Cecily and the Suffragettes
Thank you so much for inviting me on your blog. A section of this book is about the suffragette movement Cecily is involved in. originally focused in Manchester, that was where Emeline Pankhurst and her family had lived. The general election of 1905 brought it to the attention of the wider nation when Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Kenny interrupted Sir Edward’s speech with the cry: ‘Will the Liberal Government give votes to women?’ Many women were very much in favour of that, and some were charged with assault and arrested.
They further shocked the world by refusing to pay the shilling fine, and were consequently thrown in jail. Never before had English suffragists resorted to violence, but it was the start of a long campaign. Their headquarters were transferred from Manchester to London and by 1908, by then dubbed the suffragettes, they were marching through London, interrupting MP’s speeches, assaulting policemen who attempted to arrest them, chaining themselves to fences, even sending letter bombs and breaking the windows of department stores and shops in Bond Street. They went on hunger-strikes while incarcerated, brutalised in what became known as the ‘Cat and Mouse Act.’ This ‘war’ did not end until 1928 when women were finally granted the vote in equal terms with men. They showed enormous courage and tenacity, were prepared to make any sacrifice to achieve their ends.
Fortunately, Cecily managed to avoid
the risk of jail as she went off to France to entertain the soldiers
in the war. But she believed very strongly in working for the
suffragists and happily helped to organise a meeting before this idea
came to her. Later she met one or two people who greatly intrigued
her.
Excerpt
from Girls of the Great War:
This
afternoon, being a Saturday, they were attending a Suffrage meeting,
which offered much satisfaction. Cecily had worked alongside this
organisation from before the war, taking part in parades and
demonstrations. She’d always felt a sore need to help, as she
strongly believed in the rights of women. She’d spent every evening
the previous week happily delivering notices to encourage people to
come to this meeting.
‘The place is packed,’ Merryn,
who was seated beside her on the front row, softly remarked, glancing
around. ‘You did an excellent job encouraging so many to come.’
‘Thank goodness there are plenty
of women here.’ This had been helped by the fact that Annie Kenney,
a most special lady, was attending the meeting. As a working-class
factory girl who started to follow the Pankhursts she was now almost
as famous as them and she certainly gave excellent talks, being very
down-to-earth. ‘Unfortunately, some working women are unable to
attend these suffrage meetings because they have families to feed
after they finish work, or else they fear to offend their bosses or
family. Irritatingly, the occasional sour-faced father or husband
would toss away the notice I delivered!’
‘Men can be very commanding,’
Merryn agreed.
‘I would never allow one to
control me,’ Cecily sternly remarked.
‘I can understand that your sense
of independence is partly the reason you enjoy working with the
suffragist movement to help them seek the vote. Me too, although I am
in favour of marriage and willing to be a fairly obedient wife to
make my husband happy.’
Cecily chuckled. ‘Hang on to your
rights, darling. I have no doubt that we will achieve the vote one
day and find the love of our life.’
‘Exactly.’ Stifling their
giggles they listened to Annie Kenney explain how Lloyd George, who
had always been supportive, was now helping ladies achieve their
goal, having finally replaced Asquith as Prime Minister last
December. ‘We have every reason to believe that a vote will soon be
granted, if only to women of a certain class who own property and are
over thirty,’ she announced.
‘Why is that?’ Cecily quietly
asked her sister, only to find herself hushed.
She firmly disagreed with her
mother’s attitude against the working classes, particularly
regarding her beloved Ewan. It seemed politicians were equally
disapproving. How would she, Merryn, and most other women, ever
achieve the right to vote unless they succeeded in improving their
status and raised enough money to buy themselves a house? Deep in
some secret part of her soul, there lurked the hope that by
stimulating the new talent she’d discovered in herself during that
one performance on stage, it might happen again one day and earn her
an independent income. Shutting down these dreams she realised Annie
Kenney was explaining the reason for this puzzle.
‘The government is wary of the
fact that women are in the majority. Men have been in short supply
for some years. Many went to work in the colonies before the war in
order to find employment, a situation that could grow worse once this
war is over, as so many young men have already been killed.
Therefore, the number of surplus women will increase.’
‘Is this lack of a vote for all
women, whatever their age or income, because the government has no
wish to be taken over by us?’ Cecily asked, giving a wry smile.
Others in the audience laughed and cheered at this remark.
