The argument over whether World War I was the primary reason women gained the right to vote in 1918 is undeniably complex and has caused a great divide among historians. This claim is widely supported by traditionalist historians such as Marwick, Phillips, and Bruley, who believe that the right to vote was granted to women in gratitude for their efforts during the war and that it "removed the principal obstacle to reform”. 1], while Steinbach – a revisionist historian finds this analysis far too simplistic and adopts a contradictory point of view by asserting that although the war put an end to the activism which, just before the war, turned public opinion against women However, for the right to vote, activism and the voting rights movement were much greater. more effective than war in influencing people's mentalities. His argument is also supported by Pugh and Bartley. Although this essay acknowledges the importance of the idea that World War I was important to women gaining the right to vote, it intends to argue that Steinbach's analysis is best supported by existing evidence and , as such, the most accurate view. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay It can be seen that World War I was one of the main reasons why women gained the right to vote in 1918 due to the widespread change in attitudes it triggered. In 1914, when the First World War broke out, men were supposed to fight. This left a large gap in the workforce and allowed women to obtain employment across a range of industries; from shell making to secretarial jobs. In 1915, 2.5 million women were involved in war work and by 1918, 7 million had volunteered. The patriotic response of the suffragette movement eliminated the argument that women had not fought for their country and also encouraged the public to recognize women for their hard work. This led to recognition of the “magnificent contribution” that “brought down the last vestiges of Asquith’s personal opposition”[2]. This is also supported by Marwick who argues that "vigorous male hostility"[3] was reduced due to changing attitudes as the war reduced prejudice against women and greatly improved the status of women in society. Furthermore, most traditionalist historians argue that fewer men forced women into employment that allowed them to prove their strength and abilities, and thus, as Gifford Lewis argues, "the greatest factor in granting the right to vote to women in power. end of the war” was the “highly skilled and dangerous work carried out by women during the war”[4] which allowed them to prove themselves “worthy of the vote”[5]. Although this is a very reasonable and traditional view, this view can be considered invalid as the majority of women who participated in the war effort were in their twenties. However, the right to vote was given to women over 30 years old. the workers were not rewarded by the vote. Pugh further argues that traditionalist views are entirely invalid and that the women's war effort, particularly "women's voluntary work...had more weight with the press than with politicians".[6] Furthermore, Bartley argues that World War IWorld War II was only a "pretext to retract and save face"[7], as MPs realized that a change in favor of women's right to vote was inevitable. This therefore suggests that it is highly likely that the war effort was not as effective in changing attitudes as previously believed and that traditionalist feminist arguments that support women's hard work during the war are considered as outdated, which makes Marwick's approach "pioneering and optimistic". [8] less valid interpretation. Conversely, it can be argued that the pre-war suffragist movement was much more effective in paving the way for women to vote, and in fact it can be argued that the war hindered and delayed obtaining the right to vote. vote. The conciliation bills of 1910 and 1913 were close to winning the women's vote. It can be argued that the Liberals were about to introduce reforms as before the declaration of war and the cabinet was becoming more pro-suffrage. Holton argues that there is clear evidence from the Liberal Party that "women's suffrage was about to be granted just before war broke out".[9] This interpretation comes from a revisionist author, which reinforces its validity as Holton would clearly be attempting to clearly describe the events leading up to the vote with less bias and opinion unlike a feminist author. Furthermore, although the war movement had a significant effect on attitudes towards women's suffrage and their political alliances, Bartley argues that without other factors such as the pre-war suffragette movement , women could not have obtained the right to vote. She argues that "French women did not have the right to vote despite their participation in the war effort, largely because there had been no women's suffragette movement before the war"[10 ]. This clearly shows that women gaining the right to vote in Britain was not solely dependent on the war effort, but was due to a variety of factors. The evidence supporting this assertion validates the interpretation that all factors are inextricably linked leading to women's empowerment. However, in the final years of militancy it became apparent that women were losing support through militancy, people no longer sympathized with the suffragettes but saw them as a nuisance and so the war diverted their attention and brought back to their femininity and their virtue. This thus removed the negative publicity that the suffragettes received, with newspapers calling them “insane creatures[11]”, thus reducing their chances of winning the vote. Women's activism boiled down to "making no progress except by alienating public opinion"[12], suggesting that, to some extent, the war effort was more rewarding for women. women in the phases of emancipation. However, Pugh's main argument is that it was actually the political sphere most beneficial to the suffrage movement and the achievement of women's right to vote. He argues that women gained the right to vote not only because of the war, but more because of constant pressure from campaign groups such as the suffragists. Their continued campaign had begun to change attitudes as by 1910, 250,000 women had obtained signatures in favor of women's suffrage, proving to the government the extent of their support. Growing support for the cause can also be seen through individual ministers; THE.