suffrage - COMPLETE Flashcards
what’s ropa and when was it passed?
passed on february 6 1918, the representation of the people act allowed certain women to vote
which women were allowed to vote through ropa?
women over 30 who were married to property owners/owned property themselves
how many women were enfranchised by ropa?
8 million
which political parties were involved in the suffrage movement?
tories
liberals
labour
when was labour formed?
1900
why were women treated as second class citizens?
they were believed to be inferior to men both physically and mentally
what were some difficulties women faced in employment?
paid less than men
often did less skilled work
excluded from many professions eg law as it was thought a woman’s place was at home
what did people think would happen if women became involved in politics?
they’d lose their femininity
the home would suffer
why did people believe women should not vote?
they weren’t well educated enough
too emotional to handle the responsibility
didn’t fight for their country so we didn’t deserve the vote
what were the views of the tories?
they were against suffrage for women and were worried women would vote liberal/labour if allowed to vote at all
and the liberals?
many of them were for votes for women
however there was a fear that property owning women would vote tory like their husbands
and labour?
for, but wanted all working class men to get the vote first
when did the votes for women campaign begin to grow?
after 1850
why did this growth occur?
electoral reform
- more men were getting the vote but no women
emergence of a small class of better off, educated women to lead the movement
who was the uk’s first suffrage group and when were they formed?
NUWSS (suffragists) was former in 1897
who supported/join the suffragists?
some men, working class people and women’s suffrage societies from all over britain (NUWSS was a combining of all these societies)
were the suffragists a big organisation?
yes - bigger and regarded as more successful than the suffragettes
how did NUWSS membership grow from 1907-1913?
it increased from 6000 members to 50,000 members
what methods did the suffragists use?
meetings
pamphlets
newspaper articles
marches
what was the suffragists pilgrimage of 1913?
in 1913 the suffragists held a pilgrimage to hyde park to show the government they had support
how many people took part in the pilgrimage?
around 50,000 women
what evidence is there of the success of the suffragists?
gained the support of many MPs
large membership and propaganda meant they had a wide influence across britain - benefits of male membership
impressed people with their dignity and organisation
what evidence is there of the failure of the suffragists?
failed to gain the vote despite no less than 4 attempts to introduce women’s suffrage bills to parliament
peaceful methods easy to ignore - by 1905 the press were virtually ignoring them
lost essential political support from Liberals in 1910
what did historian martin pugh say of the suffragists?
that their quiet persuasion gained the support of many prominent MPs such as lloyd george, however most MPs only gave them lukewarm support
how did the suffragettes originate?
in 1903 emmeline pankhurst broke away from the NUWSS and formed the WSPU - the suffragettes
in what ways did the WSPU differ from the NUWSS?
no male members
only interested in one issue
used violent action
what was the motto of the suffragettes?
“deeds not words”
what methods did the WSPU use from 1905-1908?
they... disrupted political meetings heckled politicians held large parades chalked slogans on streets
what methods did the suffragettes use from 1909-1914?
they…
smashed windows (many of them were arrested for this)
used pepper bombs
set fire to pillar boxes
what were some of the boldest acts of the WSPU during The Wild Period (1909-14)?
before he was PM, churchill was attacked by a woman with a dog whip
HH Asquith (PM) had his windows broken and was also attacked by two suffragettes while golfing in scotland
were the WSPU popular in 1909?
relatively - they had branches all over the country, 75 paid employees (the NUWSS had none) and a newspaper - Votes For Women - that sold 20,000 copies per week
what did dundee suffragettes attempt to do and why did it fail?
blow up a castle
it failed because they were sold sawdust instead of gunpowder and a false flex
how did suffragettes get winston churchill to never return to dundee?
they disrupted a speech here, causing him to view never to return to this “hellhole”
what other tactics did the WSPU use?
attacking MPs sending letter bombs cutting phone wires hunger strikes slashing paintings
who was mary ‘slasher’ richardson and what is she known for?
a canadian women who had been arrested 9 times and force fed in prison
she is known for slashing an expensive painting with a meat cleaver
what happened to emmeline pankhurst in 1912?
