The Liberal government had made promises to women’s suffrage groups to help them get closer to being enfranchised, however the government consistently failed to deliver. In 1909 the Second Reading of Women’s Suffrage Bill was being carried but at the crucial moment Asquith failed to give his support. Subsequently two Conciliation Bill’s were carried but failed to be passed.
The Women’s Social and Political Union, WSPU, was founded in October 1903 by Emmeline Pankhurst in Manchester. The women only group, who’s motto was ‘deeds not words’, was not militant to begin with but this soon changed. Mrs Pankhurst, Dora Montefiore and Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy all urged militant methods such as civil disobedience in the form of tax resistance. They claimed that ‘taxation without representation was tyranny’. The WSPU believed that militancy was a rebellion against Edwardian gender roles and that they were not only fighting for suffrage but independence for women.
Their mild form of militancy had changed by 1908 to destruction of property and using violence against MP’s. This was an attempt to force the government to give women suffrage as popular support was not effective. By 1913 the WSPU had taken to arson in secret attacks of private and public property, as well as avoiding arrest.
In addition to these changes the WSPU began to cut its ties with the Independent Labour Party because in 1906, Christabel Pankhurst wanted the organisation to be a women’s movement independent from men’s organisations. Disassociating itself from the ILP meant that many conservative women joined the WSPU. The WSPU also made movements away from working class women, as they thought the House of Commons was ‘more impressed by the demonstrations of the feminine bourgeoisie than of the feminine proletariat’.
Many working class women joined other suffrage movements as they knew that even if the WSPU demands were met, the vote would not extend to them, because the WSPU wanted adult suffrage rather than equal suffrage. Another reason for the working class women to leave was that in demonstrations they were being blamed for biting and spitting committed by middle and upper class women. This meant that the party was divided. Some claimed that that the union’s ‘militancy… came within an inch of wrecking the suffrage movement, perhaps for a generation’.
In 1896 The National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies was founded, uniting the 17 largest women’s suffrage organisations. The organisation was led by Milicent Fawcett, with the aim ‘to obtain the Parliamentary Franchise for women on the same terms as it is or may be granted to men’. The organisation was the largest of its kind and followed constitutional, non militant, legal methods. The organisation represented a broad spectrum of political opinion for example Conservative Lady Chance, Liberal Milicent Fawcett and Socialist Isabella O. Ford were all member of the NUWSS. The voice of the working class was heard from the industrial north through the organisation’s 480 affiliated societies.
Fawcett used open air processions such as the ‘Mud March’ in February 1917, which the largest demonstration ever held up to that point. Over 3000 respectable women participated. However it could be argued that Fawcett and her organisation were too quiet and peaceful to make themselves be heard and for the government to be made to reform.
Both these separate movements of the NUWSS and the WSPU did not help in achieving the vote sooner, as they were both travelling in different directions with their objectives. The movement was too fragmented and needed one united major movement. The leaders of the organisations had ideological differences. Fawcett believed women were morally superior to men and therefore would not lower themselves to their standard and use violence. On the other hand the WSPU believed that men were sexually exploiting women and in order to stop the sexual abuse they would have to use violence to fight back. As well as the NUWSS and the WSPU there were also too many separate organisations. They hindered the movement as they also had different aims. For example the East London Federation formed after splitting from the WSPU, because Christabel Pankhurst ran a very autocratic organisation. Another movement formed was named the United Suffragists splitting from the WSPU because of Christabel’s anti-male policies. The founders were mainly prominent WSPU members who had been expelled or resigned because of Christabel’s policy changes.
The women’s suffrage movement was far too fragmented to prove useful. The split in organisations proved that the women were indecisive between themselves and if they could not even pull together into a united group, this meant weren’t even trying to achieve the same thing.
- Attitudes towards women and their right to vote changed by 1918. How important was World War One in bringing about these changes?
World War One was important in changing anti-feminist views existed deep in the heart of Edwardian society. The war allowed people of Great Britain to witness the true strength and competence of women showing them that women could be equal to men.
During the war women had jobs in: munitions factories; banking; clerical work; the civil service; transport; nursing; policing; shifting coals and agriculture. The number of women employed in Britain rose by 1,345,000 because of the huge increase of men drawn into the armed forces. It was vital women took over these jobs to sustain the war effort and they did their jobs superbly proving they could match men.
The war helped reform as it removed Asquith’s opposition and with a coalition government there was no party conflict over what form of legislation suffrage should take. Furthermore the WSPU abandoned militancy in World War One and this changed people’s view of the suffrage campaign.
Previously people had thought the suffrage movement was hooligan or terrorist based. Attitudes changes when the WSPU took a backseat and allowed Millicent Fawcett to advertise the suffrage cause. Furthermore prior to the war it was thought women should not be allowed the vote as they would all be pacifists. This was disproved when women showed they supported physical force in defence of their country and empire. Fawcett who was anti-violence, urged women to reconise their duty to support their country in crisis. During the war effort public opinion changed hugely. Asquith himself conceeded that if franchise extented to all servicemen then women would have to be considered.
However there were other reasons besides the war for women to be given the vote. The conservatives, who initially resisted the vote, thought reform was inevitable and therefore they believed conceeding to a limited reform would delay a more radical franchise. Also some conservatives felt that if they voted against reform the suffragists would exact revenge.
Having said this, many peace movements, stemming from suffragist movements existed. The NUWSS believed that war was being caused by the male need for violence. The NUWSS participated in a women’s peace rally on August 4th. However Fawcett urged women to recognise their duty to their country and empire. The media showed the rally to be a part of a women’s peace initiative, which reignited mens fears that women couldn’t have the vote as they would be pacifists.
Fawcett realised if she did not change her parties views she would risk the suffrage campaign. The NUWSS split into two groups which both opposed Fawcett’s view. One group urged the NUWSS to sponser anti-war campaigns and the second group urged thm to start an educational campaign regarding the causes of war and how it should be prevented. Women of the NUWSS who wanted it to support the peace movements believed that the suffrage campaign would allow women to not only get the vote but transform society with their vote.Fawcett made her stance unmistakeable in an aggrassive speech in February 1915 at an annual council meeting. She said that until the German troops were defeated, “It is akin to treason to talk of peace”.
In March 1915 the NUWSS decided not to support the peace movement and this was crucial for achieving women’s suffrage during the war. The WSPU broke up as an organisation when the war began. The WSPU suspended suffrage acivity to focus on the war. Previously people’s attitudes had been that the suffrage movement was a militant one, but now that the WSPU had suspended all activity people began to listen to the real cause of the campaign and became sympathectic with it.
Therefore the bill which was granted was ectremely limited. It gave the vote to women over 30 only. This meant nearly all the munitions workers were left without the vote.It was believed that women under 30 would be likely to support feminist or radical reforms.
Overall the idea of women’s role in society had changed but not yet to the extent of equality. Women were still underpinned by the male the government, who limited the vote as they were frightened of replaced by women. The bill allowing only women over 30 to be enfranchised was extremely unfair as most of the women contributing to the war effort were under this age. Nevertheless it was the first step to gaining equal franchine in 1928. The First World War certainly helped to raise the awareness of the women’s suffrage cause as a credible one, by showing they could work as well as men.
Furthermore the extinguinshing of militancy from the movement helped the public to realise sympathise with them and therefore give them their support. However some may say that the First World War was not the reason for reform because of several underlying issues. The government did not want to give women the vote because their work on the home front, but were forced to by enfranchising all the soldiers who served, By doing this and not recognises women’s efforsts in the war they would have faced a huge resurgence in militancy.
