 Humans have always been interested in past lives and civilizations.  They want to know who lived before their time, how they lived, and what happened to them.  We can answer these questions through the study of ‘History’ to know the past, including the prehistory of man, all the way back to our human origin.  What is ‘History’, and why do we study it?

 History is a branch of knowledge that records and explains past events.  History is about change and continuity over time and space.  We study the past from many perspectives, such as political, military, and diplomatic developments, economic, social, and cultural development, and the role of religious ideas and beliefs in shaping human experiences.

 Historians are the scholars (scientists) who study past civilizations, analyze past events, and tell us about has happened in the past.  Historians expose themselves to a wide range of human experiences for a better understanding of history.  Others take a deep historical approach, and they closely study a community within a period to recover deeply buried experiences and meanings.  Historians study the origins of conflict as well as the impact that such conflicts have upon those caught up in them.  Some historians work on the very recent past, while others may study societies in the far distant past.

 Historians study different aspects of history.  These aspects are known as the ‘Kinds of History’, and they are many.  The most common Kinds of History are:  Artifactual (tools and weapons)  Cultural (humanities)  Economical (finances)  Political (military)  Religious (beliefs)  Social (structure)

 Historians study the past to figure out what happened, and how specific events and cultural developments affected individuals and societies.  Historians also revise earlier explanations of the past, adding new information and/or revising existing answers to historical questions.  The more we know about the past, the better we can understand how societies have evolved to their present state, why people face certain problems, and how successfully others have addressed those problems.

 History offers a storehouse of information about different societies, and how people behave; therefore, history helps us better understand people and societies.  Understanding the operations of people and societies is difficult; yet, many historians make the attempt.  Example: How can we evaluate war if the nation is at peace – unless we use historical materials? October war  There are many different reasons to study history, as it is a fantastic combination of life.

The major arguments for studying history are as follows:  History helps you discover how your world evolved.  History helps you develop the skills to look beyond the headlines, to ask questions properly, and to express your own opinions.  History trains your mind and teaches you how to think and process information.  History helps you develop an understanding of both past and present.  The pursuit of historical events and people is fun - a form of time travel.  History helps you make sense of most other subjects.

 A lack of historical knowledge prevents people from truly understanding the world they live in.  History helps you understand the origins of modern political and social problems.  History lets you learn how and why people behaved as they did, whether they are Elizabeth I, Hitler, or John Lennon …  History makes you appreciate that people in the past were not just ‘good’ or ‘bad’, but motivated in complex and inconsistent ways, just like us.  History provides you with the skills employers are looking for.  History helps us understand change and how the society we Live in came to be.

 It is clear that all our information about past events and conditions must be derived from evidence of some kind. This evidence is called the source.  Since they are dealing with the past, gathering information is not an easy task for the historians.  Some of the difficulties historians face while collecting the needed data or information are as follows:  No Actual Survivors  Incomplete Records  Lost, Destroyed, or Forged untrue) Records  No Written Documents  Unclear or Weak Memories  Second-hand Documents

 The term “Woman’s Suffrage” refers to the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending suffrage – the right to vote – to women.  Women were excluded from voting in ancient Greece and Republican Rome, as well as in the few democracies that had emerged in Europe by the end of the 18th century.  The movement’s modern origins lie in France in the 18th century.  In medieval France and several other European countries, voting for city and town assemblies and meetings was open to the heads of households, regardless of sex.  When the voting permission was widened in the United Kingdom in 1832, women continued to be denied all voting rights.

 The question of women’s voting rights finally became an issue in the 19th century, and the struggle was particularly intense in Great Britain and the United States.  Women’s suffrage has been granted at various times and in various countries throughout the world.  In many countries, women’s suffrage was granted before universal suffrage, so women from certain races and social classes were still unable to vote.  By the early years of the 20th century, women had won the right to vote in national elections in New Zealand (1893), Australia (1902), Finland (1906), and Norway (1913).  In Sweden and the United States, they had voting rights in some local elections.

 The ‘Suffrage Movement’, both women and men, had a very broad (wide) range of views.  One major division, especially in Britain, was between ‘Suffragists’, who sought to create change constitutionally, and ‘Suffragettes’, who were more militant (radical).  There was also a diversity of views on a ‘Woman’s Place’.  Some, who campaigned for women’s suffrage, felt that women were naturally kinder, gentler, and more concerned about weaker members of society, especially children.  It was often assumed that women voters would have a civilizing effect on politics, and they would tend to support controls on alcohol; for example.

 “One Hand Tied Behind Us” is a book written by two famous Feminists, Jill Liddington and Jill Norris.  This work on women’s suffrage is offered as a revised edition to celebrate the book’s 21st anniversary, which contains a new introduction by Jill Liddington.  The book shows how radical suffragists took the message to women at grassroots level, and to the Co-operative Guilds and the trade unions.  This book is a wealth of useful and interesting information on how much the mill workers of the north and other working class women contributed through determined and steady political effort over many years to gain the vote.

 This book is a true picture and one that shows there was much more to the women’s suffrage movement than militant (radical) action.  Their strength lays in their democratic approach, opposed to violence, they felt that the vote was the key to wider rights for women.  These women were not interested in self-glory; they were just interested in improving the working and living conditions of women, children, and men of their time.  Their campaigns and their determination in the face of extreme hostility put into place some fundamental human rights that today’s society now takes for granted.