History Assignment Flashcards
Intro
Until 1918, women in the UK did not have the right to vote in national elections. Over the course of many years prior to this a range of factors furthered the cause of women’s suffrage such as the work the suffragettes, suffragists, and the work conducted by women during the First World War. This essay will examine these factors and determine that the work conducted by women during the war was the most crucial to the representation of the people act becoming law in 1918.
Suffragettes Intro
The suffragettes were one group that campaigned for women’s suffrage. Formed in 1903 by Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters, after becoming increasingly frustrated by the slow progress of the suffragist movement
Paragraph Strucuture
Topic Sentence
Knowledge Points
Quote + Reference
Analysis
Counter Analysis
Evaluation/Conclusion
War Work Final Conclusion
that had helped lead the Allies to victory.
The work conducted by women during the Great War was the key factor in women gaining suffrage. The labour completed by women during the First World War proved that women were capable of contributing to society outside of the home and were equally as competent as men. This demonstrated that women could be trusted with the vote, ultimately leading to the creation of the Representation of the People Act 1918.
Suffragettes Final Conclusion
The penultimate most important factor was the work of the suffragette movement as the group successfully brought the cause to the headlines and placed pressure on the government to act. However, the violent methods deployed by the suffragettes created a level of opposition to granting universal suffrage, which in some ways set the campaign back.
Question/Title
To what extent were the suffragettes responsible for women being grated suffrage in 1918?
Suffragists Final Conclusion
The campaigns of the suffragists were the least significant factor in women because their methods went largely unnoticed for decades. Therefore, the suffragettes were responsible for women being granted suffrage in 1918 to a lesser extent.
Overall Conclusion
In my opinion, it is thanks to the invaluable work women contributed during World War One that women now have the freedom to vote.
Conclusion Structure
War work
Suffragettes
Suffragists
Closing Statement
Suffragists Intro
In contrast to the direct action utilised by the suffragettes, the suffragists favoured peaceful campaigning
War work Intro
The landscape that women found themselves in shifted dramatically with the outbreak of World War One in 1914, many historians argue that the women’s war effort led to universal suffrage in 1918.
Sufferagettes Knowledge one
The Women’s Social and Political Union pledged to change the status of women’s suffrage through “deeds not words” and direct action that would capture the attention of the public and those in power.
Direct action taken by the suffragettes included the burning of post boxes, attacking of police officers, and large marches and rallies.
Suffragettes analysis
The extreme actions of the suffragettes demonstrated that some women were going to stop at nothing and persist until women were granted the vote, using political pressure to win suffrage..
Suffragettes counter analysis
Although the deeds completed by the suffragettes brought the idea of women’s suffrage into the mainstream media, in many case the group were viewed as ruthless lawbreakers, which in some ways tainted the idea of offering female suffrage.
Suffragettes evaluation
Although the deeds completed by the suffragettes brought the idea of women’s suffrage into the mainstream media, in many case the group were viewed as ruthless lawbreakers, which in some ways tainted the idea of offering female suffrage.
Suffragists knowledge one
Throughout the second of the 19th Century many local groups appeared campaigning for women’s suffrage across the U.K. These groups were united under the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS). The union was led by Millicent Fawcett who believed the best way for women to be granted the vote was to convince the public and those in power through intellectual arguments and demonstrating the capacity that women had to vote.
Suffragists Analysis
The persistence of the Suffragist campaign further showed that women were absolutely determined to continue the campaign for suffrage no matter what.
Suffragists counter analysis
One negative of the group is that the media, public and parliament found them easy to ignore and not reform voting in the UK. It can also be argued that this minimal progress led to the formation splinter faction the Suffragettes
Suffragists evaluation
In many respects, the suffragists were largely unsuccessful as following decades of campaigning from 1867, their aims of achieving female suffrage remained largely unpalatable to those in power and took over 60 years to be reached.
War work knowledge
In August 1914, the NUWSS and much of the WSPU suspended their activities in order to to contribute to the war.
It is estimated that during the war 800,000 women entered the labour market for the first time. As many men went to fight on the front lines, women picked up the roles they left behind.
Vital services during the war such as munitions, agriculture, and driving ambulances could not have carried on without the women’s efforts.
For example, in April 1915 Glasgow Trams hired its first female conductors.
War work analysis
This shows that many men realised for the first time that women were capable of contributing to society out with the home. Men saw that women would take the responsibility of voting seriously and could be trusted to keep democracy stable.
War work counter analysis
However, some historians argue that the effort contributed by women during the war had a was somewhat insignificant on the Representation of the People act 1918 because the majority of the war work roles were fulfilled by women who earned too little or where under 30, meaning they still did not have suffrage until 1928. (
War work evaluation
On the whole, war work had a large impact on women being granted the vote as their efforts shifted male perceptions of what women were capable of outside of the home. The Representation of the People Act was somewhat like a reward for women’s efforts that had helped lead the Allies to victory.
Suffragettes knowledge two
Examples of their direct action in Scotland include the 1913 burning of Kelso racecourse which put Arabella Charlotte Scott in prison for nine months. The suffragettes often went to prison for their actions, facing harsh and sometimes inhumane treatment, which drew further attention to the cause
