The Women's Emancipation Union was founded by

Elizabeth Clarke Wolstenholme Elmy Elizabeth Clarke Wolstenholme-Elmy (died 12 March 1918) was a life-long campaigner and organiser, significant in the history of women's suffrage in the United Kingdom. She wrote essays and some poetry, using the pseudonyms E and Ignota. Early ...

in September 1891 following an infamous court case. Regina v Jackson, known colloquially as the Clitheroe Judgement, occurred when Edmund Jackson abducted his wife in a bid to enforce his conjugal rights, long before the concept of

marital rape Marital rape or spousal rape is the act of sexual intercourse with one's spouse without the spouse's consent. The lack of consent is the essential element and need not involve physical violence. Marital rape is considered a form of domestic vi ...

existed. The court of appeal freed Mrs Jackson under ''

Habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, t ...

''. Recognising the significance of this judgement in relation to

coverture Coverture (sometimes spelled couverture) was a legal doctrine in the English common law in which a married woman's legal existence was considered to be merged with that of her husband, so that she had no independent legal existence of her own. U ...

, the principle that a wife's legal personhood was subsumed in that of her husband, Wolstenholme left the

Women's Franchise League The Women's Franchise League was a British organisation created by the suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst together with her husband Richard and others in 1889, fourteen years before the creation of the Women's Social and Political Union in 1903. The Pr ...

to form this new women's campaigning group. Funded by subscriptions and benefactor Mrs Russell Carpenter. The group had a four point agenda: * Equality of right and duty with men in all matters affecting the service of community and the state * Equality of opportunity for self-development by the education of the schools and of life * Equality in industry by equal freedom of choice of career * Equality in marriage and in parental rights. The WEU had an executive council, annual conference, ten local organisers in cities from Glasgow to Bristol and an international subscription list of over 7000. The mixed sex members were an eclectic mix the main requirement of membership being that they were active in political life. Well known members included

Charlotte Carmichael Stopes Charlotte Brown Carmichael Stopes (née Carmichael; 5 February 1840 – 6 February 1929), also known as C. C. Stopes, was a British scholar, author, and campaigner for women's rights. She also published several books relating to the life and wor ...

Harriot Stanton Blatch Harriot Eaton Blatch ( Stanton; January 20, 1856–November 20, 1940) was an American writer and suffragist. She was the daughter of pioneering women's rights activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Biography Harriot Eaton Stanton was born, the sixth ...

Florence Dixie Lady Florence Caroline Dixie (née Douglas; 25 May 18557 November 1905) was a Scottish writer, war correspondent, and feminist. Her account of travelling ''Across Patagonia'', her children's books ''The Young Castaways'' and ''Aniwee; or, The ...

Mona Caird Alice Mona Alison Caird (née Alison; 24 May 1854 – 4 February 1932) was an English novelist and essayist. Her feminist writings and views caused controversy in the late 19th century. She also advocated for animal rights and civil liberties, a ...

and

George Holyoake George Jacob Holyoake (13 April 1817 – 22 January 1906) was an English secularist, co-operator and newspaper editor. He coined the terms secularism in 1851 and "jingoism" in 1878. He edited a secularist paper, the ''Reasoner'', from 1846 to Ju ...

. A Parliamentary Sub Committee was formed in 1893. The Women's Emancipation Union pioneered cross class collaborations, encouraged women's resistance to authority as long as their right to vote remained unacknowledged and advocated making Women's Suffrage a test question in the selection of potential parliamentary candidates.

Isabella Ford Isabella Ormston Ford (23 May 1855 – 14 July 1924) was an English social reformer, suffragist and writer. She became a public speaker and wrote pamphlets on issues related to socialism, feminism and worker's rights. After becoming concerned wi ...

worked on behalf of the WEU at outdoor rallies in the East End of London in 1895. Working-class women were invited to give papers concerning their working life and conditions at the annual conferences. Following the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

the WEU worked to get as many women to use their local government franchise and stand for election. Over 100 WEU organisers were elected as Poor Law Guardians or Parish Councillors. Following the loss of Ferdinand Begg 1897 Suffrage Bill, subscriptions halved and the death of the Union's benefactor caused the demise of this group. The final meeting was in 1899 and speakers included

and

Charlotte Perkins Gilman Charlotte Perkins Gilman (; née Perkins; July 3, 1860 – August 17, 1935), also known by her first married name Charlotte Perkins Stetson, was an American humanist, novelist, writer, lecturer, advocate for social reform, and eugenicist. She wa ...

Publications

The WEU published the first sex education manuals for adults to teach children and teenagers, The Human Flower and Baby Buds. * Ellis Ethelmer Woman Free 1893 *

William Henry Wilkins William Henry Wilkins (1860–1905) was an English writer, best known as a royal biographer and campaigner for immigration controls. He used the pseudonym W. H. de Winton. Life Born at Compton Martin, Somerset, on 23 December 1860, he was son o ...

The Voice of the Voteless Toiler 1893 * Ellis Ethelmer The Human Flower 1894 * Ellis Ethelmer Baby Buds 1895 * Ellis Ethelmer Life to Woman 1896 * Ellis Ethelmer Phases of Love: As it Is As it may Be 1897 The pseudonym Ellis Ethelmer is often wrongly attributed to

but it is in fact the pseudonym of her husband Benjamin ElmyHolton, S. (2004-09-23). Elmy, Elizabeth Clarke Wolstenholme (1833–1918), campaigner for women's rights. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved 5 May. 2018, from http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-38638.

References

{{reflist 1891 establishments