The Women’s Vote

Question 1

What was some arguments for the women’s vote?

Answer 1

• They will be able to change inequalities in their life (pay, marriage, and divorce law)
• If women were paid more, few of them will be prostitutes
• From 1907 all female rates payers could vote in local elections, which proved they were capable of understanding politics
• Role of women were changing (teachers, doctor, places at universities) they no longer need us to stay at home and bring up a family
• Women, more active in public affairs, so they should have more equality with men
• Many women owned property and paid more rates than men. It’s unreasonable that an illiterate farmer labourer could vote, but rich well educated woman could not.
• Improve men sexual behaviour and moral standards like premarital sex, prostitution, et cetera would disappear if women and men were equal because men would be forced to follow higher more standards
• Britain couldn’t be described as a true democracy, while over half of the population couldn’t vote

Question 2

What are some arguments against the women’s vote?

Answer 2

• The existing system had made Britain the most powerful country in the world, why change it?
• most women don’t want the vote, it’s the minority campaigning
• Earn your right to vote by your willingness to fight for your country. This ruled out women.
• If women could vote, they would not want the country to fight wars therefore, Britain would decline as the world power
• Only criminals, and the satisfied insane were not allowed to vote
• Women are intellectually inferior because their brains weigh less than men’s
• Destroy family life
• Women would have the same views as their husbands so they didn’t need to vote
• Women were the weak sex, so they couldn’t cope with the strain of politics, as they are too emotional to make sensible decisions
• Best suited to the local economy like school boards or charity work as an extension of their domestic role

Question 3

What was the representation of the people act and when was it?

Answer 3

1918 February. This gave the vote to women over the age of 30 (and all men over the age of 21)

Question 4

Who were the suffragists?

Answer 4

-Formed in 1897
- The NUWSS (National union of women’s suffrage societies) - run by Millicent fawcett
- Used peaceful protests
- They use logical arguments, like if women had to pay tax like men, have responsible jobs and obey laws made by parliament, then they should have the right to vote
- They worked with Asquith (future PM)
- They wrote letters to MPs
- And they had rallies and marches
- they didn’t get the vote because Asquith changed his mind and abandoned women’s suffrage

Question 5

Who were the suffragettes?

Answer 5

• Formed 1903
• WSPU (women’s social and political union) led by emmeline Pankhurst
• They used violence and aggression
• They burned down churches
• Blew up David Lloyd George’s house
• Vandalised Oxford Street
• Chained themselves to Buckingham Palace
• Refused to pay tax
• Attacked politicians and fire bombed their houses
• They got imprisoned and had hunger strikes
• They didn’t get the vote because they had to stop due to the outbreak World War I

Question 6

What was the cat and mouse act?

Answer 6

Suffragettes went on a hunger strike when they were imprisoned to protest against the gentle treatment of women in prisons, the government were concerned they would die martyrs, so they force fed them
- The cat and mouse act said that the prison shouldn’t force feed them and let them get weak. Then let them out so that there were too weak to protest.