Emily Blathwayt

Emily Marion Blathwayt (née Rose; 1852 – 1940) was a British suffragette and mother of Mary Blathwayt. She and her husband, Linley, a retired Colonel from the Indian Army lived at Eagle House in Somerset and established a welcome and garden summerhouse for women in the movement, that became known as the "Suffragette's Rest".

Early life Emily Marion Blathwayt was born in about 1852. She married her first cousin,

They had two children, the elder daughter Mary attended Bath High School and then was supported at home as she became an active member of the suffragette movement and the younger, son William, was an electrical engineer and English teacher in Germany until the start of the First World War.

Emily Blathwayt recorded in her diary which is in the public archives:

Resignation from the Women's Social and Political Union Later in the campaign, other actions by Vera Wentworth and Elsie Howey (who had stayed with the Blathwayts) were considered violent towards the Prime Minister, leading to Emily herself resigning from the WSPU, and her husband Linley writing to them both to object to this approach and also complaining to Christabel Pankhurst at the violence arising in the movement. Despite their real concerns about the physical damage to property and the risk to hurting innocent people, the Blathwayts continued to support their daughter's activism and to welcome suffragette visitors and support the eventual achievement of votes for women.

Personal activities and a private view of the suffragette movement from Emily's family perspective gives us an insight which adds depth to that usually in the public domain or the press of the time.

Death and legacy Emily Blathwayt lived at Eagle House until her death in 1940. The archive of Emily's and Mary's personal diaries and the many photographs by Linley remain as an intimate record of the movement and its supporters. The trees that were planted at Eagle House were removed to make way for a housing estate. Other trees have been planted along with replacements for lost memorials. An art work was created to note the impact of Eagle House and of Annie Kenney (hosted by Emily Blathwayt) created by artist Jeni Wood in 2016.