LYDIA ERNESTINE BECKER

A WOMAN WHO WORKED HARD AND CONTRIBUTED TO WOMENS EMANCIPATION

BIOGRAPHY
Lydia Ernestine Becker (1827 1890) was a leader in the early British suffrage movement, as well as an amateur scientist in biology and astronomy, but she is best remembered for founding the Womens Suffrage Journal. She was born in Chatterton, Lancashire. She studied botany and astronomy, winning a gold medal for an 1862 scholarly paper on horticulture. In 1867, she founded the Ladies' Literary Society in Manchester. In 1867 she convened the first meeting of the Manchester Women's Suffrage Committee. It was the first organization of its kind in England. Lily Maxwell, a widow shop-owner, appeared on the register of voters in Manchester mistakenly. The Returning Officer found Maxwell's name on the list and allowed her to vote. Becker immediately began encouraging other women heads of households in the region to petition for their names to appear on the rolls. In 1870 she and her friend Jessie Boucherett founded the Women's Suffrage Journal, a speeches publisher from around the country, both within and outside the Parliament. She argued that there was no natural difference between the intellect of men and women. She also differed from many suffrage activists in arguing more strenuously for the voting rights of unmarried women.

HOW LYDIA ERNESTINE BECKER CONTRIBUTED TO WOMENS EMANCIPATION

Lydia played a key role in the campaign for suffrage, encouraging women to openly campaign and speak publicly. She laid the basis for the early twentieth century suffrage campaign. She was self-taught, as scientific societies in Manchester in this period refused admittance to women, excluding them from the discussion and debate on papers that were the mainstay of these societies. Lydia founded the Manchester Ladies Literary Society, though this was short lived. In 1868 the National Association for the Promotion of Social Science which was a progressive organization which not only admitted women as members but also allowed them to read papers and attend dinners In 1867 she wrote an article called Female Suffrage and was published in the Contemporary Review. She drew up a draft constitution for a Society whose aims would be to obtain for women the right of voting for Parliament Members on the same conditions as it is, or might granted to men. In August the Manchester National Society for Womens Suffrage was formally established. She worked very hard at women, but especially in single or widow female. With the women suffrage movement, it started a new era, where women started to have quite a similar role as men. Lydia worked very hard in women public speeches and she needed a lot of support, not only from women, but also from male members. The campaign gained publicity over the Lily Maxwell case. She was supporter of the Liberal party, Lydia visited her to talk about suffrage. The two women went to the polling station, on 26th November 1867, when the election official allowed her to vote. It was resolved to campaign to persuade other women to petition to add their names to the electoral roll.

In 1869 women were granted the right to vote in municipal elections.

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