Kate Sheppard was ahead of her time; a feminist and women’s suffrage leader, who rose to the challenge to create political and social justice for women in not only New Zealand, but the rest of the British Empire and world. She was one of the main reasons why New Zealand was the first country ever to grant women the right to vote in 1893. The women’s rights movement was one of the first of its kind in the modern era. The suffrage movement created great change and lead to a whole new way of thinking for the future. This movement is an example of what New Zealand wanted. New Zealanders strived to create their own identity that was distinct and more progressive than other British colonies and Great Britain. Many residents of New Zealand migrated from Great Britain, and even more Britons were needed to help boost the economy. New Zealand wanted to present themselves as a more civil and progressive country than Great Britain to lure new immigrants and establish themselves as world leaders in the area of social justice. Kate Sheppard is one example of a New Zealander who took the reins of progressive social change, specifically women’s rights, and ran with it. Her work on behalf of women’s voting rights not only affected the trajectory for women in her country, but lit the fire for change in other countries, including Great Britain. The fact that she, and others, were able to bring about this major change in law, offered proof that Great Britain and the Empire as a whole was mired in rigid, traditional definitions of social equality, and many people were ready for change.
Ms. Sheppard’s story begins with her life before she came to be a leader in the women’s suffrage movement. She was born in in England in 1847 with the birth name Catherine Wilson Malcolm (Biography.com, 2014). Her childhood education was completed in Scotland, where she received a great education for women at that time period, which also incorporated strong Christian and religious teachings. Unfortunately, her father passed away while Kate was young, in the early 1860’s. A few years later, in the late 1860’s, Sheppard’s family moved to New Zealand. In 1871, Kate married Walter Allen Sheppard and had their son, Douglas in 1880 (Biography.com, 2014). A few years later, Sheppard became involved with the church. This lead to her ultimate path in life. In 1885, she co-founded the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, which was meant to “achieve social legislative reforms concerning temperance and the welfare of women and children” (Christchurch City Libraries, 2018). It was especially known for protecting women and their children against alcohol abuse and the related effects associated with alcoholism. Then, just two years later, Kate became the women’s suffrage leader in 1887 for New Zealand (Christchurch City Libraries, 2018). As the leader, she organized public meetings, gave speeches, and created letters to local and national newspapers to gather support, spread information, and get others involved in the movement. Sheppard and her supporters also constructed official petitions, many of later ones consisting of thousands of signatures. The last petition that was created right before women could vote consisted of about 32,000 signatures (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 21). Kate also co-founded and was president of the National Council of Women (NCW) in 1896, which was three years after women were allowed to vote (Christchurch City Libraries, 2018). This council had the initiative to educate and inform women on the current events in society and in politics to use their new right to vote the most effectively and best for them and their families. Sheppard later retired from the presidency of the NCW in 1902 due to health reasons with her and her husband (Biography.com, 2014). Her life’s work lead to appreciation and respect by a majority of people in New Zealand, resulting in Kate Sheppard being put on the ten New Zealand Dollar note for their currency and still is to this day (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 25).
New Zealand’s history as a country is also important in understanding the setting that was present in order for change to occur. In 1840, New Zealand officially became a formal colony of the British Empire (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 31). After 1840, New Zealand was considered a “settler’s nation.” New Zealand’s new economy demanded more laborers and researchers than what the colony had. This gave British citizens an incentive to move to New Zealand to create more opportunity for themselves and their families. In the mid 1890’s, the white European settlers made up a very large majority of New Zealand. It was a country of many new members, made up of people looking for a changed and better life. New Zealand took the opportunity as a new colony to develop and create a society that was more willing to change. New Zealand wanted to improve on what they knew previously from the British Empire and expand on it. This generated a competitive attitude that not only did they want to be as sophisticated as Great Britain, they wanted to be more advanced and progressive. Shortly, New Zealand was known as a “social laboratory” where the settlers could experiment socially and politically (Fletcher, Nym Mayhall, & Levine, 89). One example of a way where New Zealand set themselves apart from other British colonies was they strived for racial harmony, starting in the 1860’s (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 16). The native group in New Zealand was the Maori, which was a very small portion of the population. Policies were created that included both the white settlers and the Maoris as well. An example is the women’s suffrage movement. Both Maori and white women worked together and eventually, when the legislation was passed, both white and Maori were granted the right to vote together in the same Bill (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 15).
