I was privileged recently to see an advance viewing of the upcoming film ‘Suffragette’, starring Carey Mulligan as Maud Watts. I would warmly recommend it and you can read my review of ‘Suffragette’ exclusively on the Vote 100 blog. Some of the scenes were filmed on location in Parliament. The House of Commons gave special … More ‘Suffragette’ film: women and Parliamentary committees
Edit July 2014: great news that the Church of England has finally backed women bishops. Maude Royden would be proud! Below is my blog article on early campaigns for women priests and bishops, originally published in November 2012. Following the decision of the General Synod this week not to allow female bishops in the Church … More Early 20th century campaigns for women priests
On 23 May 2011, UNESCO announced the inscription of twenty archive documents and collections to its UK Memory of the World Register. I’m delighted to say that this included an inscription for Documentary Heritage of the Women’s Suffrage Movement in Britain, a collection of eight items held by The Women’s Library and the Parliamentary Archives. … More UNESCO recognition for women’s suffrage documents
In the UK women were allowed to become MPs in 1918, which was the same year some women got the vote. Curiously, this was not always the case elsewhere. During the debates on women MPs, the hostile Mr Peto MP argued that in New Zealand for twenty-five years women had… been eligible to sit as … More Early women MPs: New Zealand, Australia, Finland
Perhaps surprisingly, a number of MPs who had opposed women’s suffrage came out in favour of women being MPs in 1918. Among the converts were former Prime Minister H H Asquith, who said ‘You have the camel; you ought not to strain at the gnat’, Charles Hobhouse, and Arnold Ward, who asked in Parliament, ‘What … More Parliamentary Sampsons
There was no actual law before 1918 forbidding women to become MPs. But because women couldn’t vote, they didn’t try to stand as candidates either. After (some) women got the vote in February 1918, the decision whether to accept a woman as a candidate in an election was left to the discretion of individual returning officers in … More Nina Boyle’s test case
When the Act allowing women to become MPs was passed, perhaps its most curious aspect was that there was no restriction on age. Women had to be aged at least 30 to vote at this time, but they could stand to be MPs from age 21! There were a number of young women Parliamentary candidates over … More Old enough to be an MP, but too young to vote
Before 1918,women’s suffrage campaigners like Emily Davies were focused on getting the vote rather than making a case for women MPs. A great pioneer in women’s education, Davies had been among the very first women to campaign for the vote back in the 1860s. She was still doing so in 1907 as a constitutional suffragist (she … More The woman MP: a peril to women and the country
Following the success of Herbert Samuel’s resolution, the Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act 1918 was passed to allow women to be MPs. It was a very simple Act that stated: ‘A woman shall not be disqualified by sex or marriage for being elected to or sitting or voting as a Member of the Commons House of … More Brothers-in-law at war
Among the MPs who opposed Herbert Samuel’s resolution to allow women to become MPs in 1918 was this man: This is Admiral of the Fleet Sir Hedworth Meux MP, much better known for his naval career than his Parliamentary career, which is perhaps just as well. His contribution to this Parliamentary Debate includes the following: I … More An opponent of women MPs: Admiral Meux
Parliament and Women in the early 20th century 