The First World War, and the womans actions during it, was the key reason that enabled women to get the vote in 1918 Do you agree?

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‘The First World War, and the woman’s actions during it, was the key reason that enabled women to get the vote in 1918’

In the year 1918, the Representation of the People Act became the start of female suffrage in Great Britain; the bill was passed by an overwhelming majority in the House of Commons. The act gave women of property over the age of 30 the right to vote. Although this did not include all women, it was a major start. The statement above implies that women were able to get this vote mainly due to the First World War, and because women played a significant role in helping with the war effort. Whilst to a certain extent this may be true, there is evidence which could indicate that women got the vote due to more significant reasons. As to the war being the most important factor influencing women getting the vote, this is still a highly debateable question and a very controversial issue. Various people, of the past and present, consider that the war was not the primary reason that sealed some women the vote. It should be realised that without the suffrage campaigns of the suffragists, and particularly the militant methods of the suffragettes, women would have been unlikely to gain publicity regarding women’s rights. Furthermore, political aspects of society at the time did indeed contribute to helping women get the vote, and ultimately, the Representation of the People Act was a parliamentary decision. Hence, there are various other factors which should be discussed as well, in order to clarify the case.

First of all, evidence indicated that the First World War provided women with the ability to take on the work that men did prior to the war, which was mostly physical labour.  This involved work such as carpentry and engineering; work that women had previously not been permitted to do. Without woman helping in this way, men would have had to do additional work and many would have had to stay behind in England. Hence, not all men would have been able to fight in the war. Although Source B disagrees with the statement in the way that it suggests that the First World War did not have a lasting an impact on women’s rights, it does recognize that women significantly helped with the war effort: ‘…women made a substantial contribution to the war…’  Thus, the role of women was crucial in helping with the running of the country; in helping daily life seem as normal as possible. Moreover, further evidence suggests that women did work which significantly contributed to the war effort. In the war, women worked as nurses near the front line and also back in Britain making ammunitions; a great proportion of this labour was exceptionally dangerous. Source F is a cover of ‘The War Worker’ magazine; this particular issue was published in June 1917. It supports the idea that women worked extremely hard for their country, as the cover shows a women and a man united in one cause: the war. The British flag, that the woman and man is holding, is symbolic in the way that it shows that both women and men must work together to help fight for their country.  The source shows the importance of a team effort; it is evident that without the women providing weapons and ammunitions the men would have not been able to fight. Although the magazine illustrates women assisting the men in a positive way, it is likely that the writer is producing this for a particular audience: women workers. Hence, the source may be more subjective, as it is attempting to encourage women to help with the war effort. This means it may not be that useful in finding out if the war really did gain women the vote. Nevertheless, source F does portray that women did do war work, and, because they had to be persuaded to help, their work must have been necessary. Source E is interesting in the way that it does not directly mention the impacts of the First World War on women’s rights. It suggests that neither the peaceful campaigning of the NUWSS, nor the ‘militant actions’ of the WSPU were responsible for gaining women the vote: ‘…women were not granted the vote.’ Thus, neither method had worked. The source analyses the ‘Changing Role of Women’ up to 1914, the start of the First World War. It does not examine the events after the war; it may seem like does not support or oppose the statement. However, perhaps the source could suggest that the reason some women got the vote was because of events after 1914. The First World War could be one of these events. Although the source is not clear whether this is actually the case, the source hints that events after 1914 were more effective at helping women get the vote than events before. Published in 1996, the source is likely to be reliable; at this time, more information regarding the past would be known. In continuation, various historians consider that women’s wartime experiences raised their self-image and sense of individual identity. I know that many served with such distinction, in the medical services particularly, that their political cause gained credibility as a result. Some historians would also say that the 1918 vote was also due to the government’s appreciation of a mature political response when Britain was at war. A few groups of women were reluctant to support what they considered an imperialist war, yet most laid aside political campaigning and took up the war effort. For example, Emmeline Pankhurst, leader of the suffragette movement, or the WSPU, remarked that there was no point in continuing the fight for the vote when there may no longer be a country in which they could vote. Furthermore, war accelerated a process which had started well before 1914; women had been working for years in industry and business with little political recognition of their contribution. Thus, while it is possible that their role in the workplace would have earned them political advancement eventually, it was the war which highlighted the economic and strategic value of women to the country. From this, it is clear that the First World War provided women with the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities and therefore earn them the vote.

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However, in various ways, it can be argued that the war was not the most important reason that gave them the vote; there are numerous other factors which should be discussed as well. Stressing the importance of women's war effort takes away from the impact which the pre-war women's movement had made. Sources C and D do not explicitly suggest that World War One was the ‘key reason’ for the enfranchisement of women in 1918. In fact, both sources imply that the NUWSS and the WSPU were largely responsible. According to source D, the calmer, yet more persistent methods ...

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