Drummond, Flora (1869–1949)

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Drummond, Flora (1869–1949)

Scottish suffragist. Name variations: General Drummond. Born in Scotland in 1869; died in 1949; grew up in the Highlands; married.

Known as "the General" because she wore a uniform and led the drum-and-fife marching band during suffragist parades, Flora Drummond arrived in London from Manchester, spurred into the movement by Christabel Pankhurst 's 1905 arrest. Imprisoned nine times, Drummond was an original: a rousing speaker, capable of handling hecklers; a doer of stunts, drawing the press' attention. With a dozen others, she once rented a boat, added bunting, and set sail up the Thames, in order to lecture Members of Parliament, including David Lloyd George, as they sat entertaining their women friends at tea on the terrace of the House of Commons.