“The Suffragette That Knew Jiu-Jitsu”

This 1910 cartoon from the British _Punch_ magazine is a satirical portrayal of Edith Garrud, one of the most important martial artists in the history of the Western world. Captioned “The Suffragette that knew Jiu-Jitsu. The Arrest,” the drawing shows an unarmed diminutive woman fiercely turned towards policemen who cower in fear. Some of their comrades in the background lie on the ground or are draped over the background fence, having been trounced by the slight, bare-armed woman. A political sign stating “Votes for Women” adds to the context.

This background context had to do with the push by many British women to gain the right to vote. The idea gained traction even as it threatened many men who ridiculed such women, claiming that women were innately fragile and thus shouldn’t be given the responsibilities of participating in an electorial democracy.

At this point in our story enters one Edith Garrud, a Welsh martial arts teacher (and the first woman martial arts instructor in Britain) who was running a Jujutsu school in London with her husband. At only four feet eleven inches, Garrud held public displays where she would throw much bigger men than her to the ground. Her self-defense classes became super popular among women, and the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) asked her to train some of their members as a sort of bodyguard to protect against police violence.

In the media these martial women were called “sufrajitsu” or “jujitsuffragettes” as a way to mock them. However, the Bodyguard special unit of the WSPU were a very effective fighting force. They wore cardboard underneath their dresses to protect their ribs from beatings by the police. Edith helped run a stealth operation and smuggled a key leader of the suffragettes away to safety while another volunteer took a beating in her place.

Garrud argued that martial arts could empower women beyond the realm of politics, and she even wrote a play in which a woman turns the tables on her abusive husband through her warrior skills. The play came out in 1911, and was called “Ju Jutsu as a Husband-Tamer.” In 1918, women over 30 finally got the right to vote in Britain.