In 1867, The Second Reform Act meant that 2.5 million male householders were able to vote out of a population 22 million. And in 1884 The Third Reform Act meant that almost 5 million men were given the vote. This meant almost two-thirds of the male population. This meant that then working men were given the right to vote, whereas women, who are in a higher class to them, still were unable to vote. Because of the increasing number of men that were able to vote, it was thought that women should also be able to receive the vote.
2. Describe the ways in which the methods of the suffragettes and the suffragists were different. (15 marks)
The suffragists (National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies – or NUWSS) were established in 1897. Their aim was to ‘To promote the claim of women to the Parliamentary vote on the same terms as it is or may be granted to men.’ This meant that the suffragists did not want all women to have the vote, they only wished for women to have equal footing to the men that already had the vote. The suffragist
members were at first genteel, well-educated middle-class women who were feeling frustrated. Though, later on more lower class women joined, many of these factory workers who wanted improved wages and working conditions. Their methods of protest were all peaceful. They spoke at trade meetings, did non-violent propaganda work. They were overall a passive organization.
The suffragettes (Women’s Social and Political Union – WSPU), was founded by the Pankhurst family, who were members of the NUWSS. Their aims were to ‘to secure for women the Parliamentary as it is or may be granted for men.’ This meant that they wished for women to have the same rights as men, and their tactics were more militant than the suffragists. They believed that they needed to be more confrontational if women were to receive the suffrage. The members of the WSPU were mostly middle-class women. Mrs Pankhurst wrote that: ’Our members are absolutely single-minded; they concentrate all their forces on one object, political equality with men.’ This meant that all members must only be focused on the work of the WSPU, that they cannot help any other suffrage.
On 13th October 1905, at a Free Trade Hall, the WSPU made a conscious decision to separate themselves from the other women’s rights campaigners. Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Kenny were arrested during their protests in the Liberal meeting. It was then that they realized that to be listened to by the public; they needed to get attention by bad behaviour. They were sentenced to prison, and the public were shocked at this so-called ‘unwomanly behaviour.’
So, whereas the suffragists thought that by being pacifist, they would make a difference, the suffragettes had the opposite opinion. To the suffragettes, they believed that the worse their behaviour, the more publicized they would be, and so the could make more of a difference. This soon meant that they were staging hunger strikes when in prison. This is the reason why the ‘Cat and Mouse act’ was rushed through in Parliament. This is when the prisoner would be released when starving, and once better would be imprisoned again. But this only lasted a couple of months as later the women were force-fed. They smashed windows, and tried to caused as much damage as possible.
3. Women over 30 gained the vote in 1918 mainly because of women’s contributions to the war, do you agree? Explain your answer. (20 marks)
When it was declared that Britain had gone to war with Germany, the suffragettes stopped most of their militant activities. The suffragists also stopped campaigning, and under the instructions of Mrs Fawcett, the NUWSS began to help in the relief work. Though, not all the suffragists agreed with the emphasis on the war work. At the same time, Mrs Pankhurst and the WSPU followers, instead of suffrage propaganda, started to work on anti-German propaganda and recruited women to the Home Front.
During the war women were a vital part of Britain. Now that most of the men had gone to fight in the war, their jobs were vacant. So that Britain would be able to function during the war, women had to take over the jobs of the men. By the end of World War one, about one million more women were at work than they had been in the summer of 1914. In order to help with the war effort, it wasn’t just working women that helped, but women from all social classes. The work that they did was to heave coal, portering, labouring in the fields and working in factories. They also had to work in weapons factories, so that the men who were in the war would be able to fight. This shows us how dedicated women were to the Home Front. This then showed society that women in fact were not as frail as they were thought to be. They were able to help win the war, and this was something that helped change society’s views on them.
Once the war was over, the government had a problem. While in the war the men fighting had accidentally lost their right to vote, this meant that votes would be lost. So whilst the government made plans to give the men back the vote, they considered giving women the vote for all their work during the war. Women were officially given the vote in February 1918. But, not all women that were over the age of 21 were given the vote. The reasons for this were because if women were able to vote at the same age as the men, they would outnumber the male voters. Also, even though women had proved themselves to be just as strong as the men, women under the age of 21 were still thought of as not responsible enough to choose a MP. So, the women that then had the vote had to be over the age of 30, were householders, or their husbands were householders. Also, they received the vote if they had graduated from a British university. This meant that the women that had gotten the vote were mature enough for the government to think that they deserved it.
The fact that during the war, the suffragettes stopped the violence, and instead helped the war effort meant that people would listen to their views. Whereas before they were automatically condemned for the violence used in campaigns, but as there was no militant activity there was no real reason to criticise them anymore.
Though the fact that women were helping out so much in the war effort changes people’s views on them, it was not the only factor that gave them the franchise. During the war, there was the Coalition Government and members of this were pro-women’s suffrage. In 1917, the Prime Minister Sir Asquith – who was anti-women’s suffrage – resigned. The new PM was Lloyd George, who was actually sympathetic to women receiving the vote. The fact that women had done so much during the war meant that passing the bill was easier that it was before the war. It would have been even unfair if women had done so much during the war, yet they had still not gotten the vote. But there were men that were less qualified and had the vote. This double standard was also a reason. So though the war effort played a part in them receiving the vote, it was not the only reason why women were able to vote once the war had ended.