Hello, thanks for joining me for another history lesson from Oak Academy.

My name is Mrs. Knox and I'm here to help guide you through everything that you'll need today to be successful with your learning.

So let's get started with our lesson today.

Today's lesson is part of the unit of work on the women's suffrage movement.

We've been asking the question, why did it take so long for women to get the right to vote in Britain? By the end of our lesson today, you'll be able to explain the reasons why.

Now, there are some useful terms that we'll use in our lesson today.

Let's have a look at them now.

The first word we'll come across is the word suffrage, meaning the right to vote.

We'll also use the phrase long-term which is something occurring over a long period of time.

We'll use the phrase short-term, something occurring over a short period of time.

We'll also use the phrase stereotypes, which is the expectation people have of a particular type of person.

And finally, we'll use the word sexism, which is prejudice or discrimination, often against women, on the basis of sex.

Now, our lesson today will be in four parts.

And we're going to start now with part one of our lesson which will focus on sexist attitudes to women.

The women's suffrage campaign had started in the 1860s, but it took over 60 years for women to achieve equal voting rights with men in Britain.

This is despite the fact that women were increasingly involved in political campaigns and local politics by the start of the 20th century.

Historians believe that the reason why it took so long for women to get the right to vote is because of a variety of long-term factors, that's underlying reasons, and short-term factors, that's immediate issues.

A good explanation for why women took so long to get the vote will look at both long- and short-term factors.

Let's have a check of your understanding.

A good explanation for women getting the vote in Britain looks at which factors? Is it A, long-term, B, short-term, or C, long-term and short-term term.

Press pause now, and when you've got your answer, press play.

That's right, a good explanation for women getting the right to vote in Britain must look at the long-term as well as the short-term factors.

Some historians argue that prevailing sexism was the long-term reason why the campaign took so long.

Some men, such as the members of parliament, John Stuart Mill and Henry Fawcett, did believe in female suffrage.

However, Victorian prejudices and stereotypes prevented the idea of votes for women being taken seriously.

The Victorian view was that men and women had different purposes in life.

Women were natural homemakers, wives, and mothers, whereas men were the protectors, the wage earners, and the decision makers.

It was feared that female suffrage would take women away from their traditional role and threaten family life.

And this can be seen in the anti-suffrage cartoon on your screen, which shows a woman who has neglected her duties as a wife and mother.

Let's quickly check your understanding.

I'd like you to write the missing key word.

Prevailing Victorian stereotypes made people fearful that female, what, would take women away from their traditional role and threaten family life.

Press pause, and then when you've got your answer, press play.

You should have said the missing word was suffrage.

Prevailing Victorian stereotypes made people fearful that female suffrage would take women away from their traditional role and threaten family life.

It was also claimed that women themselves had no desire to vote, and that in any case, middle and upper class married women could be said to already have representation in parliament through their husbands.

Female suffragists were regarded as untypical Victorian women and accused of being unfeminine and disruptive.

There were even some women who campaigned against votes for women such as Mrs. Humphry Ward who led the Women's National Anti-Suffrage League from 1908.

It is predictable that some women held these views given that the Monarch, Queen Victoria, a role model for women at the time, did not support female suffrage.

Additionally, the Church reinforced the idea that a woman's place was in the home in an effort to uphold traditional family life.

Therefore, in the face of Victorian values, it is unsurprising that the campaign took such a long time.

Sexism was therefore a long-term underlying factor that prevented women from obtaining the vote as it had existed for hundreds of years and was strictly enforced by Victorian ideals and leaders.

It's time for another check of your understanding.

I'd like you to answer this true or false question, only men opposed female suffrage.

Is that true or false? Press pause now, and when you're ready for the answer, press play.

You should have said the answer is false.

Why is the answer false? Is it because A, some women as well as men believed that votes for women would harm family life? Or B, some women as well as men believed that votes for women would reduce men's rights? Press pause now, and when you're ready for the answer, press play.

You should have said that the correct answer was A.

The reason why some women, as well as men, oppose female suffrage is because that some women, as well as men, thought that votes for women would harm family life.

Well done if you got that correct.

Here's another quick question.

Which two statements below are correct? A, female suffrage was opposed by Queen Victoria.

B, female suffrage was opposed by John Stuart Mill MP.

Or C, female suffrage was opposed by Mrs. Humphry Ward.

Press pause and then press play when you're ready to hear the correct answers.

