page_title: Florence Gertrude de Fonblanque
section_title: The March
hierarchical_section_title: Florence Gertrude de Fonblanque / The March
caption_attribution_description: English: 1916 march reported in 1916 newspaper. People are 1 Florence Gertrude de Fonblanque, 2 White 3 Stephenson 4 Richardson 5 Byham 6 Sarah Bennett 7 Nannie Brown (Agnes)
context_page_description: Florence Gertrude de Fonblanque born Florence Gertrude Sparagnapane was a United Kingdom suffragist. She was the "Originator and leader of the women's suffrage march from Edinburgh to London 1912".
context_section_description: Fonblanque decided to mount a march from Edinburgh to London to draw attention to the women's suffrage cause. She initially thought that walking to Edinburgh would be a good idea but it was decided to march from Edinburgh so that the march could end its publicity in London. Only six women including Agnes Brown and Sarah Benett who was the Treasurer of the Women's Freedom League set off on 21 October 1912. Her sister and Ruth Cavendish Bentinck helped with the organisation. As they and Fonblanque traveled from Scotland to London they gathered signatures on a petition and coverage in the newspapers. Fonblanque ensure that they were dressed in brown with rosettes and bright green cockades and they were known as the "Brown Women". They followed the route of the A1 and they were joined by dignitaries along the way. On one day near Berwick they walked over 30 miles before the now seven marchers were welcomed by the local member of parliament. Their numbers swelled slowly - when they passed through Grantham in November there were twelve walkers including Fonblanque.
  Finally they got to London on 16 November where Fonblanque's horse and cart were sent back to Scotland. They went by tube to Trafalgar Square where the walkers entered to music. Her sister Maud Arncliffe Sennett had assisted the march by organising a reception for the marchers when they arrived. Sennett was assisted with the welcome by the National Political League started by Mary Adelaide Broadhurst and Margaret Milne Farquharson. Sennett takes credit for the walk in one source. 
  Further hikes happened in the U.K. The month after the Edinburgh to London march Rosalie Gardiner Jones had organized the first American Suffrage Hike which left from The Bronx to Albany, New York.
  There were reports that she and Ruth Cavendish Bentinck had founded an organisation of non aligned suffragists in 1913. The Qui Vive Corps would wear the brown, green and white uniform described above. It was intended that these would attend any suffrage inspired event. The Qui Vive Corps were involved in campaigning for the Labour Party in Derbyshire and Staffordshire because they objected to the Liberal Party's policy which was against women getting the vote.
caption: The seven who reached Selby
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