FINDING INSPIRATION

American women were not the only ones fighting for the right to vote in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Across the Atlantic Ocean, their British counterparts also actively sought suffrage. The women’s suffrage movement in England became known for its militant efforts. Those tactics had a profound impact in the United States.

Getting a Movement Moving

In 1866, 1,500 English women signed a petition asking the British House of Commons to grant them the right to vote in elections for Parliament. The petition, which was rejected, is considered the beginning of an organized women’s suffrage movement