britain 1851 - 1951 Flashcards
war work knowledge points
as casualty rates increased on battlefield and conscription was introduced to swell the ranks, women needed to fill in the gaps on the homefront. women began to work as tram conductors, bus conductors, typists and secretaries. nearly 200,000 women found work in government departments. Also, 700,000 women were employed in munition factories.
thousands of women worked on farms and on docks. Alsp, many women joined the Women’s Land army. 23,000 women were involved. milked cows n harvested fruits
war work counterarguement knowledge points
the women who worked the long hard hours in dangerous munition factories were actually in their late teens, early twenties. however the women who got the vote were women who were in their 30’s or who were known as respectable ladies.
actions of WSPU knowledge points
GM Trevelyan stated “The cessation of outrages by the Suffragettes, and the splendid war work done by women in the factories and elsewhere, had converted many objectors to their enfranchisement.” The movement of the suffragette union and the war work done by women, meant that they should be entitled to gaining the vote. They also believed that campaiging should be done as “deeds not words.”
Churchill was of the opinion that “their cause had marched backwards.” This is primarily due to the suffragettes smashing windows of government officials, including PM HH Asquith, and also the fact that they based their campaigns around violence.
actions of NUWSS knowledge points
Although membership remained relatively low at about 6000 until 1909, a persausive campaign of meetings, pamphlets, petitions, and parliamnetary bills regularly introduced by friendly back-bench MP’s had created a situation where many MP’s had accepted the principle of women’s suffrage eg Lord Robert Cecil.
The aggressive tactics employed by the WSPU painted all female-rights groups in a negative light. People viewed them as trouble-makers.
social change knowledge points
The Married Women Property Acts of 1882 and 1893 granted women full legal control of all property they had owned at marriage or that they had gained after marriage by their own earnings or through inheritance.
Also, the education of girls improved with universal primary education for boys and girls from the 1870s and at the other end of the scale universities increasingly opened their doors to both men and women.
Women began to enter ‘white collar’ office jobs as well as the more traditional jobs of teaching and nursing.
Politically, the status of some women also changed with the Local Government Act of 1894, which granted some women ratepayers and property occupiers the right to vote in Local elections and the opportunity to stand for election
