Our series of talks and discussions continued with lectures by Professor John Eatwell, Dr Clive Oppenheimer, Professor Peter Abrahams, Dr Fiona Cooke and Professor Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, and readings by Girtonian authors, Dr Julia Golding and Christina Koning. Music of the Victorian era resounded through the corridots and grounds with a 19th Century Parlour Music Concert and from Queen Victoria’s Consort. Guests followed in the footsteps of Girtonians in the Edwardian era through tea dancing in the Hall and Stanley Library.
Children and grandchildren helped us celebrate this very special anniversary and they were able to experience retro computer games with the Centre for Computing History, discover suffragette Jiu Jitsu and learn to ride a Penny Farthing. They joined the turn of the century Girton fire brigade and became a suffragists! Also they were inspired by the Cambridge alumnae banner and worked with artists to create their own banner, and joined our march through time. Family-friendly activities also included a treasure hunt, zorbing, archery and birds of prey.
Selected video highlights:
Girton150 Festival: Women’s Suffrage – did the vote change anything?
Women’s Suffrage: did the vote change anything? It’s been 101 years since some women gained the right to vote in the national franchise for parliamentary representatives, and since the first woman took her seat as an MP. This lecture asks what difference this made, in terms of feminist campaigning, policy, and women’s incorporation into British politics.