ABSTRACT
References to protests by women by a variety of historians have dwelt on their actions in so far as they were a manifestation of the militant women's suffrage campaign of the early years of the twentieth century. The grille was a symbol of the distinction of sex, the embodiment of the belief that politics was a male domain, and that any interest shown by women was marginal imperfect. It is a gross simplification to explain men's domination of party politics and parliamentary government as being motivated by some inherent, or unchanging desire for power over women. It distinguished these men from voteless men, and was a public expression of their status as heads of households, and overseers of private life, as well as public politics. The tendency in his arguments was to undermine both the impact of the vote and also ideals of democratic representation more generally.
