When today we watch TV footage with scenes of violence on the streets of European cities, we somehow forget that at the beginning of the 20th century everything was the same in Britain. It can be said that it was simply overwhelmed by extremism. One after another, mailboxes flashed in houses, windows were broken in offices and houses, the buildings themselves were also set on fire, although mostly empty. But if now all this is done by migrants, then at that time the "colored" knew their place and did nothing of the kind. All this was done not by some bandit "outlaw" (people outside the law) with baseball bats, but quite law-abiding British ladies, who thus demanded to give them the right to vote in elections!
Demonstration of suffragettes in London in 1907
Well, for the first time, women announced their desire to get the suffrage back in 1792. Then Mary Wollstonecraft published her article, entitled "In Defense of Women's Rights," where she argued the right of women to equal pay for work and the right to education. The reason for her speech was the patriarchal legislation of European states of that time, which provided absolutely no rights for married women, who, according to the law, became a de facto appendage to their husband. So it is not surprising that by 1890, among the same Englishwomen, there were quite enough women who were in a very radical way, who needed to equalize their rights with men.
In the same year in the United States, radicals formed the American National Association of Women Fighting for Voting Rights. And I must say that the “wind of change” was already felt by many at that time. Thus, in 1893, women were granted suffrage in New Zealand, and three years later, the same was carried out in the United States, although only in states such as Colorado, Idaho, Utah and Wyoming. In conservative England, things stalled, but there, too, the National Union of Women's Voting Rights was organized in 1897.
It is interesting that among the opponents of the women's movement for equality with men were not only men themselves, which would be understandable, but also women, including those who saw in emancipation the collapse of their usual way of life. It was believed that a woman is more stupid than a man, that politics, for example, cannot be a worthy woman's affair: that she can corrupt a woman, and besides, if women engage in her, this will ruin all the chivalrous feelings inherent in them. In addition, these same male politicians feared that gender equality in public life would lead to a decline in the birth rate and the British Empire not to receive additional soldiers for the army! And this was very relevant, because the Boer War had just ended, in which the male population of England suffered significant losses, and the number of women began to significantly outnumber men. But, for the suffragettes (from the English word suffrage - "suffrage"), all these arguments did not work at all!
Suffragettes in London. Linocut from a magazine of the early twentieth century.
In order to draw public attention to the problem of equality between women and men, they organized marches, during which they did not only carry posters and slogans, but also … heartily beat the British policemen with their umbrellas. The slogan was put forward: "If politicians do not hear us, a blow must be struck at what these gentlemen especially value."Therefore, the ladies declared a merciless war on the golf courses, smashing the glass of government offices and destroying … wine cellars.
The most ferocious hatred among the suffragettes was caused by Sir Winston Churchill himself, since he had the imprudence to offend one of them, after she called him a drunken and soulless bumpkin. "I'll sober up tomorrow," Churchill replied, "but your legs were as crooked, so they will remain so." For the honor of the insulted lady, one man decided to stand up, sympathizing with the movement of suffragists, who attacked Churchill with a whip in his hands.
Then, at the train station in Bristol, Churchill met a picket of suffragettes, and one of them, Theresa Garnett, even hit him with the flagpole and loudly exclaimed: "Filthy brute, an English woman deserves respect!" After that, poor Churchill was pelted with stones and lumps of coal. Yes, there was such a page in his stormy biography when, getting out of his car at the House of Commons, he had to look around so as not to get a stone on the head from some completely respectable-looking Miss or Mrs! And although he was never a coward, he had to get himself bodyguards, as the police found out that the suffragettes had decided to kidnap his child. It is interesting that most of all the emancipated ladies - members of the British National Union were offended by the fact that they - the owners of the estates - have gardeners and butlers under their control, and they can vote in elections, while they are their employers, with all their high position in society is deprived of such a right!
In 1903, the Women's Social and Political Union was founded by Emeline Pankhurst. Her two daughters played an active role in it: Christabel and Sylvia. It was the members of this society that received the nickname suffragettes, but they began their activities in England quite peacefully.
The first and truly grandiose scandal in which they participated happened in 1905, when Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Keeney, pushing the guards, broke into the Parliament building and asked two famous liberals - Winston Churchill and Edward Gray - why they did not want to provide English women have the right to vote ?! They were surprised, looked at each other, but did not answer them. Then both suffragettes took out and unfurled a poster with the inscription: "Women have the right to vote!" and began to shout various threats to Churchill and Gray. British history has never known such a shame! After all, England has always been famous for its tolerant attitude towards opponents, it has always been tolerant of other people's opinions, especially if it was expressed by a lady, and then suddenly something like that …
Both girls were arrested for hooliganism, assaulting police officers, and sent to jail. Now the suffragettes had their heroines, who suffered for a "just cause", "unjustified violence" was committed against their representatives, so they received the moral right to respond "blow for blow".