she was arrested and manhandled by the police - pictures of this emerge and caused outrage
who was emily davison?
a well educated member of the suffragettes who famously died at the epsom races
describe what happened to emily davison
she attempted to drape a “votes for women” banner over the king’s horse but was trampled by it in the process. she then became a martyr for the cause of women’s suffrage, as the incident was witnessed by a huge crowd and caught on film.
who was marion wallace dunlop?
the first woman to go on a hunger strike
why did dunlop do this?
to gain publicity to her campaign
what was the cat and mouse act?
to avoid women dying in prison, the (liberal) government would release hunger strikers, wait until they were healthy again and then re-arrest them
why did the cat and mouse act stop?
because of the war
give 4 reasons that suggest the suffragettes were successful in obtaining the vote for women.
- brought much needed publicity to the movement; by 1905 the suffragists were being ignored
- during the wild period the issue of female suffrage was discussed daily in parliament
- some politicians claimed they gave women the vote in 1918 simply to prevent a return to the wild period
- force feeding and the cat/mouse act garnered sympathy and good publicity
give 4 reasons to suggest the suffragettes failed in obtaining the vote for women.
- some argue their “terrorist” methods delayed the vote: the government couldn’t give in to them
- pro-female suffrage candida yes tended to do badly in by-elections
- posters were ripped up
- membership dropped during wild period
what were the Conciliation Bills?
three bills put forward to enfranchise wealthy, property owning women
what was the result of the first reading of the conciliation bill?
it passes: 225 votes for and only 88 against
suggest one reason why the first reading of the conciliation bill passed.
less than half of MPs took part in this vote because many of them did not care
when was the first reading of the conciliation bills?
1911
what did the suffragettes do in 1911-1912?
they waged a violent campaign against MPs
what happened in 1912?
the second reading of the conciliation bills
how many votes for and against women’s suffrage were there in the second reading of the conciliation bill?
205 votes for
222 votes against
what happened at the second reading of the conciliation bills and why?
the bill failed as MPs who did not the first time cared more (perhaps in response to suffragette violence, or perhaps because they thought the bill may actually pass) and voted during the second reading
by 1914, how many secondary/grammar schools were opened to girls?
349
were women allowed to attend university?
yes but the universities denied them degrees
what were opened just for women?
colleges
give analysis on women’s education during ww1.
as women became better educated they were no longer viewed as “too stupid” to vote - they were now thought to be more deserving of the vote
what types of jobs were women still denied?
better paid and more interesting male jobs
what types of jobs opened up for women?
white collar/office jobs like clerical or typing
give analysis for employment during ww1.
new white collar jobs gave women sense of responsibility and they could now have ambitions.
what did the married women’s property acts of 1870 and 1882 allow women to do?
be the legal owners of the money they earned
own and control their own property
give analysis for law changes.
as the law was beginning to improve the rights of women they believed that their rights could now be improved further by gaining the right to vote.
give some changes in the late 19th century for women and politics.
1869 - allowed to vote in local council elections
1870 - women were allowed to join school boards
1894 - allowed to stand as candidates in local elections
give analysis for political changes.
women were annoyed that they could not be trusted with this responsibility at national level.
how many women worked in munitions in 1917?
819,000
how many women worked in nursing in 1917?
45,000
how many women worked in transport in 1915?
117,000
what were some consequences of working in munitions?
many women were left jaundiced and infertile.
many were also killed or injured by explosions.
how did newspapers treat women after the war?
called them “heroines”
posters went up all around britain about women’s war efforts - what did they say?
“the nation thanks the women”
who found themselves influenced by the change in public opinion?
some politicians, including asquith
why did parliament introduce ROPA in june 1918?
they knew theyd have to allow young men (who’d fought in the war) to vote
what changes did ropa introduce?
men over 21 were enfranchised
women who were: married (to property owners) or property owners themselves, university graduates and over 30 were enfranchised
how many women were allowed to vote after ropa was passed?
8 million women
when were women over 21 given the right to vote?
1928
