History at key stage 3 (Year 8/9)
Unit 16: The franchise why did it take so much longer for British women to get the vote?
Section 5: What freedoms were women obtaining?
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Objectives |
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- to evaluate the extent of the changes to women's economic, legal, and political status by 1901
- that by the end of the nineteenth century many women were able to vote in local elections but not national ones
- that the 'Angel in the House' model still held good by the end of the century
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Activities |
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Outcomes |
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Children: |
- Return to the 'Angel in the House' model of Victorian women and to the division of interest into public and private spheres.
- Pupils brainstorm what they think women could and could not do in the mid-nineteenth century.
- Provide pupils with a number of partially completed 'factcards' relating to legislation affecting women's steps on the way to equality with men. Pupils, in groups, research and complete the factcards to find out what happened to bring about changes in the status and independence of women.
- Pupils use the information they have researched to speculate about the range of attitudes in men and women these changes may have brought about. Give pupils examples of specific attitudes of actual men and women.
Would all women have felt the same? All men?
- Final discussion on whether the 'Angel in the House' model still held good by, say, the end of Victoria's reign in 1901.
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- demonstrate a knowledge of the ways in which women were achieving equality with men throughout the nineteenth century
- show an understanding of the impact legislation could have had on the attitudes of men and women to female equality
- discuss and evaluate conflicting evidence to arrive at a considered viewpoint
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Points to note |
- The 'factcards' could include the following information:
- 1834 Women ratepayers could vote for Poor Law Guardians
- 1839 An 'innocent' mother could have custody of her children until they were seven years old
- 1857 Divorce Act: if her husband had deserted her, a woman had the same rights to property as a single woman. Men could divorce for a wife's adultery; women had to prove adultery and cruelty (only equality of treatment in 1923)
- 1870 Married Women's Property Act: women could keep own earnings, property acquired after marriage and hold a separate savings account
- 1882 Married Women's Property Act: women could keep property acquired before marriage
- 1870 Education Act: women ratepayers could vote for, and serve on, school boards
- 1873 An 'innocent' mother could have custody of her children until they were sixteen years old
- 1875 Women could be elected as Poor Law Guardians
- 1888 Women could vote in county and borough elections
- 1891 A man could not compel his wife to live in the matrimonial home
- 1894 Women could serve on urban and district councils as councillors
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This unit is divided into sections. Each section contains a sequence of
activities with related objectives and outcomes. You can view this unit by
moving through the sections or print/download the whole unit.
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