The age of Reform

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The age of Reform

• (note I have not yet had time to add references
  to the images in this presentation and will do so
  as soon as I can)

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The age of Reform

• Factory Act 1819 - some protection children.
• 1829 Metropolitan Police Act
• Reform Act 1832 (extended the franchise)
• Shaftesbury - Factory Act 1833 illegal to employ
  children under 13 more than 48 hours a week.
• Wilberforce - 1833 slavery abolished throughout
  the Empire
• Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 (workhouses)
• The People's Charter 1838 - protest movement
  gathered momentum

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The age of Reform

• Chartism
• This major movement (or general term for a number
  of parallel movements) took its name from the
  People's Charter of 1838 which set out a series
  of demands for reform (which would now seem
  innocuous enough!)
• They wanted

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The age of Reform

• 1. A VOTE for every man twenty one years of age,
  of sound mind, and not undergoing punishment for
  crime.
• 2. THE BALLOT.--To protect the elector in the
  exercise of his vote.
• 3. NO PROPERTY QUALIFICATION for members of
  Parliamentthus enabling the constituencies to
  return the man of their choice, be he rich or
  poor.
• 4. PAYMENT OF MEMBERS, thus enabling an honest
  tradesman, working man, or other person, to serve
  a constituency, when taken from his business to
  attend to the interests of the country.
• 5. EQUAL CONSTITUENCIES, securing the same amount
  of representation for the same number of
  electors,--instead of allowing small
  constituencies to swamp the votes of larger ones.
• 6. ANNUAL PARLIAMENTS, thus presenting the most
  effectual check to bribery and intimidation,
  since though a constituency might be bought once
  in seven years (even with the ballot), no purse
  could buy a constituency (under a system of
  universal suffrage) in each ensuing twelvemonth
  and since members, when elected for a year only,
  would not be able to defy and betray their
  constituents as now.

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The age of Reform

• to recap
• i) universal male suffrage
• ii) vote by secret ballot
• iii) equal electoral districts
• iv) an end to property qualifications for MPs,
  and
• v) salaries for MPs
• vi) annual parliaments

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The age of Reform

• The 1832 Reform Act had extended the franchise to
  allow not only the Upper class but also the Upper
  Middle class to vote. However the Lower Middle
  class and the Working class were still
  essentially deprived of the vote. Most of the
  momentum for Reform came from the Lower Middle
  and Upper Working classes.

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The age of Reform

• In June 1839 a large petition was presented to
  Parliament. Parliament voted not to hear the
  delegates who presented the petition.
• A series of major meetings and demonstrations
  ensued.
• One, in Newport, Monmouthshire, ended in some
  twenty demonstrators killed (1839).

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"Chartists' Riots", from Wikipedia, "Chartism"
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The age of Reform

• In May 1842 another petition was collected with
  over three million signatures.
• Again Parliament took no notcie.
• At the same time (1841-2) there was a depression
  which led to a wave of industrial unrest, often
  combining economic and Chartist demands.

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The age of Reform

• Also renewed protests against Corn Laws
• (Corn Laws repealed in 1846 after Irish potato
  famine--to which we will return)
• In 1848 Chartists collected signatures for
  another petition. They claimed this time they had
  over five million signatures. They probably had
  two million.

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The age of Reform

• A Chartist Convention met in May and hammered out
  the following plan of action
• 1st That in the event of the National Petition
  being rejected by the House of Commons, this
  Convention prepare a National Memorial to the
  Queen to dissolve the present Parliament, and
  call to her council such ministers only as will
  make the People's Charter a cabinet measure.

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The age of Reform

• 2nd That this Convention agree to the
  convocation of a National Assembly, to consist of
  delegates appointed at public meetings, to
  present the National Memorial to the Queen, and
  to continue permanently sitting until the Charter
  is the law of the land.

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The age of Reform

• 3rd That this Convention call upon the country
  to hold simultaneous meetings on Good Friday,
  April 21st, for the purpose of adopting the
  National Memorial, and electing delegates to the
  National Assembly.
• 4th That the National Assembly meet in London
  on April 24th.
• 5th That the present Convention shall continue
  its sittings until the meeting of the National
  Assembly.

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The age of Reform

• Great demonstration 10 April 1848 (time of
  European unrest and revolution, e.g. France).
  Massive demonstration, but also massive
  preparations for police, special constables etc

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• "Chartist Meeting, Kennington Common" from
  Wikipedia, Chartism

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The age of Reform

• At Kennington Common some 20-50,000 people
  assembled to form a procession to deliver the
  petition. However the petition was delivered by a
  small delegation and the Chartists dispersed,
  recognising the authorities had the stronger
  hand.
• Why did they not begin a revolution, while much
  of Europe was going through the turmoil of revolt
  (France, Germany, Italy, ...)?

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The age of Reform

• Chartism then seemed to peter out. Its aims were
  however gradually realised, except for the demand
  for an annual parliament, by the time of the 1867
  Second Reform Act, which substantially increased
  the number of people who could vote.

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The Victorian era

• Queen Victoria 1837 after death William IV.
• Young Queen, married Albert of Saxe-Coburg and
  Gotha with whom she had 6 children.
• Tended to interefere in government more than
  would normally be considered constitutionally
  proper (e.g. contacting commanders in the field
  without informing minister)

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The Victorian era

• Great Exhibition 1851. Crystal Palace.
• Britain "was the world's leading industrial
  power, producing more than half its iron, coal
  and cotton cloth." http//www.bbc.co.uk/history/lj
  /victorian_britainlj/industry_invention_1.shtml
• Showed Britain's leading position in
  manufacturing etc
• Successful and profitable.
• Taste for Gothic architecture see Houses of
  Parliament and Royal Courts of Justice in the
  Strand. Also Italianate styles see Foreign Office.

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The Victorian era

• Indian Mutiny 1857 (Sepoys Revolt, ...)
• 1862 Albert died and a distraught Queen Victoria
  withdrew from public life
• until Disraeli (Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative
  PM) persuaded her to return to public life as
  Empress of India 1876.
• Imperial expansion. Disraeli brought shares of
  Suez Canal.

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The Victorian era

• Fighting in Sudan (Gordon of Khartoum 1888).
• Afghan wars
• Fachoda 1898
• Ireland and Home Rule
• Gladstone (Liberal PM) believed Ireland should be
  allowed to govern its own affairs. However the
  Home Rule Bill was defeated in 1886.
• Second Home Rule Bill introduced by Gladstone in
  1893 passed by Commons but defeated by Lords.

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The Victorian era

• Disraeli died 1881, Gladstone 1898.
• Victoria died 1901.
• Edward VIII
• Edwardian period
• 1900 Labour Representation Committee (1906 Labour
  party)
• Drift towards WWI imperial rivalry
• entente cordiale 1904

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The Edwardian era

• 1905 Liberal government
• Liberals strengthened trade unions (protection
  from liability for losses caused by strikes).
• Attempted to introduce extensive welfare
  provision.
• Opposed by Lords. Legislation vetoed 1909.

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The Edwardian era

• New general election Jan 1910. Liberals won again
  (with Labour). Again Dec 1910.
• 1911 new legislation limiting power of Lords
  (Parliament Act 1911). King had threatened to
  create 200 Liberal peers otherwise.