Abstract

This article offers the first fully researched analysis of political violence on the part of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) and its sympathisers in 1913–14. It shows that the number of incidents of bombing and arson was far greater than previously assumed, and that the economic cost was far higher. It examines the role of the leaders, officials and employees of the WSPU and shows that the violent campaign required a far greater degree of organisation, funding and participation by employees than has been accepted by historians. In these contexts, it examines the question of whether political violence can be said to have won the vote for women.