Why did women fail to gain the vote between 1900-1914?

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Yasser Awad

Why did women fail to gain the vote between 1900-1914?

There are many reasons why women failed to gain the right to vote between 1900 and 1914, these different reasons did not just appear overnight some were had been institutionalised into the very core of British society over a great length of time. The other reasons were public responses to, the then, recent actions of the groups looking to gain the vote for women.

For the purpose of this coursework I will separate these reasons into three major factors that explain why women failed to gain the vote between 1900 and 1914.

1. Long-term factors:

First I am going to study the long-term causes, as it is with these that the climate of the situation at the time in question can be viewed in its entirety. At the start of the 20th century Britain was a patriarchal society, one dominated by males with women considered as lower class citizens. Most women were seen as their husbands’ property and were there to meet all their requirements, these requirements included doing all domestic work, bringing up any children they may have and being there to please them sexually.

        Another long-term reason that caused those who wished to have the vote for women an uphill struggle was the general consensus, in the government, that women did not deserve the vote or in fact want the vote. This particular view would prove to be a very stubborn obstacle for those who would want the vote for women, as it was sexism at its most institutionalised. Also there was no major request for change within the country before 1900, the country was in a good period of stability, the empire was at its strongest and Britain was one of the, if not thee, most influential countries in the worlds markets.

        The people who were demanding the vote for women were named the suffragettes; this name came from the word suffrage, which means having the right to vote. The Women’s Social and Political Union was the major group of suffragettes, the Pankhurst family set this group. The Pankhurst family set up the WSPU because they felt that the suffragists (women who used peaceful methods to get their point across) tactics had failed to gain any ground in the fight for a women’s vote.

During the early twentieth centaury, the social position of women was very different. The role of a woman was very domestic. They were expected simply to marry, bear children and look after the home. Women were seen as unintelligent, indecisive, emotional creatures that could not cope with politics. William Randall Cramer commented that if women got the vote, they would become masculine and domineering and consequently neglect their household and marital duties. There were also those that thought that if women had the vote, they would stop having children, and eventually the human race would die out.

When the NUWSS was formed to campaign for women’s suffrage, it was met by horror and disapproval. This made the situation difficult for the suffragists, but on the other hand perhaps it would be irrational to expect a more positive response as the traditional social position of women had been upheld for a long time. These feelings heightened with the founding of the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in 1903. Not only were women campaigning for the vote, but resorting to violence and vandalism to push their cause. The WSPU committed criminal offences such as setting fire to letterboxes, smashing windows and assaulting policemen. These criminal acts probably reduced their support, as people would be cautious of openly supporting dissidents. Perhaps the most shocking for the public of the time was that women who were not ‘women of the streets’ were being imprisoned. Once there, they were not chastened, but proceeded to hunger strike, an action thought typical of lunatics. They even audaciously continued their behaviour after the Cat and Mouse Act was passed in 1913. However, the actions of the WSPU did bring the plight of the suffragettes into the public view. For example, Emily Davidson committed suicide (yet another criminal offence) by throwing herself in front of the king’s horse. Public opinion was even more against the suffragettes as there was more anger over the death of a good horse and the insult to the King.

Women were also disregarded in the public eye, as they did not represent a united front. The WSPU and the NUWSS were striving towards the same goal, but using very different tactics. This showed the women as indecisive especially when the Women’s Anti Suffrage League (WASL) formed campaigning against the vote. The Women’s Freedom League (WFL) was also established as the result of an argument between the Pankhursts and Millicent Fawcett. Maybe if the women’s movements had been united, they would have been taken more seriously and regarded as a more potent force.

Concerning the passing of laws, public opinion is very important as these are the views reflected by the MP’s in Government. Perhaps if the public had supported the women’s movements, the Government may have taken them more seriously. However, this would be expected as at the time, Government had other more important political and social issues to resolve.

Britain was engaged in a race to build dreadnoughts with Germany. Tensions in Europe were rising and by 1905 there were already indications of an imminent war. The welfare reforms that began 1905 needed to be resolved; for example, the Old Age Pensions 1905, the School Meals Act 1906 and the National Insurance Act 1911. These reforms aimed to help the poorer people in England. The Liberals probably thought that they had made such an effort with their welfare reforms, yet the bothersome suffragettes were demanding the vote. There were also constitutional problems concerning the Lords, the Irish Home Rule Bill and the People’s Budget 1909. This was a time of political turmoil, so there was not time to consider less important issues like giving women the vote. To try to pressurize the Liberals and force recognition, in 1907 the suffragettes adopted the new tactic of by-elections by encouraging votes for the Conservatives. However, these had the opposite effect as this angered the Liberals. The Conservatives as rich landowners would be even less likely to grant the vote to women. These political problems meant that women’s suffrage was waylaid.

