People of he early 20th century didn’t want any changes, a lot of people were happy with the way things were. People said “women had never voted before, why should they start now? Even Queen Victoria opposed the granting of full political rights to her own sex, believing that politics did not concern women.
The Married Women’s Property Act gave women a new legal status, but women were still not entitled to vote in parliamentary elections. The Married Women’s property Act allowed women to vote for County and County Borough Council and they were allowed to become councilors. This still meant that they were not allowed to play any part in central government. This is why women failed to get the vote to right to vote between 1900 and 1914.
Suffragettes, a group of women who were prepared to do anything and I mean anything to get what they wanted. These women wanted women to be equal to men, to have the vote and they also wanted to play a part in central government. The Suffragettes wanted to do what every man could. E.g. vote, play a part in central government and become presidents. To get want they wanted the Suffragettes used violence. E.g. the Suffragettes handcuffed themselves to railings outside 10 Downing Street, the Suffragettes would throw themselves in front of a horse, which would be in middle of a race. This is why women failed to get the vote to right to vote between 1900 and 1914.
Mrs. Pankhurst, the Suffragette leader had an overwhelming belief that women should be entitled to vote, she also believed that strong action should be taken. She argued that women were allowed no part in making laws; therefore they could break them if necessary. This believes to have lead to violence.
In the election of 1906 the Liberal Party won a massive victory. However the Liberal Party wasn’t prepared to give women the right to vote even though the Liberal members were generally in support of the Suffragette’s claims.
May 1906 Mrs. Pankhurst met the Prime minister but was given no promise of help. This led to an uproar of temper. The Suffragettes started to cause disturbance at political meetings. Some politicians went in fear that they would suddenly be crowded around by a group of screaming women shouting, “ We want to vote.” 1908 the campaign become more violent, women used the direct methods up to the First World War in 1914. This is why women failed to get the vote to right to vote between 1900 and 1914.
Women started to set fire to letters in pillar-boxes. They burnt down empty houses; objects in art galleries and museums were damaged. The Suffragettes padlocked themselves to grille of ladies’ gallery in the House of Commons. Acid was poured on the greens of golf courses, violence solved nothing it didn’t get women the right to vote but it made the politic ion think twice.
The violence led to puzzling the minds of people, there were mixed reactions. Some people felt women were justified in going to such lengths. Some people felt that violence was totally wrong as a mean of gaining an object.
Violence was a direct action of breaking the law. Magistrates soon found out that they were facing a new type of ‘criminal offence’. The women concerned were not guilty of crimes that came before court. When given the option of fines or imprisonment, many chose to go to jail. The leader of the Suffragettes, Mrs. Pankhurst went to prison a number of times when she was given the choice of fine or imprisonment. She chose to go to jail. This is why women failed to get the vote to right to vote between 1900 and 1914.
Prison conditions and the harsh description surprised them. The Suffragettes carried their campaign in the prison cells by going on hunger strike. This led to a problem for the government. Suffragettes who refused to eat were forcibly fed. The authorities felt that they couldn’t let them die.
After all the things and al the mayhem the Suffragettes caused they still didn’t get the women the vote, this was because violence solves nothing.
