Women's Work in Industry and Agriculture in Wales During the First
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Women’s Work in Industry and Agriculture in Wales during the First World War Thomas David George This thesis is submitted to Cardiff University in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Welsh History Cardiff University, July 2015 Summary During the First World War, thousands of Welsh women became involved in the production of munitions and food for the war effort. This thesis examines attitudes towards and experiences of women workers employed in munitions and agricultural production in Wales during the war. It explores the organisation and recruitment of women in these areas, the employment of women in both fields, the organisation of welfare and leisure within and outside the workplace, and women’s experiences of demobilisation. Throughout, it considers women’s motivations for undertaking war work, as well as their experiences, including their involvement in strike action and in sporting activities, and how these were affected by class, age, and locality. The thesis argues that while the war lasted, women gained greater self-confidence and started to forge a collective identity as workers, but their contribution to the labour market was always viewed as temporary and valued less than men’s work. After the Armistice, women were forced back to the home or to traditional ‘feminine’ occupations. This thesis therefore contributes to long-standing historiographical arguments about the extent to which the war brought about lasting social change for women. It makes a significant contribution to the under-researched field of Welsh women’s experiences in the First World War. i DECLARATION This work has not been submitted in substance for any other degree or award at this or any other university or place of learning, nor is being submitted concurrently in candidature for any degree or other award. Signed ………………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 1 This thesis is being submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of ………………………… Signed ………………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 2 This thesis is the result of my own independent work/investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by explicit references. The views expressed are my own. Signed ………………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 3 I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available online in the University’s Open Access repository and for inter-library loan, and for the title and summary to be made available to outside organisations. Signed ………………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 4: PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BAR ON ACCESS I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available online in the University’s Open Access repository and for inter-library loans after expiry of a bar on access previously approved by the Academic Standards & Quality Committee. Signed ………………………………………… (candidate) Date………………………… ii Acknowledgments There are a number of people who I wish to thank for helping me to research and write this thesis. My two supervisors Dr Stephanie Ward and Dr Tracey Loughran have given fantastic support and advice over the last four years. I simply would not have completed this project without their excellent academic guidance, keen interest and encouragement. I would also like to acknowledge the valuable assistance I received in many archives and libraries in both Wales and England. I would like to give a special mention to the staff in Special Collections and Archives (SCHOLAR) based in the Arts and Social Studies Library at Cardiff University. In particular, for their patience and support during the many hours and days I spent in the reading room consulting various Welsh newspapers. Furthermore, I have received some valuable financial assistance during the course of my doctorate. This has included bursaries from the Women’s History Network, the Glamorgan County History Trust and the School of History, Archaeology and Religion (SHARE) at Cardiff University, which have been used towards travel and to undertake archival research. Perhaps my biggest thanks must go to the love and support shown by my family during the last four years. My deepest gratitude must go to my parents Simon and Diane who have always believed in me, and without their very generous financial support I would not have been able to undertake this project. Also to my partner Shona, whose encouragement and love has helped me to overcome my demons and to finish writing this thesis. Finally, this thesis is dedicated to my grandparents Beryl and Alun and my late grandmother Valerie Davies. iii List of Abbreviations ASE – Amalgamated Society of Engineers AWB – Agricultural Wages Board GFS - Girls Friendly Society NCBRF – National Cartridge and Box Repair Factory NFWW - National Federation of Women Workers NSF – National Shell Factory WLA - Women’s Land Army WSPU – Women’s Social and Political Union WWAC – Women’s War Agricultural Committee WIL – Women’s Industrial League YWCA – Young Women’s Christian Association iv List of figures and tables - Figure 1: J.M. Staniforth, ‘A Willing Worker’, May 1915 (p. 34) - Figure 2: J.M. Staniforth, ‘For King and Country’, March 1915 (p. 35) - Figure 3: ‘A Bevy Of Munition Workers’ (p. 43) - Figure 4: ‘Women Of Wales Winning The War’ (p. 44) - Figure 5: Margaret Haig Mackworth (p. 53) - Figure 6: ‘Women’s Land Army, Montgomeryshire, c. 1917’ (p. 81) - Figure 7: Painting of Hilda Vaughan (p. 88) - Figure 8: Royal Ordnance Factory at Pembrey, Carmarthenshire, c. 1950 (p. 114) - Figure 9: Female munitions workers attending the funeral in Swansea of a colleague killed in an explosion at an unknown factory, August 1917 (p. 116) - Figure 10: Swansea National Shell Factory Football Team, 1914-1918 (p. 164) - Table 1: Percentage Excess (+) or Deficit in numbers of females permanently employed in agriculture in Wales as compared with July 1914 (p. 79) v Map of Wales The counties of Wales (to 1973)1 1 Taken from Kenneth O. Morgan, Rebirth of a Nation: A History of Modern Wales (Oxford: University Press, 1981), xii. Some towns and villages have been added as they are referred to in the thesis. vi Note on Spelling of Place Names Throughout the thesis I will be using the English spellings of counties, towns and villages. However, in some case the source material directly refers to them in their old anglicised form. Where I have used direct quotations that use the anglicised form I have not changed them. The same can be said for some of references in footnotes, where the old anglicised spellings of ‘Llanelly’ and ‘Carnarvon’ have been not been altered. In addition, ‘Llanelly’ refers to Llanelli in Carmarthenshire not Llanelly, Monmouthshire. vii Contents Summary…………………………………………………………………..i Declaration and Statements.......................................................................ii Acknowledgements……………………………………………….............iii List of Abbreviations……………………………………………………..iv List of figures and tables………………………………………………….v Map of Wales..............................................................................................vi Note on Spelling of Place Names..............................................................vii Introduction……………………………………………………………....1 Historical approaches: women, war and social change Women and work in Wales before 1914 Women’s work in wartime Wales: aims, methods and sources Conclusion Chapter 1…………………………………………………………………20 ‘Girls of Wales- Your country is calling for your service’: the organisation and recruitment of female labour in Wales during the First World War Female unemployment and wartime charity Women’s war work and recruitment Patriotism and women workers National Service and Lady Mackworth Conclusion Chapter 2…………………………………………………………………59 ‘It was quite as important to produce food, as it was to produce munitions’: Female Agricultural Workers in Wales during the First World War Family labour and women’s work on Welsh farms Opposition from farmers Shortage of female labour Increasing Involvement of Women in Agriculture The Women’s Land Army (WLA) Conclusion viii Chapter 3…………………………………………………………………99 Dilution, trade unionism and women’s experiences of munitions factories in Wales Training Women’s industrial work Trade unions and women workers’ activism Conclusion Chapter 4………………………………………………………………..134 Women workers, sport and welfare in Wales during the First World War Women’s work, welfare policy, and welfare supervision Religious groups and welfare: Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), Girls Friendly Society (GFS) and the Temperance Movement Provision of Hostels and Clubs Sport, leisure and recreation Conclusion Chapter 5……………………………………………………………….173 ‘Call To The Women’: Demobilisation and women’s wartime work The initial stages of demobilisation and post-war unemployment Male demobilisation and the context of post-war employment Post-war hostility to women workers The return to domestic service Training, recruitment and the reassertion of traditional gender roles Conclusion Conclusion………………………………………………………………205 Bibliography…………………………………………………………….214 ix Introduction In 2000, Deirdre Beddoe stated that ‘to write on the impact of the Great War on the lives of women in Wales, is to write on a clean slate’.1 Although Beddoe’s lament was published fifteen years ago, there is still little historical scholarship on Welsh women’s experiences of the First World War. This thesis, which explores Welsh women’s experiences of paid employment in agriculture and the munitions industry between