New Zealand started their progressive mindset early on, especially compared to the rest of the Empire. Beginning in 1877, women “householders” or married, taxpaying women were given the right to stand in and/or vote in school committee meetings and education boards. These rights were given 16 years before women were granted the right to vote (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 19). Many bills and amendments narrowly failed in multiple attempts to give women the right to vote in 1878-1892 (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 20). Finally, with the Electoral Act of 1893, women were given the right to vote by New Zealand Parliament, which made New Zealand the first country to grant all women 21 years or older the right to vote (Markkola, Nevala-Nurmi, & Sulkunen, 22). After the Electoral Act was implemented, many other British colonies were “warming up” to the idea of women voting. An article in the Auckland Star discusses two members of the Australian Parliament just announcing their support of women suffrage in 1894 (Auckland Star, 1894).
New Zealand desired its own identity, with distinct characteristics that varied from traditional British views and ways. By multiple means, New Zealand sought to set an example to advance rigid and traditional British social and political norms. The specific example that I used in the paper and project was the roles and lives of women in New Zealand vs. the roles and lives of women in other British colonies and more specifically, Great Britain. Women had more power in terms of social and political position in New Zealand. After 1893, any women 21 years or older could vote and use their voices to stand up for themselves in the areas of policy decisions or in choosing representatives. Women in Great Britain began to form women’s rights group shortly after New Zealand women gained the right to vote, which exemplifies the influence that Kate Sheppard had on the other countries and colonies in the British Empire. Momentum for women’s suffrage picked up after New Zealand’s law changes, but due to long-held ideas regarding a woman’s role throughout the Empire, change took time. Great Britain took its time in granting women the right to vote, not passing a bill allowing this right until almost 25 years after New Zealand’s passage.
In the 1890’s, Great Britain and many of the colonies that were a part of the large British Empire, were influenced by Briton’s traditional views on equality, including race, sex, and class. The country of New Zealand was a unique part of the Empire in its self-governing independence and its goal to be an example of progressive social and political experiments. One such experiment involved women’s rights. Kate Sheppard was the leader of women’s suffrage in New Zealand, and was instrumental in helping her country to become the first to allow women to vote. “In this new land, we are laying the foundation of a new nation that we hope may be famous for the justice of its laws and customs” Kate Sheppard proclaimed (Fletcher, Nym Mayhall, & Levine, 91). After this right was won, women in New Zealand went on to gain further rights, and women in other countries gained momentum. Kate helped show Great Britain that their gender role definitions and ideas regarding equality were outdated and in need of change. She proved that women deserve the right to vote, and this extended to giving the right to vote to native, non-white people as well. Equality for all started working in New Zealand, helping Great Britain and British colonies see that there was a different, more civilized way. The old, accepted traditions were beginning to change.
Works Cited
"Female Suffrage." Auckland Star, September 19, 1894. https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/AS18940919.2.30.7?end_date=31-12-1894&page=4&phrase=0&query=suffrage&start_date=01-01-1893.
Fletcher, Ian Christopher, Philippa Levine, and Laura E. Nym Mayhall. Women's Suffrage in the British Empire: Citizenship, Nation and Race. London and New York: Routledge, 2012.
"Kate Sheppard." Biography.com. April 02, 2014. https://www.biography.com/people/kate-sheppard-9481813.
"Kate Sheppard, 1847-1934." Christchurch City Libraries. https://my.christchurchcitylibraries.com/kate-sheppard/.
"Kate Sheppard Image." Wikipedia. April 30, 2018. Accessed May 02, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Sheppard
Sulkunen, Irma, Pirjo Markkola, and Seija-Leena Nevala-Nurmi. Suffrage, Gender and Citizenship International Perspectives on Parliamentary Reforms. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars, 2009.