Factory jobs that the men had left were also becoming popular for women. Employers were reluctant to take on women at first because they thought that women would not have the necessary skills and feared trouble from the unions. The country however, became desperate for women workers, especially in munitions and supplies and the Government encouraged private industries to employ women by employing women almost exclusively in their own munitions factories. As British troops were facing a severe shortage in shells and bullets, Mrs Pankhurst organised a ‘women’s march for jobs’ to recruit women to work in factories. This showed that the Suffragettes were prepared to help the country even though they still could not vote. Many married women replaced their husband’s jobs but factory jobs were often taken care of by unmarried women. A lot of women in domestic service left their jobs to work in the factories where they were needed more, because Britain needed the goods. Middle-class women were encouraged to do without their servants. Women working in domestic service were quite happy to leave their job to work in the factory because it meant higher wages and preferable working conditions.
Women put a lot of effort into the munitions work in factories, even though it was tiring and dangerous. At the end of the war, almost 800 000 women had taken up work in engineering industries and evidence showed that with very little training, women were just as skilled as men. From the trade journal ‘The Engineer’ on 20th August 1915, it says ‘[The work women are doing]… is not of the repetitious type, demanding little or no manipulative ability… it taxes the intelligence of the operatives to a high degree. Yet the work turned out has reached a high pitch of excellence,’ which proves this point. Women even kept the factory football teams going. This was thought to be strange at first because they were dressed in shorts and t-shirt and revealing their legs. It also used to be thought of as un-ladylike. This again showed that attitudes were changing.
Women helped the war in a lot of ways, firstly by working in the munitions factories producing shells and bullets for the British troops. They also became grave diggers, road layers, welders and bus drivers. The Salvation Army sent women volunteers as nurses, cooks and helpers to aid soldiers and civilians in France. This had a big impact on the reputation of the women because it showed they were prepared to volunteer to go to France and help their country. Women did not work on the front line but they were a tremendous help in the war being successful and the first women’s army unit was formed in 1918, which were the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC). There were also a Women’s Hospital Corps and Women’s Police Volunteers in most cities, which were formed in the autumn of 1914.
The work that women did between 1914 and 1918 for the war effort led to a change in attitude to the vote. It proved that women were just as capable as men when it came to working in professional jobs and tiring, manual work like the munitions factories. They had little training but production was of an excellent standard and kept the country going. Therefore women were capable of being responsible for voting. It also showed that women were just as important as men and needed in society, so they needed to be able to vote too. The war was the women’s chance to show how important they were and how they were needed just as much as men, and they did this when Britain relied on the woman to replace the men’s jobs.
Asquith (ex prime minister) said, ‘How could we have carried on the war without them,’ and ‘we see them doing work which three years ago we would have regarded as being exclusively men’s work…When the war is over the question will then arise about women’s labour and their function in the new order of things. I would find it impossible to withhold from women the power and right of making their voices directly heard.’ His attitude had changed greatly because before the war, when asked about female suffrage, he said ‘wholly out of the question’ on the grounds that it was against their nature and role. This supports the idea that it was the work that the women did in the war, which helped them achieve the right to vote. His view now was that it would be unfair to withhold women anymore from voting because they have shown how important they are in society. Another quote that shows people realised that women were needed is from The Observer and was written by JL Garvin in 1916. He said ‘Time was when I thought that men alone maintained the State. Now I know that men alone could never have maintained it, and that henceforth the modern State must be dependant on men and women alike.’ This shows the typical attitude change that people had after the war.
Another reason why attitudes towards women and the vote after the war was that because women had done so much work for the country and the war effort, they had earned the right to vote and the Government owed it to them, as they deserved it. The Suffragists and Suffragettes immediately stopped their campaigning to support the country. This showed they were prepared to put their country first and forget about their interests for the time being so Britain would be successful in the war. Millicent Fawcett said, in ‘Common Cause’, 1916, ‘Former opponents are now declaring themselves on our side, or at any rate withdrawing their opposition… The continued exclusion of women from representation will be an impossibility after the war.’ This means that people became less opposed to the Suffragists and Suffragettes due to the work they did and will result in them getting the vote. There were still some men opposed to women getting the vote, for example Lord Birkenhead said, ‘I’m against the extension of the franchise to women,’ in 1928, but most men and MPs felt that women had proved themselves equal to men, so they should have equal voting rights and cannot be excluded anymore. Women’s role in the war was a short-term factor and the main reason that attitudes changed and women gained the vote in 1918. However, there were other long-term factors, which paved the way before 1914.
