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History A Level - Political Reform > The Suffragettes > Flashcards

The Suffragettes Flashcards

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1
Q

Give a brief timeline of the fight for women’s suffrage

A

1897: National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS) formed
1903: WSPU formed
1905: WSPU began heckling
1909: First hunger strikes and force-feedings in prison
1910: Failure of the first Conciliation Bill, Nov - Black Friday violence outside parliament
1911: Failure of second conciliation bill, return to WSPU violence
1913: April - Cat and Mouse Act passed, E. Pankhurst sentenced to 3 years in prison, Nov - Emily Davidson dies at derby
1914: suffragettes suspend action at the breakout of WW1

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2
Q

What were some of the main arguments for female suffrage?

A
  • Britain could not call itself a true democracy when majority of population was unable to vote
  • Women property owners should be given the same right as male property owners
  • Women already participated in politics - cleaning up workhouses, abbesses had the vote in 16th century, on small scale
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3
Q

Name some of the key arguments put forward on why women should not get the vote

A
  • Women were intellectually inferior as their brains weighed less and they were guided by their wombs and unstable at menstruation/puberty
  • Politics was the sphere of men, women owned the domestic sphere
  • Women were already involved in local elections so didn’t need more involvement
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4
Q

What legislation had women been able to get to ensure greater rights prior to 1903?

A
  • 1839 Custody of Infants Act - allowed some women access to their children in the event of a divorce
  • 1870/1882 Married Woman’s Property Act - allowed women to keep property after they were married and money they earned
  • 1884: Matrimonial Causes Act stopped men punishing wives for not having sex with them
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5
Q

Why did NUWSS form?

A

Millicent Fawcett founded it after little political gains for women eg (1884 didn’t enfranchise women)

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6
Q

Who formed the WSPU and when?

A

Emliline and her daughters Christabel and Sylvia Pankhurst formed the WSPU in 1903 in Manchester

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7
Q

How was the leadership and management of the WSPU different to that of the NUWSS?

A
  • Autocratic, required complete allegiance to the cause
  • Run solely by the Pankhursts
  • There were no public meetings, accounts or constitution to the movement
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8
Q

What were the aims of the WSPU?

A
  • Middle and upper-class women to get equal rights to men of the same class
  • All campaigning done by women in desire to show independence ‘free themselves from enslaved conditions’
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9
Q

Why did the WSPU cause tension in the Labour Party?

A
  • Hadn’t focused on female suffrage before
  • Keir Hardie supported them
  • Some believed there should have been a greater emphasis on universal suffrage
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10
Q

What were the WSPU’s tactics from 1903-1907?

A

Peaceful and moderate protest in order to arouse sympathy and draw attention to the cause

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11
Q

Name some activity by the suffragettes between 1903 -1908

A

1905 - disrupting meeting/heckling politicians
1906 - broke into the house of commons waving flags and making speeches, 9 upper/middle-class women arrested
1906/07 - chaining themselves to railings at downing street and HoC lobby statues
1907 - Held 1st “Women’s Parliament”, marched on parliament and attacked by police, Mud march mass meeting with 3000 supported
June 1908 - Hyde Park meeting, 250,000 -500,000 demanding the vote, ignore by Asquith

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12
Q

How successful were the early tactics of the WSPU?

A

• Arrest of successful upper/middle-class women (e.g Mrs Cobden Sanderson) after protest especially Women’s parliament won strong support amongst other women of the same status
• Imprisonment worked as propaganda
BUT
• Working class arrests never gained supprt/exposed class divide
• Failed to influence politicians, Lib gov more concerned with Irish Home Rule

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13
Q

Describe the tactics of the WSPU from after the Hyde Park meeting?

A
  • Violent militancy

* Try to show politicians that they couldn’t exclude women from politics

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14
Q

What action did the WSPU take part in from 1908 - 1910?

A

1908 - window breaking, Asquith became a target and is assaulted on golf course and slates thrown at his car
1909 - March on parliament turns violent with Home Office, Treasury and Privy Council all smashed, hunger strikes become more serious and force-feeding begins, wave of attacks led by Christabel (windows, post box burning and attacks on golf greens)
Nov 1910 - Black Friday with 300 women clashing with police who are deliberately rough/assaulted women

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15
Q

What happened with WSPU activity between 1911 and 1914?

