What Difference did the War Make? World War One and Votes for Women

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

In February 1918 the Representation of the People Act gave the parliamentary vote to (some) British women for the first time. A further change in the law ensured that as well as voting, women were able to stand as candidates at the next general election in December 1918. As we move towards the centenary of these two events, public interest in their origins is growing. Our project will capitalise on this interest through disseminating those findings from two previous AHRB projects (Angela Smith's 'Suffrage Discourse during World War One' 2003) and (Cowman's 'Paid Organisers in the Women's Social and Political Union', 2004) that relate to the work of suffrage organisations during the First World War leading up to the Representation of the People Act 1918 and the first election involving women candidates. Working in partnership with VOTE100, the official parliamentary project to mark these anniversaries, we will organise a series of carefully planned events. Through three workshops/panel discussions with invited speakers and public audiences we will consider the impact of the war on suffrage campaigns, the historical and contemporary gendering of politics and the broader social implications of this. A significant display at Westminster marking the centenaries followed by a contribution towards a major exhibition will enhance the impact and reach of our previous research. The outcomes of the project will be further disseminated through joint pamphlet and booklet publications authored by the project team and stakeholders.