The Chartists

1
The Chartists
Presenter Scott Dobson
2
Origins of the Movement

• Formed due to anger at 1832 Reform Act and 1834
  Poor Law
• Arguably the worlds first mass labour movement
• June 1836- London Working Mens Association-
  small but influential
• 1838- Publication of the Peoples Charter- too
  moderate?

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The Peoples Charter

• Suffrage for all adult males
• Equal-sized parliamentary constituencies
• Secret Ballot at elections
• An end to the property qualification to
  Parliament
• Pay for MPs
• Annual parliamentary elections

4
Growth of the Movement

• Considered too moderate by some radicals, but
  found a very large audience.
• Up to 300,000 attended meeting on Kersal Moor,
  Salford
• Convention established to co-ordinate petition of
  Parliament
• June 1839- MPs vote not to receive petition
• Abandonment of nonviolent tactics?

5
Moral Force

• William Lovett and other founders committed to
  nonviolence
• Parliamentary supporters also supported moral
  force
• Informing the mind V Captivating the senses
• Success through discussion, public meetings,
  pamphleteering and petitioning
• 1840s- Apparent failure, powers questioned

6
Physical Force

• Joseph Rayner Stephens and Feargus OConnor
• Upset at the questioning of their methods, Lovett
  and Attwood retired from public life
• OConnor willing to die for the cause and to
  lead people to death or glory
• Warned of violence if the six points were not met
  quickly
• Founded the Northern Star and East London
  Democratic Association

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Joseph Rayner Stevens

• If Abraham was ready to kill his only child,
  shall we falter when God commands us to draw the
  sword and never to sheath that sword until it is
  sheathed in the hearts of his enemies? God wills
  the death of no man neither is it the will of
  God that a Poor Law Commission, of the kind that
  now curses England, should ever be established. I
  pray God to cast them all to hell.

8
Turn to Violence?

• John Frost and the Newport Rising, 4 November
  1839
• Frost planned to march on Newport and then,
  through passive protest, prove the scale of
  public of opposition to imprisonment of Henry
  Vincent- events spiralled out of control, 20 men
  killed
• The Plug Riots, August 1842
• Industrial disruption, but denounced by OConnor

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Kennington Common and the End of the Movement
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Kennington Common

• OConnor attempted moral force tactics by
  arranging a petition and a big meeting
• It was claimed there were over 5.7 million
  signatures on the petition, but inspection by
  parliament showed there were less than 2 million
  with many forgeries
• Accused of destroying credibility of the movement

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Did Chartism Fail?

• Kennington Common fiasco damaged the movement,
  but pockets of strength remained- into the 1850s
  there were well attended meetings in London,
  Birmingham and Leicester
• But, Chartist candidates did very badly at 1852
  General Election and sales of the Northern Star
  dropped considerably
• Tactics of mass mobilisation still impressive