You should have said that female suffrage was opposed by Queen Victoria.

The other correct statement was C, female suffrage was opposed by Mrs. Humphry Ward.

B is incorrect because female suffrage was supported by John Stuart Mill.

Finally, let's put everything you've learned here into practise by answering this question.

I'd like you to explain two ways in which sexism delayed women being granted the right to vote.

To help you with your answer, you might want to think about some of the following ideas.

You might want to consider the long-term factor that led to women taking a long time to get the right to vote.

Also, the influence of Queen Victoria.

The stereotype that a woman's place was in the home.

The role of women involved in anti-suffrage societies.

And the teachings of the Church.

Press pause now whilst you write your answer, and when you've completed it, press play.

Welcome back.

I hope you got on well with your answer.

Let's have a look at what you might have said.

You could have said that a long-term factor that delayed women being granted the right to vote was sexism.

One reason for this was that the Victorians believed that there were separate roles for men and women.

The stereotype was that women belonged in the home, looking after the children and keeping the house whilst the man went to work to provide for his family.

It was feared that female suffrage would destroy traditional family life and therefore women were denied the vote based on these sexist views.

You might also have said that another reason was that some women themselves were against female suffrage.

For example, anti-suffrage campaigners like Mrs. Humphry Ward argued that middle and upper class women already had representation in parliament through their husbands.

Furthermore, some women looked up to Queen Victoria as a role model and followed the teachings of the Church.

Both were against female suffrage as they did not want traditional gender roles disrupted.

These traditional rules can be seen as sexist, therefore showing that sexism was a long-term factor that prevented women from voting.

Let's move on now to the second part of our lesson today.

In this section, we'll focus on opposition from the Liberal government.

Another reason why it took so long for women to get the right to vote was due to opposition from the Liberal government.

The Prime Minister, Herbert Asquith, was against votes for women, and his influence in parliament made it less likely that the suffrage campaigners would be successful in persuading MPs to change the law.

Asquith did not support the idea of female equality with men, and believed in the stereotype that the aggressive world of politics was no place for a woman.

His views would be seen as examples of sexism by today's standards.

Asquith was prime minister from 1908 until 1916, right at the height of the campaign for female suffrage.

Therefore, Asquith's sexist views were a short-term factor that prevented women from gaining the vote.

From a political point of view, Asquith also feared the consequences of allowing women to vote.

He believed that many women would vote for the opposing party, the Conservatives, or the newly created Labour Party which would damage the Liberal party's position in Britain.

Asquith's influence can be seen in the failure of the 1910 Conciliation Bill, which would've given the vote to female property owners only.

From a political point of view, Asquith also feared the consequences of allowing women to vote.

He believed that many women would vote for the opposing party, the Conservatives, or the newly created Labour Party, which would damage the Liberal party's position in Britain.

Asquith's influence can be seen in the failure of the 1910 Conciliation Bill, which would've given the vote to female property owners only.

Asquith refused to allow it enough time in parliament to become law, despite it receiving considerable support.

And as a result, the attitudes and the actions of the Liberal government must have played an important part in the short-term delaying of female suffrage.

All right, let's have a check of your understanding now.

Which political parties did Prime Minister Asquith believe would benefit from female suffrage? Was it A, the Conservatives and Labuor, B, the Liberals and the Conservatives, or C, the Liberals and Labour? Press pause now, and then when you finish your answer, press play.

Yes, you should have said that Asquith feared that female suffrage would help the Conservatives and Labour.

Here's another check of your understanding.

I'd like you to discuss this question with a partner.

In what ways was Asquith's opposition to female suffrage typical of the view of many people at a time? Press pause whilst you have your discussion.

And when you're finished, press play.

Welcome back.

Hopefully, you had an interesting discussion.

Here are some of the things you might have covered.

Stereotypes meant that many people supported the belief that politics was too aggressive for women to be involved in.

He might also have said the teachings of the Church promoted family values and therefore many people like Asquith believed in the separate roles of men and women.

You might also have said that sexism at the time prevented some people from accepting ideas about equality.

Finally, let's put everything into practise now.

I'd like you to complete the sentences by matching the sentence starters on the left-hand side to the correct supporting evidence on the right.

Press pause, and when you've finished, press play.

Okay, let's see how you got on.

You should have said that the 1910 Conciliation Bill would have given the vote to female property owners.

However, prime Minister Herbert Asquith was against giving votes to women.

The Liberal government feared women would vote for other parties and they would lose power.

