Another reason is that women looked after life on the home front. They boosted morale, kept families together, they showed the country was united, the work women did enabled men to go fight in the war, and women let the war continue for Britain. If it hadn’t been for women, the morale of soldiers on the western front would have been extremely low as it says in source F “ON HER THEIR LVIE DEPEND” this suggests women played a key role in the war which changed opinions on women’s suffrage.
Furthermore women created and worked for many organisations that allowed men to go and fight in the war. These organisations include the; Women’s Royal Navy Service (WRENS), Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps(WAAC,) Women’s Royal Air Force(WRAF), Women’s Volunteer Police Service and Women’s Land Army. Women also organised a group called VAD, Voluntary Aid Detachments. These were nurses who risked their lives to go to the western front to help injured soldiers or stay with the soldiers who were dieing until their last breath. By doing this women showed that they were compassionate but not too emotional as men had though earlier and that women could work in extremely difficult situations under pressure which helped convince people to change their minds on women getting the vote.
Before the war the large majority of men had a negative attitude towards women getting the vote and thought women were irresponsible, mainly because of the suffragettes’ violent campaign. So it is clear that the work women did during World War One got women the vote as source I describes “During the four years of conflict a tremendous mood favourable to change had been created”. Women were given the right during the end of the war as a reward from the government as source J explains “they have contributed to every service during this war except that of fighting. I therefore believe that some measure of women’s suffrage should be given”.
However as source H says “A very simplified view would see the vote as a reward for loyal wartime service. However careful study shows how little change resulted from the war, not how much”. Other factors have to be looked at.
Firstly, if women had not demanded the vote before war broke out, the government would never even thought about women’s suffrage. The work of women before the war made the desires of women clear so that the government would make a decision as it depicts in source E were Emily Davison showed how desperate women were for the vote by running out in front of one of the king’s horses during a race.
Also, the campaign of the suffragettes played a significant role in convincing people to support women’s suffrage. The suffragettes “made women’s suffrage a matter of news” as described in source D, they caused the issue to be discussed in parliament. The suffragettes made sure that everyone knew the requests of women and didn’t forget them as source D says “the newspapers are full of us”.
Moreover, the campaign of the suffragists played a key role in women winning the right to vote. The suffragists introduced the idea of women’s suffrage and made considerable progress. The suffragists won the right for women to vote in county and borough elections in 1888 and the right for women to stand for local councillors or mayors in 1907. The suffragists showed that not all women were violent and irresponsible. They proved that a lot were mature and understanding which is why they gained a great deal of support.
Furthermore, women had already made a considerable amount of progress in terms of their legal status and opportunities. In 1870 the ‘married women’s property act’ allowed women to keep their property when they married whereas earlier it would have become the property of her husband. Women had now also got far better education which allowed them to get better jobs.
I believe that women would have inevitably got the vote even if the war had not occurred, I think that the war was just a catalyst that gave women a chance to prove themselves which sped up the process of them winning the right to vote as source I states “The question of women’s rights must not be isolated from other great social and political changes that were happening as a result of the war and even before the war”. Women may not have got the vote as soon as 1918 but it is exceedingly likely that eventually they would have since their progress over the years was gradually increasing.
