A Suffragette medal in silver awarded to "Anna Hutchinson", the small silver 22mm diameter medal

A Suffragette medal in silver awarded to "Anna Hutchinson", the small silver 22mm diameter medal engraved "Hunger Strike" and named with the recipient to reverse, suspended on mauve, white and green striped ribbon with upper ribbon pattern bar engraved "For Valour" and the lower bar engraved "March 1st 1912", contained in original cloth covered box, the interior of the lid printed in blocked gilt "Presented to Anna Hutchinson by the Women's Social Political Union in recognition of a gallant action whereby through endurance to the last extremity of hunger and hardship, a great principle of political justice was vindicated" Note : The medal was awarded by the Women's Social & Political Union (WSPU) to those militant Suffragettes who were imprisoned for various acts of violence and who went on hunger strike whilst in prison. At first they were forcibly fed under the most barbaric conditions, as a result of which several died. The Government then introduced the Cat & Mouse Act whereby hunger strikers at the point of death were released but were then re-arrested and returned to prison when they had recovered sufficiently from their ordeal