One long-term factor, which contributed to the change in attitude to female suffrage, was that there had been a general change in attitude to the role of women over the years. Women’s role in society had improved because of improvements in careers since the 19th century. There were new opportunities for women to work in professional jobs such as teaching, nursing, office work, and shop work. During the war, many women also left their jobs as domestic servants, so the stereotypical view of women always working in the home changed. Education for women was also improving. In 1870, education became compulsory for all children up to the age of ten, and later on this age was extended. Schools for girls started off as only for the rich, but then schools for all classes were started in 1907. The number of female university places that were available was increasing because Oxford and Cambridge had 40 000 places, 500 of which were for girls. More places for girls gradually became available and over the years, girls began to receive a similar education to boys. The other factor that improved the role and status of women in the family and society were the acts passed in the late 19th century. There were four main acts that allowed mothers to gain legal custody of children up to the age of seven, and over if they had not been committed of adultery. Also, women could own their own property when married and keep their earnings, and the mother could become the legal guardian of the children in the family if the father died. If a husband deserted their wife, he had to pay child maintenance and a man could not force his wife to live with him.
These changes showed that women were just as capable and skilled as men. For example, women succeeded in jobs just as men did and produced work of an equal standard. Therefore views were that women would be just as capable of voting in general elections and led to a change in attitude about women just looking after the home. Education and matrimonial rights were also improving for women so the attitude was that if women were gaining these rights, they should gain the right to vote too. The public began to see female suffrage as a right that women should have and they should be able to have their voice heard. They also thought it was their right to vote because they paid taxes and Parliament’s decisions affected women too, so they should have a say in how it is run. Other reasons like there being more women than men in Britain and two heads are better than one were also making the public agree to female suffrage. The acts and changes to women’s roles in society and rights in the family led to a gradual change in attitude about female suffrage because the public began to see women as not second class citizens but equal to men and just as important.
The other long-term factor, which improved the situation, was the work of the Suffragists and Suffragettes. The methods they used for campaigning kept the issue of female suffrage in the public eye, raised awareness and gained support before 1914. Methods that the suffragists used were more peaceful than the Suffragette’s methods. The Suffragists argued their case by issuing leaflets, presenting petitions, arguing their case with MPs, displaying posters and organising meetings. The effect of this was that they gained publicity and support from many MPs but their methods were too moderate and didn’t cause the Government much concern or need to deal with the issue. The Government didn’t feel the pressure to satisfy the Suffragists because they were not causing much harm to society or property. On the other hand, the Suffragettes used more violent methods of campaigning such as vandalism, harassing Parliament and arson. They marched through London and other important cities, attacked police, chained themselves to the railings of Buckingham Palace, cut telephone wires, bombed churches and warehouses and sent out bogus calls to the armed forces. Examples of vandalism were when Velasquez’s Rockby Venus was hacked by Mary Richardson in 1914 and when Suffragettes threw roofing slate at the Prime Minister’s car. Important members of the Suffragettes went on hunger strike. Marion Dunlop refused to eat in prison and was released and Emmeline Pankhurst’s sister went on hunger strike at Holloway Prison in December 1910.
These methods harmed their campaign in some ways, because they caused a lot of problems and inconvenience for the Government when they had other important issues they needed to concentrate on. One catastrophic campaigning event for the Suffragettes was when Emily Davison died at the Derby horse race whilst carrying a banner. This along with some of the other methods showed how passionate women were for the vote and that they were prepared to die for it. The public saw the horrendous pictures of Suffragettes being force fed in prison and this made a lot of them believe that women should have the vote and it was unfair to withhold their right to have their voice heard. These sorts of methods also kept the issue in the public eye, as the Government had to do something about it and could not ignore it, otherwise a lot more damage would be caused to the country.
Women’s actions during the war were the most important reason in bringing about the change in attitude towards women and their right to vote in 1918. The work they did when they replaced the men’s jobs was of equal standard, so they proved themselves to be as capable as men and as skilled. Therefore the attitude was that women could be trusted with the vote and were just as skilled to be able to vote in general elections. The Government could not ignore the work women did on the home front, and they deserved to have the right to vote and a say in the running of the. It showed they were just as important as men in society. Women would have probably gained the vote eventually but it would have taken longer. This was the main reason for the attitude change towards women and their right to vote in 1918, but there were other long-term reasons that gradually brought about this change before 1914. There had been improvements to women’s status and role in society, and they were beginning to not be looked on as something more than second-class citizens. There were improvements in the 19th century to women’s career opportunities, education and matrimonial rights. Also, the work of the Suffragists and Suffragettes kept the issue in the public eye and raised awareness. This helped women to get the vote sooner.