‘White slave’ g irls g the matches the y m strike lit flame of u

factory and spoke to workers. On June 23 she published a shocking expose in her paper, The Link, headlined White Slavery in London.

It stormed: “Born in slums, driven to work while still children, undersized because underfed, oppressed because helpless, flung aside as soon as worked out, who cares if they die or go on the streets, provided only that the Bryant and May shareholders get their 23%…?”

Outraged bosses threatened to sue then tried to bully workers into denying her claims.

But on July 5, when Bryant and May fired three “troublemakers”, the 1,400 matchgirls walked out and 200 marched to Annie’s Fleet Street office to ask for her help. “We’d ’ave come before only we wasn’t agreed,” they said.

“You stood up for us and we wasn’t going back on you.”

Sarah Chapman and two colleagues, Mrs Cummings and Mrs Naulls, were invited in and a strike committee was formed. On July 8 the strikers had a first meeting and newspapers backed their cause.

And the London Trades Cou formed in 1860 to represent sk tradesmen, gave £20 to their fund.

The strength and determination o women stunned the middle classes had viewed unskilled East End fac workers as worthless, tragic, or bot

One woman noted: “Few could fa be touched by the way in which the were determined to stand together

Bryant and May tried to break strike by threatening to move to No or hire blacklegs from Glasgow.

But Mrs Besant took 50 women t their grievances before MPS. And, on 16 1888, Bryant and May directors the strike committee. Next day

Sarah Chapman in later life Sam, right, recreates ancestor’s fight Bryant & May factory in East London UNITED STAND Sarah during the walkout in 1888