Women's Rights Movement

Question 1

What were women’s rights like in the early 20th century? (3)
(Causes)

Answer 1

Not equal to men- expected to be a housewife
Law favored men- men could file for divorce and most could vote
Working class women paid less than men- still expected to cook, clean and care for children

Question 2

Why did women campaign for the vote? (Causes)

Answer 2

If women could vote they would be more fairly represented

Question 3

What year was the NUWSS founded? (Suffragists)

Answer 3

1897

Question 4

What year was the WSPU founded? (Suffragettes)

Answer 4

1903

Question 5

Description of the NUWSS
Who was it led by?
Tactics?
(4)

Answer 5

• Peaceful methods like marches,petitions, propaganda (kind and gentle-society’s expectations)
• Led by Fawcett
• Gained support of many MPs but were always defeated some felt they were too slow
• Pilgrimage from Carlise-> London- 1000s joined march but they didn’t get the vote

Question 6

Description of the WPSU
Who was it led by?
Tactics?
(4)

Answer 6

• Led by the Emmeline Pankhurst
• ‘deeds not words’- Emmeline Pankhurst had had enough of slow protest
• Disrupted political meetings, set fire to buildings, threw stones and chained themselves to buildings
• Darby Horse race- good publicity
• Often arrested- hunger strikes- Cat and Mouse Act 1913
• Tactics drew attention to their campaign- votes for women became a national issue

Question 7

What was the Cat and Mouse Act and when was it introduced?

Answer 7

1913
Government avoided bad publicity by releasing suffragettes who starved themselves to recover and them took them back into jail once they had recovered

Question 8

What happened at the Derby Horse Race in 1913? What impact did this have on the Women’s Rights Movement?

Answer 8

Emily Davison was killed at the Derby Horse Race by trying to pin a banner to one of the horses
1000s attended the funeral- publicity

Question 9

Description of the Women’s Freedom League

When was it formed and why?

Answer 9

Formed in 1907

Broke away from WSPU because they were too extreme in their violent methods

Question 10

When was the suffragette movement suspended? How did this affect the movement?

Answer 10

Helped war effort- more than 7m joined the workforce

Changed attitudes towards women as they were doing ‘male’ jobs

Question 11

Short term impacts of the women’s movement (4)

Answer 11

• women worked in male roles for the first time
• women proved themselves
• Britain’s first female PM in 1979
• women got the vote

Question 12

Lomg term impacts of the women’s movement (4)

Answer 12

• 2017- 32% of MPs are women
• women still earn 30% less than men on avg.
• Inspired protest for Equal Pay Act- passed in 1970
• Abortion Act 1967
• Divorce Act 1969
• Inspired movements for women’s rights today