Based on extensive research, this text provides a critical investigation of the development of the Women's Co-operative Guild from the 1880s to World War II. Charting the rise and fall of an exceptional feminist political organization, the author assesses the political significance of the movement during the decades of its greatest influence and examines the causes and circumstances of its demise. Advancing a fresh perspective on working-class women's organizations, this book combines historical narrative, biography and political analysis.