A

• 1911-12 saw a slight pause whilst government suggested law that may have given small no. of wealthy women vote
• 1913 - return to militancy, 13 paintings in Manc. Art Gallery slashed, streetlights, golf greens and train carriages damaged. Bombing of Lloyd George’s house, Emily Davidson throws herself in front of King’s horse at derby
1914 - The Slashing of Roksby’s Venus, stopped all action after outbreak of WW1

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16
Q

How successful was the WSPU’s militancy?

A

• Force feedings due to arrests created propaganda for WSPU and heroine/martyr look, won over the public, people disliked the Cat and Mouse Act and it was hard to enforce
BUT
• Cat and Mouse Act demoralised movement and damaged women’s health, Black Friday demonstrated gov. resistance
• Their militancy undermined may arguments put forward by suffragists and led to establishment of the Women’s National Anti - Suffrage League by Mrs Humprey Ward in 1908

17
Q

How was the WSPU organised?

A
  • An unelected central committee run by Pankhursts
  • Sub-committee run by family friends
  • Local branches had greater autonomy
  • Initially working-class women had connection to ILP but this changed in 1906
18
Q

What evidence is there that the organisation of the WSPU aided the cause?

A
  • A boom in membership - 1906 had three branches, went to 122 in 1911
  • Annie Kenney added a working-class element to movement
  • Good financial element to the movement - wealthy women contributed, raised £20,000 by 1907, Emiline designed clothes
19
Q

What evidence is there that the organisation of the WSPU hindered the cause?

A
  • Tensions between WSPU in London and regionally - regional movt. in Liverpool refused to hold drawing room meetings to attract middle class women
  • Class divide caused a party split - Teresa Billington- Greig and Charlotte Despard took 1/3 of group with them, in 1907 ILP rejected notion of women’s suffrage
20
Q

How did Emeline and Christabel Pankhurst help create a powerful movement?

A
  • Autocracy, despite not being democratic, meant the party had clear leadership
  • Created a movement with clear agenda and loyal members
21
Q

How did Emeline and Christabel Pankhurst’s leadership weaken the WSPU?

A
  • Caused 7 splits
  • Banned members who challenged them (eg Pethick - Lawrence in 1912 who questioned increased militancy)
  • Shift towards the Conservative party led to Sylvia leaving, isolation of working class women
  • Both saw power began to dwindle - Christabel fled to France after being tied to bombing of 50 churches and Emeline’s health declined after imprisonment and hunger strikes
22
Q

What role did Sylvia Pankhurst play before she left the WSPU?

A

Was the secretary, designed banners/flags/gifts and ran the WSPU shop. She also published a history of the movement in 1911

23
Q

What did Sylvia do after she left the WSPU?

A
  • Established The East London Federation of Suffragettes
  • Remained loyal to the ILP
  • Despite leaving due to worries over increased militancy still ended up arrested for acts of militancy
24
Q

How did the NUWSS lead to debate for women’s suffrage in parliament?

A
  • Grown rapidly between 1902-06, went from 17 branches to 31. Had 478 branches by 1914
  • Ensure that local political associations on elected MPs who pledged to support women’s suffrage, in 1906 415 MPs had pledged allegiance to women’s suffrage
  • Constitutional campaigning - leaflets, petitions and organised meetings. Targetted parliament as they recognised there were the only ones who could grant the vote to women
25
Q

What bills did the government attempt to pass?

A 
1909 Women's suffrage bill
1910 Conciliation Bill
1911 Second Conciliation Bill 
1912 Third Conciliation Bill
1913 Government Franchise Bill
26
Q

What were the main obstacles to getting enfranchising legislation passed in parliament?

A
  • Asquith’s personal opposition to the female suffrage - didn’t understand militancy, targetted by the WSPU and own wife & daughter opposed female suffrage so saw WPSU as extremists
  • 1910 constitutional crisis
  • Disagreement over the form of female suffrage that would take place
  • The increasing militancy of the WSPU led to many MPs becoming disillusioned to the cause
27
Q

The 1909 Women’s Suffrage Bill
• How did it come about?
• Who would have it enfranchised?
• How did the WSPU respond to it?

