Women’s Suffrage
In 1918 Scottish women were allowed to vote in parliamentary elections for the first time. To find out more about how they were enfranchised as a result of a women’s suffrage movement, and to find the answers to frequently asked questions on the subject, see below.
Origins of the women’s suffrage movement
The 1832 Reform Act (Scotland) extended the electorate in Scotland from 4,500 to 65,000, but still excluded the majority of men and all women from the vote. During the second half of the nineteenth century the idea of universal suffrage, including women, was at least discussed in political and social movements, such as Owenite socialism, chartism and anti-slavery associations. In the 1860s a women’s movement in Scotland could be said to have begun, whose impetus came largely from associations and individuals in Edinburgh, and which was linked to agitation to allow women into universities, especially medical schools. The 1884 Reform Act still excluded women from voting in parliamentary elections, but by this time women were voting in school board elections and being elected to school boards.
The struggle intensifies
From 1905 onwards increasingly militant acts indicated a loss of patience in certain sections of the movement with the process of debate and legal challenge. Disruption of political meetings and public lectures, demonstrations, and attempts to enter the House of Commons coincided with increasing police brutality during the arrest of suffragettes and forcible feeding of suffragette prisoners on hunger strike. From 1912 protest escalated with suffragettes smashing shop windows; attempting arson at high-profile buildings, such as railway stations, sports grounds, and racecourses; and disrupting the mail by pouring corrosive liquids into post boxes. Militant protest was suspended in 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War. The 1918 Electoral Reform Act enfranchised most women over 30 years of age, and women were allowed to stand for parliament for the first time.
Contributors: Alison Rosie, David Brown (both National Archives of Scotland, 2002), Robin Urquhart (SCAN, 2002).
Related Knowledge Base entries
Bibliography
Leah Leneman, A Guid cause: the women’s suffrage movement in Scotland revised edition (Mercat Press, 1995)
Elspeth King, The Hidden History of Glasgow Women (Mainstream, 1993).
Where will I find information about suffragette activity in my part of Scotland for a school project?
Firstly, read Leah Leneman, A Guid cause: the women’s suffrage movement in Scotland (Mercat Press, 1991) and Elspeth King, The Hidden History of Glasgow Women (Mainstream, 1993). Secondly, get hold of a copy of Glasgow City Archive’s resource pack, Scottish Women and the Vote. There are copies for reference at Glasgow City Archives, the Mitchell Library in Glasgow, and the National Library of Scotland, and your school libraries and resources staff may have a copy. Then try searching local newspapers in your local library or online through the British Newspaper Archive website (available free of charge in the National Library of Scotland or with a subscription elsewhere) <https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/> [accessed 28 April 2024]. If you do not find anything local, ask your local archives servce if they hold any records relating to suffragettes. If they do hold records, you should be prepared to spend some time visiting the archives service.
What records will there be on a specific suffragette?
Firstly check Leah Leneman, A Guid cause: the women’s suffrage movement in Scotland (Mercat Press, 1991) and Elspeth King, The Hidden History of Glasgow Women (Mainstream, 1993). These may mention the individual you are researching and suggest specific sources.
Next try local sources. Many newspapers are now available through the British Newspaper Archive website (available free of charge in the National Library of Scotland or with a subscription elsewhere) <https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/> [accessed 28 April 2024]. The local studies library for each area usually holds back-copies of local newspapers, and the library staff may be able to advise on other local history books about the area concerned, which contain references to local suffragettes.
If the action of the suffragette concerned led to a court case, ascertain from the newspaper account which court was involved. The records of sheriff courts, High Court of Justiciary and Advocate’s Department records are held in the National Records of Scotland, but you need to come armed with as much information as possible, such as the covering dates of the trial, and you may need to make at least two separate visits to order material and then (after at least two days’ notice) to carry out the research.
Other material relating to suffragette cases held by the National Records of Scotland exist in the Home & Health Department records and in private family papers. You might find it useful to look at the guide to record sources on suffragettes: Investigating Suffragettes in the National Archives, from the National Records of Scotland. This will give you a flavour of the kind of information you might find in these records. If your local archive office holds police records, these may include photographs of suffragettes arrested by the police.
A selection of historical sources is published by Glasgow City Archives in their resource pack: Scottish Women and the Vote, available from Glasgow City Archives, Mitchell Library, North Street, Glasgow G3 7DN. The records of the Glasgow & West of Scotland Association for Women’s Suffrage are held by the Rare Books & Manuscripts Department, the Mitchell Library, Glasgow (reference 891036. The whereabouts of the records of other suffragette associations can be found in Ian MacDougall, Labour Records in Scotland (Scottish Labour History Society, 1978).