Source C and D support the argument that the First World War helped gain women the vote. Source C is from a speech said by Lord Curzon, a conservative leader in 1912. In this source, Lord Curzon shows that many people were influenced by the war by arguing that women do not have the experience to be able to vote. There are problems like the way women have been educated, their lack of strength and the duties they have. If women did gain the vote, it would mean that most votes would then be women and because of this, there might be an effect on the government. He also says that he agrees that there are some issues upon which the votes of women might be helpful. Source D is the cover of the ‘War Worker’ magazine; it was produced in June 1917. It shows a man and a woman untied in a common cause. This supports the argument that the war got women the vote because it showed how women worked and helped a lot in the war, as well as the men. Source E partially supports the view that World War One got women the vote because it says that the ability of women to take on what had been men’s work meant that an increasing numbers of males were vulnerable to conscription.
Other historians have argued that it was mainly the activities of the Suffragists and Suffragettes that gained women the vote in 1918; they argued this because they campaigned hard to convince the government that women should have the vote in the Representation of the Peoples Act. The members also set up organisations to help find homes for refugees who lost their homes in fighting and they gained respect by supporting the war effort. During the war, the Suffragists and Suffragettes kept up their campaigning but in a non-violent and subtle way. They made it clear that the women were doing very important work.
Sources A and B support the argument that it was the activities of the Suffragists and Suffragettes that got women the vote. Source A is a speech by Emmeline Pankhurst in 1908. In this speech, Mrs Pankhurst is explaining that it is important that the women should have the vote, so that in the government of the country, the woman’s point of view can be put forward. Also, that very little has been done for women by legislation for many years. Source B is a postcard issued by the Suffragettes in 1910. It shows that women can be and have all these really good jobs; however, they don’t have the right to vote, therefore, they can’t have these jobs. Also, it didn’t matter if men were ‘lunatics’ or ‘drunkards’ because they still haven’t lost the vote.
It could also be argued that changes in the government helped women get the vote; this is because the government did not mind as much about giving the women the vote because it was now a coalition government. This meant that two parties shared power and so neither would lose out by women voting for the other party.
Finally, it could be argued that women got the vote in 1918 due to changes in public opinions, for example, there was a social change. Everyone suffered equally in the war and therefore it was believed that everyone should be awarded equally by having the vote. Also, in 1916, one campaigner wrote a letter to the Prime Minister saying that if the government failed to give women the vote in the new law, they were worse than the Germans.
Using the sources and my own knowledge, it is clear that women got the vote in 1918 because of a number of reasons, these reasons are the Suffragists and Suffragettes campaigning, actions of government and social changes. Therefore, the First World War was not the only reason why women got the vote in 1918. In my opinion, the most important reason that women got the vote in 1918 was because of the First World War.
