Political Rights for Women

The struggle for political rights for women in modern Europe took place within the larger context of the general struggle for greater political rights for all adult citizens in Europe.  Whenever and wherever the question of additional political rights for men was broached, it was only natural that some would ask why women also should not have access to the vote, why they should not be permitted to join political organizations, and why they were denied the right to run for election.  It is also important to remember that "women" as a group did not all support greater political participation by women.  During the decades when these issues were being debated, there were many European women who opposed any greater political role for their sex with just as much vehemence as those who demanded more political rights for women.

By far the best known campaigners for women's political rights were the militant English suffragists, and some of the documents provided on this page are from English history.  However, it is important to keep in mind that Europe was a very diverse place and so, not surprisingly, those who campaigned for (or against) women's political rights in the rest of Europe often had different views on just what those rights should be and how they should be implemented.  Similarly, it is important to keep in mind that women who were politically active had just as wide a diversity of political views as men--some were socialists, some were liberals, some were conservatives, and some favored Catholic parties.  As you read through the documents provided here, watch for these nuances in opinion, program and expectation, take note of them and be prepared to discuss the varieties of outlook reflected here.  Read the first three documents provide you with general background on what the views on women's political activities were in the 16th and 17th centuries and then documents 4-9 provide specific examples from the history of the campaign for women's rights.

1. John Knox, The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women (1558) [Read over to get a feel for a traditional argument against women having a political role]
2. Margaret Fell,  Women's Speaking Justified by Scripture (1666 or 1667) [A counter argument to Knox's views]
3. Radical Women During the English Revolution
4. Olympe de Gouge: Declaration of the Rights of Women (1791)
5. Women and the Commune of Paris (1793)
6. Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
7. Therese Schlesinger, My Road to Social Democracy (1890s)
8. Emmeline Pankhurst: Militant Suffragist (1913)
9. Emmiline Pankhurst, My Own Story (1914)

Marie Sukloff: The Story of an
Assassination (1914)