Granting the Right to Vote to Women in Britain
As Britain entered the war in August in 1914, as a display of
patriotism, Emmaline Pankhurst instructed suffragettes to stop their
campaign and violence and support in every way the government.
World war one gave woman the opportunity to show a male dominated
society that they do more than just raising children and keeping at
During world war one, women kept soldiers equipped and kept the
country moving while the men were fighting.
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They worked with
TNT which was a deadly chemical, that turned their skin yellow and
they were nick named "Canary girl". In 1916 the first death was
reported. There was always a fear of explosions and even though there
were many precautions e.g.: no matches, no jewellery, hair tied back,
etc. There were still accidents. The most notorious was at
Silverstone, East London in 1917 where a number of women were killed
in an explosion.
Women also joined the women's Auxiliary Army Corps (WAACS) formed in
the 1916, they mainly worked as drivers, messengers, typists,
telephonist and storekeepers.
Upper class women formed the voluntary aided attachments (VAD), formed
in 1909 but expanded considerably over the war. The nurses and doctors
worked at the front line, helping wounded soldiers. These women showed
that they were equal as the men as they were at the front line with
all the danger aiding them.
Working class women already worked before the war but their roles
changed over the war. They worked as porters, at railway stations,
ticket collectors, bus drivers, street sweepers and as fire fighters.
Women also worked on farms and formed the Women's Land Army. As
Britain is an island, during the war imports and exports stopped and
it had to self-sufficient.
Before 1914 with the exception of nursing all jobs were for males
only. In December 1917 the "London Gazette" surveyed 444,000 women,