A
  • A private members bill introduced by Liberal MP Geoffry Howard
  • Based on three month residential qualification, both genders receive the vote
  • WSPU said that universal suffrage wouldn’t pass through parliament, bill was impractical
28
Q

What happened to the 1909 Women’s Suffrage Bill?

A
  • Party deadlock - Tories just wanted the bill to match current male suffrage, Liberals said that it would unfairly advantage the Tories.
  • Got to second reading by 35 votes but failed to proceed after extensive debate wasting time
29
Q

The 1910 Conciliation Bill
• How did it come about?
• Who would have it enfranchised?
• How did the WSPU respond to it?

A
  • Drawn up by all-party committee made of 54 MPs to address issue after 1910 election where Liberals lost majority
  • Women householders & business occupants with income of over £10, if she was married her and husband could not use same property to vote
  • Christabel denounced the bill
30
Q

What happened to the first Conciliation Bill?

A
  • Passed second reading by 110 votes in July
  • Asquith opposed the bill, Lloyd George and Churchill opposed it due to benefitting the Tories
  • 1910 constitutional crisis arose so greater focus went to that the bill didn’t get any time in parliament
31
Q

The 1911 (Second) Conciliation Bill
• How did it come about?
• Who would have it enfranchised?
• How did the WSPU respond to it?

A
  • Asquith promised the bill would come about again in 1911 parliament, WSPU riots in parliament square with 300 women assulted and 3 dying
  • Same as firs conciliation bill
  • WSPU protest seen to be to put pressure on the government
32
Q

What happened to the second Conciliation Bill?

A

• Passed by 255 to 85 in May 1911

BUT Asquith/gov. unwilling to pass it or give it more time, Lloyd George said it wasn’t radical enough so blocks it

33
Q

The 1912 (Third) Conciliation Bill
• How did it come about?
• Who would have it enfranchised?
• How did the WSPU respond to it?

A
  • Another promise from Asquith that a bill would be taken into consideration
  • Same as the first bill
  • Resumed their militancy after this bill failed
34
Q

What happened to the third Conciliation Bill?

A
  • Defeated by 14 votes - 91 pro sufferage MPs abstained, all but three Irish MPs voted against it, 42 changed their vote. Lost the 167 vote support it had has in 1911
  • Asquith has persuaded Irish MPs to vote against in exchange for his support of Irish Home Rule Laws
  • WSPY violence seen to turn people against the bill - proved point of women being undeserving of the vote due to being reactionary and reckless
35
Q

The 1913 Government Franchise Bill
• How did it come about?
• Who would have it enfranchised?
• How did the WSPU respond to it?

A
  • Supported by MPs from all parties
  • Would have given the vote to all working-class men, Lloyd George & other MPs proposed amendment that would have included working-class women
  • WSPU maintained militancy
36
Q

What happened to the Government Franchise Bill?

A

The bill was supported by the HoC but speaker James Lowther said amendment changed the nature of the bill so it couldn’t pass through parliament

37
Q

How did the NUWSS campaign lead to the formation of the militant WSPU?

A
  • Seen to be ineffective and slow in their methodology
  • By 1900, 15 bills had failed in parliament
  • Some women wanted to bring greater public attention to the issue
  • No political party wanted to adopt the policy of female suffrage
38
Q

Who was Emily Wilding Davidson?

A
  • Known to be a particularly militant suffragette - arrested for stone throwing, arson and hiding in the HoC chapel
  • Went on hunger strike 7 times and force fed on 49 occasions
  • Died at the 1913 Derby after being hit by the king’s horse - suggestions that she was trying to pin a WSPU banner on the horse but also hints that she was willing to die for cause due to previous deadly stunts
39
Q

What did Emily Wilding Davidson’s death do for the WSP?

A
  • Her funeral used as a publicity event that helped them gain sympathy
  • Created a martyr for the cause
  • Showed that some suffragettes were able to act independantly and that Emiline/Christabel didn’t have total control over the movement

History A Level - Political Reform (7 decks)

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