| Summary/Abstract |
As the twentieth century dawned, fledgling transnational networks of peace activists, including the International Peace Bureau and the Interparliamentary Union, grew in prominence, not least in Europe. Impetus came from the United States, notably via the Lake Mohonk conferences and emergent organisations like the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the World Peace Foundation. Each group purported to speak on behalf of an inclusive and ‘international’ public opinion, yet men dominated them all. This analysis considers the challenge and sustainment to this male dominance in the period from 1880 to 1920, exploring the intersection between existing peace groups and an emergent feminist pacifism. Peace activists of all stripes believed that public opinion’s influence was growing, and most positioned themselves as representatives of an enlightened public sentiment; but the composition of this public sphere, and the space afforded within it for women, remained a site of contestation.
|