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Feminism, Pacifism and Internationalism: the Women’S International League, 1915–1935

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Feminism, Pacifism and Internationalism: the Women’S International League, 1915–1935 Northumbria Research Link Citation: Hellawell, Sarah (2017) Feminism, Pacifism and Internationalism: The Women’s International League, 1915–1935. Doctoral thesis, Northumbria University. This version was downloaded from Northumbria Research Link: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/36129/ Northumbria University has developed Northumbria Research Link (NRL) to enable users to access the University’s research output. Copyright © and moral rights for items on NRL are retained by the individual author(s) and/or other copyright owners. Single copies of full items can be reproduced, displayed or performed, and given to third parties in any format or medium for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge, provided the authors, title and full bibliographic details are given, as well as a hyperlink and/or URL to the original metadata page. The content must not be changed in any way. Full items must not be sold commercially in any format or medium without formal permission of the copyright holder. The full policy is available online: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/policies.html Feminism, Pacifism and Internationalism: The Women’s International League, 1915–1935 Sarah Hellawell PhD 2017 Feminism, Pacifism and Internationalism: The Women’s International League, 1915–1935 Sarah Hellawell A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the University of Northumbria at Newcastle for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Research undertaken in the Faculty of Arts, Design and Social Sciences May 2017 Abstract This thesis examines the Women’s International League (WIL) to explore the wider themes of feminism, pacifism and transnational activism during the Great War and the interwar years. WIL was formed in October 1915 as the British national section of what came to be known as the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). The thesis interrogates the concept of feminist pacifism by analysing WIL’s campaigns for peace, disarmament and international law alongside its pursuit of women’s rights. The thesis also demonstrates the interplay between activism on the local, national and international stages. In chronological terms, the focus is on the first twenty years of WIL’s activism: from the circumstances that led to its foundation in 1915 to the challenges faced in 1935 – a time when the political consensus within WILPF came under threat and when hopes that internationalism would secure peace began to fade. The study comprises five chapters. The first explores the foundations of WIL and examines the methods it used to link its opposition to war to its feminist demands. The remaining chapters are thematic and cover the organisation’s work during the interwar years. Chapter Two analyses WIL’s campaigns for women’s rights, including the nationality of married women and the debate over protective legislation. Chapter Three highlights the organisation’s gendered approach to peace, including its campaigns for disarmament. Chapter Four investigates WIL’s commitment to internationalism through an analysis of its organisational structure and its work at the transnational level. The final chapter examines how the organisation built and maintained a network of activists, exploring the shared interests between WIL and a range of other voluntary associations, including those working for peace, humanitarian relief, liberal internationalism and socialism. This study firmly places WIL within British and international movements for peace and women’s rights. Work by Leila Rupp, Marie Sandell and Karen Offen demonstrates the wealth of activism by and for women at the international level during the twentieth century. However, previous scholarship has not focussed on WIL in any depth. By offering a detailed analysis of this organisation, the thesis sheds light on a range of issues: the campaign for female citizenship and political participation; the connections between feminism and pacifism; the development of international organisations during the interwar years; and the nature of transnational women’s activism. i Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... i Table of Abbreviations .............................................................................................................. viii Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 Situating WIL’s feminism, pacifism and internationalism........................................................ 4 Defining terms .........................................................................................................................10 Sources and methodology ........................................................................................................20 Scope of the project .................................................................................................................24 Chapter One The Formation and Workings of the Women’s International League ..................... 30 The international women’s movement on the outbreak of the Great War and the formation of WIL .........................................................................................................................................31 Convictions: WIL’s feminist pacifism .....................................................................................42 The structure and workings of WIL .........................................................................................67 Chapter Two WIL’s Feminist Campaigns, 1919–1935 ...................................................................... 86 Equality or difference? ............................................................................................................88 The campaign for women’s suffrage .......................................................................................93 The nationality of married women .........................................................................................104 The rights of women workers ................................................................................................113 Women’s organisations and the League of Nations ...............................................................124 Chapter Three ‘The Saner Sex’: WIL’s Peace Activism, 1919–1935 ................................................ 138 ‘We women are pacifists at heart’: WIL’s pacifism ..............................................................140 1920s: A decade of hope? ......................................................................................................150 The Peacemakers’ Pilgrimage and the Women’s Peace Crusade ...........................................158 The disarmament campaign ...................................................................................................169 Peace and/or freedom? ..........................................................................................................179 ii Chapter Four Constructing an International Women’s Organisation ............................................ 192 WIL’s internationalism ......................................................................................................... 197 Organising internationalism .................................................................................................. 199 The International Executive Committee ................................................................................ 209 Limits to WILPF’s internationalism ...................................................................................... 216 Maintaining an international women’s organisation .............................................................. 220 Feminism, internationalism and empire ................................................................................ 233 Chapter Five WIL at the Centre of an Activist Nexus ..................................................................... 249 The Women’s International League and the women’s movement ......................................... 254 The Women’s International League and the peace movement .............................................. 262 The Women’s International League and the labour movement ............................................. 270 The Women’s International League and liberal internationalism .......................................... 283 The Women’s International League and humanitarian associations ...................................... 290 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 305 Appendices................................................................................................................................ 314 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................. 316 Primary Sources .................................................................................................................... 316 Secondary Literature ............................................................................................................. 324 iii iv Acknowledgements I would like to thank Dr Nicole Robertson for her guidance as my principal supervisor during the first two years and half years of this project and her continued support. I also extend my appreciation to
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