Women's Rights Flashcards
1
Q
Describe A Vindication of the Rights of Women
A
- written by Mary Wollstonecraft
* in 1792
2
Q
Describe Millicent Fawcett
A
- 1847-1929
- 1868- joined the London Suffrage Committee
- 1870s and 1880s- organised many campaigns
- 1890- elected president of NUWSS
- committed to the use of constitutional means
3
Q
Describe the Ladies of Langham Place
A
- 1859- English Woman’s Journal moved to Langham Place
- promoted change in education, training, employment opportunities, female suffrage, and giving married women control over their property
- mostly wealthy dissenters
- petition in 1886
4
Q
Describe the formation of the NUWSS
A
because of the exclusion of women from the 1867 Reform Act
5
Q
Describe methods used by the Langham Ladies
A
- speakers toured country
- leaflets produced
- pamphlets issued
- regular newspaper printed
- got MPs on board (John Stuart Mill)
- political meetings interrupted with polite questions
6
Q
Describe the opposition to female suffrage
A
- Queen Victoria, Octavia Hill, Florence Nightingale
- the Mother’s Union
- until 1900- Women’s Co-operative Guild (30,000 members)
7
Q
Describe the reasoning behind opposition to female suffrage
A
- ‘different spheres’
- too emotional
- couldn’t fight in war
- more women than men in Britain
- didn’t really want the vote
8
Q
Describe Annie Kenney
A
- working class suffragette
- became one of the leaders of the WSPU
- worked in Oldham textile mill
- joined Independent Labour Party
- went to prison several times
- memories of a militant
9
Q
Describe the beginnings of violent suffragette action
A
- 1905- Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Kenney set out to be arrested- interrupted Liberal party meeting in London, unfurled a banner, demanded the vote and shouted questions at Sir Edward Grey. Arrested and fined- sent to prison after refusal to pay
- 25th October 1912- Emmeline Pankhurst addressing suffragettes at Royal Albert Hall; ‘I incite this meeting to rebellion’
10
Q
Describe suffragette militancy
A
- 1903- Women’s Social Political Union (WSPU) founded
- disrupted meetings of major political figures
- threw stones through windows
- set fire to letterboxes
- chained them selves to railings
- tried to enter parliament when it was in session
- attacked the greens of leading golf courses
11
Q
Describe suffragette publicity
A
- Emily Davison- ran in front of the King’s horse at Derby and was killed
- her funeral turned into a suffragette procession
- spent huge sums of money fighting by-elections by fielding suffrage candidates against main candidates
12
Q
Describe the Bow and Bromley accident
A
- 1912
- George Lansbury (leading Labour MP) resigned and called a by-election solely on women’s suffrage
- Pankhursts flooded the constituency with their supporters
- their heavy-handed and aristocratic alienated most of his supporters
- he lost his seat to an anti-suffrage Conservative candidate
13
Q
Describe the suffragette impact
A
- membership of NUWSS grew from 12,000 to 50,000
- alienated MPs, made it more difficult to get the Suffrage Bill through the Houses
- 1912- looked to Labour
14
Q
Describe the effects of war on female suffrage
A
- political activities suspended to focus on war
- women carried out semi-skilled and skilled work in factories
- by 1945- 7.25 million women employed (many through conscription)
15
Q
Describe women at work
A
- could work at munition factories
- also worked as civil servants, bus conductors, telephonists and policewomen
- wages were half that of men
