Women’s Peace Camp at Greenham Common

A selection of images from the women's legal landmarks

In September 1981 a group of around 35 Welsh women, calling themselves Women For Life on Earth, marched from Cardiff to Greenham Common Airbase in Berkshire, a distance of over 100 miles, to present a letter to the commander of the base outlining their concerns about plans to locate Ground Launched Cruise Missiles (GLCM),missiles with nuclear warheads, on the airbase. They then set up a peace camp outside the base and organised a series of actions which led to arrests and appearances in court. The women used these legal hearings in imaginative and innovative ways as part of their campaign against cruise missiles being brought to the United Kingdom.

The full version is written by Elizabeth Woodcraft

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BBC News, ‘The Many Faces of Greenham Common’ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-41199648

The Guardian News and Media Ltd., ‘How the Greenham Common Changed Lives: “We danced on top of the nuclear silos” ‘ https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/mar/20/greenham-common-nuclear-silos-women-protest-peace-camp

The Independent, ‘Greenham Common Peace Camp: Remembering One of History’s Most Famous Feminist Protests 35 Years On’ http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/greenham-common-women-peace-camp-35-years-on-nuclear-weapons-feminism-a7040011.html