Home Secretary to release a hunger-striker temporarily. The women were required to sign a form giving the date of their return to prison, however in reality very few attempts were made to re-arrest the 'mice'. Following the outbreak of the First World War, all suffragette prisoners were released, having been granted an amnesty by the government. (3)
This is an article about the re-enactment of an incident which took place at Bristol Temple Meads station on 15 November 1909. The incident involved the suffragette Theresa Garnett accosting Winston Churchill and hitting him with a riding whip. Miss Garnett was arrested and sent to Horfield Prison where, after hunger-striking, was subjected to force-feeding before setting fire to her cell in protest. (4)
This is the website of the Bristol Radical History Group. It contains a video of a re-enactment of an incident that took place in 1909 when Theresa Garnett, a suffragette, attacked Winston Churchill with a whip. For this she was arrested and sent to Horfield Prison. (5)
HMP Bristol was previously known as Horfield Prison. (6)
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