Suffragettes trash Oxford Street.
And they responded by burning churches - after all, the Anglican Church condemned them; literally ransacked and plundered Oxford Street, knocking out all the windows and doors on it; they dismantled the pavements so that it became impossible to drive through them and interfered with the work of the repair crews, and then completely chained themselves to the fence of Buckingham Palace, since the royal family also had the imprudence to speak out against the granting of women the right to vote.
The arrest of a suffragette. 1913.
And it should be noted the rare ingenuity that English women showed in their struggle for suffrage: for example, they sailed in boats on the Thames and shouted insults at the government and members of parliament. Many women refused to pay taxes, which seemed unthinkable for law-abiding England. Politicians going to work were attacked and homemade bombs were thrown at their homes. Throughout the first decade of the 20th century, the suffragette movement was in the center of attention of the scandalous British chronicle. And then the movement had its own martyr!
On June 4, 1913, 32-year-old suffragette Emily Wilding Davison climbed over a barrier at the popular England races in Epsom and threw herself under a racing horse. At the same time, she received very serious injuries, from which she died four days later.
Death of Emily Wilding Davidson in a derby on June 4, 1913.
In the pocket of her coat they found the purple-green-white flag of the suffragettes. Thus, the motive for her action was evident! Although, in general, he brought almost more harm than good, since after that many men in England asked the question: “If a highly educated and educated woman does such things, then what can an uncultured and uneducated woman do? And how can such people be given the right to vote?"
Unique photo: Emily Wilding Davidson under the hooves of a horse, but no one has figured it out yet!
It is more than possible that the violence perpetrated by the suffragettes would have taken on even greater proportions, but here, one might even say "fortunately", the First World War began. The members of the Women's Union have now devoted all their energy to helping their country. When England began to lack labor, it was Pankhurst who secured from the government for women the right to work in military factories.
Millions of young English women cut off their long skirts and stood at the machines to produce the ammunition the army needed. Others came as cowgirls to the farms and in rubber boots, and with pitchforks in their hands began to do the dirty and hard work of men. The importance of their contribution to Britain's victory cannot be overemphasized. By the way, women in France in those years also worked hard, but they managed to get the right to vote only after the Second World War ended!
This is how they acted: they could show a leg in an elegant stocking beyond all decency, they could smoke men's cigars. Equality - so equality, what did you think? A still from the popular comedy film Big Races. Starring the charming Natalie Wood.
Any business, as you know, is crowned with its result. So the suffragette movement in England was crowned with victory in 1918, when the British Parliament gave women voting rights, however, not younger than 30 years old, and only if they had an education and a certain position in society, that is, the way for women "without specific occupations" to the ballot boxes were nevertheless blocked.
And "Magnificent Leslie" eventually married her … Still from the movie "Big Races".
Already in 1919, Nancy Astor became the first British woman to be elected to Parliament, and in 1928 the electoral qualification for the "weak half of humanity" was lowered to 21 - that is, equal to the male! In New Zealand, the first woman to the legislature was elected in 1933. On the Continent (as the British call Europe), Finland became the first country to give women voting rights, and she did it in 1906, while still in the Russian Empire!
Do you think the suffragette movement is a thing of the past? No matter how it is! Women received the right to vote, yes. But equality with men in everything is their new slogan! A few years ago, it was very hot in Canada in the summer. And Canadian feminists have demanded the right to ride the subway with a naked torso. If it is possible for men in the heat, then why are we women worse than them? It is not necessary that we will do this, but we need the right - they asserted and achieved their goal!
Well, and these ladies in such a strange way oppose the revival of fascism!
In Germany, women also received voting rights in 1918, Spanish women - in 1932, French, Italian and Japanese women - in 1945 … But in a number of other countries this process lasted for decades. Swiss women received voting rights only in 1971, in Jordan - in 1974, well, but in countries such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, they do not have it to this day! Well, as for Christabel Pankhurst - perhaps the most famous suffragist of her time, by the decision of the British government in 1936 she was awarded the Order of the British Empire!
Modern feminists often protest like this!