And despite the bill receiving support, Asquith refused to give the bill enough time in parliament to become the law.

It's time to move on now to the third part of our lesson today.

In this section, we'll focus on the split in the suffrage movement.

A further short-term factor, which delayed female suffrage, was divisions within the women's suffrage movement.

These divisions would've ultimately slowed the campaign's progress as campaigners were concentrating on solving them rather than campaigning.

The movement was divided over two key issues, whether their goal was votes for all women or simply votes for women on equal terms with men, and what type of tactics to use.

For example, the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies, the NUWSS led by Millicent Fawcett, believed that peaceful persuasion was the best tactic.

However, some women, like Emmeline Pankhurst, grew impatient with the lack of progress and decided to adopt radical and violent tactics.

As a result, Pankhurst created the Women's Social and Political Union, the WSPU, in 1903.

Their tactics included publicity stunts, disrupting public life, destroying property, and going on hunger strike.

Some historians believe that these tactics actually backfired because if the government had granted female suffrage, it might have looked like they were willing to give in to violence, which may have encouraged other campaigns to use violence too.

Subsequently, some historians argue that in the short-term, the suffragettes' actions delayed female suffrage.

Furthermore, the suffragettes' use of violence also lost public support.

For instance, in 1913, the death of Emily Davison, following a publicity stunt in which she threw herself in front of King George V's horse at the Epsom Derby, shocked the public.

Although there was sympathy for Davison, many people felt as if the campaign for female suffrage had gone too far.

Within the WSPU, there were also disagreements about how radical their tactics should be.

Therefore, some historians argue that suffragette tactics alienated public support for the campaign in the short-term.

Nevertheless, historians acknowledge the role that the suffragettes played in persuading the government to act through generating significant publicity and for showing incredible termination.

Time now to check your understanding.

Which of these women led the NUWSS? Was it A, Mrs. Humphry Ward, B, Emmeline Pankhurst, or C, Millicent Fawcett? Press pause, then when you've got your answer, press play.

Well done if you said that the correct answer was C.

Millicent Fawcett was the leader of the NUWSS.

Here's another quick check of your understanding.

Which of these women led the WSPU? Was it A, Mrs. Humphry Ward, B, Emmeline Pankhurst, or C, Millicent Fawcett? Press pause now and then press play when you are ready.

That's right, you should have said that the correct answer was B.

The leader of the WSPU was Emmeline Pankhurst.

Here's another final check of understanding question.

Why do some historians think that the suffragettes' tactics delayed women getting the right to vote? For this question, I'd like you to discuss some ideas with a partner, so press pause now, and when you've had your discussion, press play.

Welcome back.

Here are some of the things you might have discussed.

Members of the public were shocked by the death of Emily Davison and became frustrated with their tactics which disrupted everyday life.

Also, the government was concerned that giving women the vote after suffragette violence would encourage others to use violence to get results.

Finally, you might have mentioned that even within the WSPU, there were disagreements about how much violence should be used.

Lastly, let's put everything we've learned here into practise.

I'd like you to read Jacob's point of view.

I'd like you then to come up with two reasons to disagree with his view.

Let's read Jacob's view.

He says The WSPU hurt women's chances of getting the right to vote as government attitudes hardened.

Press pause now whilst you think of your answer, and then press play when you're ready.

Welcome back.

Here are some of the things you might have said in order to disagree with Jacob's view.

You might have said that although it is true that the actions of the WSPU may have delayed the decision to give women the vote, their determination may still have played a part in convincing the government.

Secondly, you might have said that suffragist campaigning was largely ignored for decades, whereas the radical suffragette actions quickly gained more publicity.

Time now to move on to the final section of the lesson today.

Here, we'll focus on changing attitudes towards female suffrage.

Despite the short-term factors that delayed female suffrage, World War I acted as a turning point in attitudes towards female suffrage.

In some respects, World War I did delay female suffrage as the government had to focus on other important and pressing matters.

However, ultimately, the actions of women during the war proved their value to their country and government and challenged sexist stereotypes.

For example, the suffragettes paused their campaign, and the suffragettes gave up their violent tactics in order to support the war effort.

Moreover, women across Britain filled important job roles such as as firefighters and even as gas workers, whilst the men were away fighting.

These actions helped to show that women were just as capable as men.

Here's a quick check of your understanding.

I'd like you just to change two words to make this statement correct.