It was not only the attitudes of the MP’s and political problems, but also the practical problems of giving women the vote. In order to give women the vote, the property qualification of the voting qualification would have to be changed. In 1908, Herbert Asquith took over as leader of the Liberal government. Unfortunately for the suffragettes, he was against women’s franchise. He believed that most women actually did not want the vote. He tried to deny them the vote by stalling. The Liberals were also worried that women would vote for other parties, and waste time demanding trivial things concerning clothes. An adult suffrage bill was introduced in 1908 but was later defeated. This frustrated the suffragettes and they responded by escalating violence. In 1910, a Conciliation Bill was proposed that would give women the vote. During negotiations, militant activities by the WSPU were halted. The Bill was suspended and the WSPU resumed militant campaigning. However, this Bill was again defeated.

By 1914, there was a stalemate between the government and the suffragettes. The Government did not want to be seen as giving in to violence, especially by women. On the other hand, the suffragettes frustrated and despondent after having their hopes raised continued their violent tactics in order to gain the vote. The start of World War II finally ended the stalemate. On of the views at this time was that women did not fight for their country so they did not deserve the vote. The war would give them the chance to prove that they were indeed worthy of the vote, through the actions of organizations such as the Women’s Royal Air Force and the munitions workers.

Perhaps the most important factor why women did no get the vote before 1914 was the attitude of the public. The main cause was the violence and criminal acts carried out by the WSPU. On the other hand, they would not have been driven to turn to violence if they had been taken notice of while they used the tactic of peaceful persuasion. The politicians and the Prime Minister himself mirrored the attitudes of the public. Political problems also played a part. It is therefore not surprising that women did not gain the vote before 1914.

Women were refused the right to vote because the Prime Minister at the time was Herbert Asquith who although was a liberal, was utterly against enfranchise of women. He, like many men and women during that period was under the impression that women were hysterical and completely incapable of logical thinking. This was due to the radical actions of the Suffragettes as they conformed to all the stereotypes of irrational women. He believed that by appeasing the suffragettes, other radical political groups would think that all they needed to do to succeed was to be violent. He did not want the IRA in Ireland to think this.

Another reason why women did not gain the right to vote was because all men had not yet been enfranchised and because women were seen as inferior to men, the right for women to vote came as second priority. Also, parties such as Labour thought that bestowing women the vote would mean only middle class to upper class women would be able to vote because most constitutional laws based suffrage on having property and certain incomes. By labour giving women the right to vote, they would only be damaging their chances because middle-upper class women tend to vote for conservatives.

In the early 19th century very few men had never considered the fact that women were not equal at all. They had limited restrictions to what they could do; women seemed to have the same rights of children, criminals and lunatics.

If a woman was to marry, her husband owned her property as well as his own. If they were to have children, by law the husband had more rights over his children than the mother she had no legal rights over them. If the wife or husband were to want a divorce it would be very difficult to do so as the husband would own all of the women’s processions not only would she lose her processions she would lose her children as well.

Middle class women were looked at very differently to working class women. They were thought as to delicate or empty headed to work. The husband would insist that the wife should not have to clean the house as they were too wealthy, they would hire servants. The men believed the women should be the angels of the house.

As well as this many people in senior positions opposed the vote for women, indeed even Queen Victoria said that women should not have the vote. The then current Prime Minister Herman Asquith also was unsure about whether to allow women the vote and refused to commit himself either way, there were many other politicians who bitterly fought against women receiving the vote. Although after World War One Asquith was so impressed with the way the women supported the country that it was he who gave the women the vote.

Many other influential people like Lord Birkenhead, W E Gladstone and Queen Victoria were against giving women the vote because they thought that by allowing women to vote, they would become less pure and hardened by politics, also they would not be able to fulfil their roles as wives and mothers. Gladstone once said “I do not wish to trespass on the delicacy, the purity and the refinement of woman’s nature by giving her the vote.”  Queen Victoria was recorded for saying that she thought that Lady Amberly (a Lady who spoke in favour of women’s suffrage) deserved to be whipped.

Although there had been improvements they still had a long way to go before they had the right to vote. The industrial revolution brought about massive changes within this structure of British society, working class women continued to work as they had done, much of the work was poorly paid and based in the home these included washing, sewing and box making. The ‘privileged’ few had jobs in factories or an office. So the jobs that woman was allowed to do improved a little as time went on. But due to the rapid expansion of post offices they were in dire need of assistants. Working in the post office had its advantages and disadvantages for the women who worked there. For example, the women would sometimes have to work 80 to 90 hours per week and the pay was poor, the advantages were that although they worked long hours they did have free time to do what ever they pleased and it also offered independence to younger girls. Other job area where it showed improvement was in teaching. In 1870, the government passed an education act, which doubled the number of elementary school pupils, and most of the new teachers who met the increasing demand were in fact women. By 1900 75% of teachers were women. Women had no right to gain promotion nor a pay rise and in any job that women had, men always earned an higher amount if a women married they were expected to resign from there jobs, to stay at home to do more appropriate jobs like the ironing, the laundry and the washing.

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As for education, the government believed that governesses should tutor girls at home and the boys taught at school. The working class children sometimes would receive basic education. Some of the middle class women had their eyes set on becoming a nurse or teacher. They wanted to enter the profession of law and medicine.

Despite these improvements were not equal mainly because they did not have the vote and they were many attempts to gain it by 1900-1914.

2. Short-term issues:

 The suffragettes formed in 1903 with Emmeline Pankhurst as the head of the group, their aim ...

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