8 THINGS YOU (PROBABLY) DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THE SUFFRAGETTES

Passionate about the fight for women’s rights, in 1903, Emmeline Pankhurst founded the WSPU – their motto ‘Deeds not Words’ signalling a new approach. Their militant tactics, such as heckling at political meetings, would earn them the nickname ‘suffragettes’, which they were only too happy to embrace.

In the years that followed, they took radical steps to force a change in the laws in Britain for women. But how much do we really know about the suffragettes? And why did some campaigners decide to boycott the 1911 census?

1 WOMEN DID NOT GET THE VOTE ON THE SAME TERMS AS MEN IN 1918

Many people assume that, as a direct result of women’s war work during World War I, they were given the vote on equal terms to men. However, this was not the case.

The Representation of the People Act of 1918 was primarily needed to resolve the issue of soldiers returning from service in