The suffragists continued their campaign and the suffragettes gave up their peaceful tactics in order to support the war effort.

Which two words can you change to make the statement correct? Press pause now, and when you're ready, press play.

Welcome back.

You should have said the suffragists paused their campaign, and the suffragettes gave up their violent tactics in order to support the war effort.

Another important factor in winning the campaign was that David Lloyd George had replaced Asquith as prime minister in 1916.

Importantly, Lloyd George supported female suffrage, and combined with the dedication of women during World War I, the government realised that it was now time to grant women the vote.

Here, you can see female munitions workers warmly welcoming the new Prime minister Lloyd George.

The government passed the representation of the People Act in 1918, which gave the vote to married women over 30.

This was later extended in 1928 to include all women.

Equal voting rights with men had taken over 60 years of campaigning, but was finally achieved with the passing of this law.

Let's check your understanding again.

Which Prime Minister played an important role in securing female suffrage? Was it A, Herbert Asquith, B, David Lloyd George, or C, Winston Churchill? Press pause now, and when you got your answer, press play.

Well done if you said that the correct answer was David Lloyd George.

Here's another check for your understanding.

I'd like you to study the reasons why female suffrage in Britain took so long.

Some of these are short-term reasons, and some of them are long-term reasons.

You need to complete the right-hand side of the table to say whether each of these reasons are short-term or long-term.

Press pause now, and when you've finished your answer, press play.

Welcome back.

Let's see how you got on.

For the first example, You should have said that this is a short-term factor.

In the short-term, suffragette violence prevented the government from granting female suffrage.

The second reason is another short-term factor.

In the short-term, Asquith blocked the Conciliation Bill from becoming law.

The third factor is a long-term factor.

You should have said that in the long-term, sexism in society meant that it was widely believed that women were unsuited to voting.

For the fourth one, you should have said that this is another long-term factor.

In the long-term, the church and the monarch were against female suffrage.

And in the final one, you should have said this is another short-term factor.

In the short-term, divisions emerged within the suffrage movement, particularly after the creation of the WSPU.

Finally today, Let's put everything now into practise by answering this question.

I'd like you to explain why it took so long for women to get the right to vote in Britain.

Finally today, let's have a go at this question.

I'd like you to explain why it took so long for women to get the right to vote in Britain.

In your answer, try to mention long- as well as short-term reasons.

You should aim for two to three paragraphs.

You might want to have a look at your answers from the previous task to help you in writing your answer.

Press pause now, and when you've finished, press play.

Welcome back.

Your answer might have looked something like this.

A long-term reason why it took so long for women to get the right to vote in Britain is because of sexism within society.

There were stereotypes around the roles of men and women, with men being viewed as the decision-makers, and women as the homemakers.

The Church and Queen Victoria reinforced the belief that the right to vote was unnecessary for women, and would challenge traditional family life.

These stereotypes were only challenged during World War I, which was a turning point in attitudes towards female suffrage.

Your answer may also have included the following.

However, there were also short-term reasons why it took so long for women to get the right to vote.

By 1910, many politicians were convinced that women should have the right to vote.

However, the Conciliation Bill was blocked by the Liberal Prime Minister Herbert Asquith, who feared female voters would vote for the Conservative or Labour Party.

It was only when a pro female suffrage prime minister, David Lloyd George, came to power in 1916, that women were finally granted the vote two years later; showing the importance of political support for the campaign.

A final part that you might have included in your answer might look something like this.

Another short-term reason why it took so long was the creation of the WSPU in 1903 which split the campaign into those who used violent tactics and those like the NUWSS who used peaceful methods.

The suffragettes' tactics made it difficult for the government to grant female suffrage as it would seem like they were giving into violence.

As a result, some historians argue that suffragette tactics alienated public support in the short-term.

Therefore, a combination of short-term and long-term factors meant that it took over 60 years for women to gain equal voting rights to men.

Finally, today, let's summarise everything that we've learned.

Sexist attitudes and stereotypes kept women out of politics In Britain.

Opposition from the Liberal government prevented the Conciliation Bill from granting female suffrage before World War I.

The radical and the violent tactics of the WSPU divided the women's suffrage movement, but World War I was a turning point as women proved their value to society and challenge stereotypes.

Both long-term and short-term factors prevented women getting the right to vote sooner.

Thanks for all of your work in today's lesson.

I hope that you feel confident that you have met your learning objective for today.

I look forward to you joining me in a future history lesson.