‘I’d say that is the reason,
yes,’ Annie replied with a cheerful nod. ‘As a young Yorkshire
lass wishing to help women get the vote, I packed my little wicker
basket, put two pounds safely in my purse - the only money I
possessed - and started my journey to London to join the
Pankhursts. Fortunately, Lloyd George and Asquith both now agree that
the heroism of hard-working women doing men’s jobs during the war
has made them reconsider our situation. This bill will make a start
on improving our rights. Given time and more effort, we will
hopefully succeed in widening its scope.’
As the meeting came to an end,
Cecily joined the group of stewards to help collect donations from
those women able to contribute. Some carefully ignored this appeal,
not being well enough off, but she did manage to gather a fairly
large sum.
BlurbCecily
Hanson longs to live life on her own terms—to leave the shadow of
her overbearing mother and marry her childhood sweetheart once he
returns from the Great War. But when her fiancé is lost at sea, this
future is shattered. Looking for meaning again, she decides to
perform for the troops in France.
Life
on the front line is both rewarding and terrifying, and Cecily soon
finds herself more involved—and more in danger—than she ever
thought possible. And her family has followed her to France. Her
sister, Merryn, has fallen for a young drummer whose charm hides a
dark side, while their mother, Queenie—a faded star of the stage
tormented by her own secret heartache—seems set on a path of
self-destruction.
As the war draws to a close and their hopes turn once again to the future, Cecily and Merryn are more determined than ever to unravel the truth about their mother’s past: what has she been hiding from them—and why?
Buy links:
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2wKaX2y
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2rGc528
Review: I have a strong love for unique stories set during the Great War. Cecily is singing for the soldiers in France after her fiance was lost at sea, her sister, Merryn and her mother, Queenie follow her there.
In the first pages, you learn that Queenie is a real doozy. She's a fading performer and an alcoholic who has secrets of her own. She's a character that you really can't like. She's hard to describe, except as purely unlikable. In some ways, you want to feel sorry for her, but it is impossible to come to care for her.
Cecily is the stronger and more likable of the two sisters. She has gumption and wants to do so much more than just be a wife, and she actually does it. The only thing she doesn't have much luck with is love. Her romances seem to all end badly with the exception of one.
Merryn....oh how I wanted to shake her, like every minute of the book. She was desperate to be married and to the scummiest guy. I mean Johnny was the worst guy. There was nothing nice about him, and I found it hard to believe that Merryn loved him, and his treatment of her was despicable.
The book goes from wartime to the years following The Great War as everyone tries to return to normalcy. From looking for work to dealing with marriage, this book takes you through these three women's lives.
The ending reveals the secrets their mother Queenie has kept hidden for years, even as Cecily and Merryn want to know the secrets of their father.
Cecily is the stronger and more likable of the two sisters. She has gumption and wants to do so much more than just be a wife, and she actually does it. The only thing she doesn't have much luck with is love. Her romances seem to all end badly with the exception of one.
Merryn....oh how I wanted to shake her, like every minute of the book. She was desperate to be married and to the scummiest guy. I mean Johnny was the worst guy. There was nothing nice about him, and I found it hard to believe that Merryn loved him, and his treatment of her was despicable.
The book goes from wartime to the years following The Great War as everyone tries to return to normalcy. From looking for work to dealing with marriage, this book takes you through these three women's lives.
The ending reveals the secrets their mother Queenie has kept hidden for years, even as Cecily and Merryn want to know the secrets of their father.
This was a stunning read about three women trying to find their place in the work
I absolutely adored this book and any fan of historical fiction will enjoy it.
Rating; 5 flowers
My Biography I
was born in a small mill town in Lancashire. My mother comes from
generations of weavers, and my father was a shoe-repairer. I still
remember the first pair of clogs he made for me. After several years
of teaching, I opened a bookshop in Kendal, Cumbria. And while living
in the rural Lakeland Fells, rearing sheep and hens, I turned to
writing. I wrote over fifty articles and short stories for magazines
such as My Weekly
and Woman’s Realm,
before finding my vocation as a novelist and became a Sunday
Times Bestselling author. I’ve now
written over forty-eight novels, mostly sagas and historical fiction,
my three latest books, including Girls
of the Great War, out in May are
published by Amazon Lake Union. I spend warm winters living in Spain,
and the rainy summers in Britain.
Website: www.freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk
Twitter: @fredalightfoot
My Blogspot: http://www.fredalightfoot.blogspot.com/
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*****
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1 comments:
Historicals are fascinating and give me so much enjoyment and pleasure since they capture the era so wonderfully. How the individuals trials and tribulations were affected during the period described. Historicals are profound, memorable and unforgettable since they are meaningful and real. Freda Lightfoot's novels are wonderful and written with authenticity and emotion. I read the Amber Keeper and would love to read this captivating novel.
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