The repeal of the corn laws Flashcards
Why was the main focus of most conservative MPs agriculture?
They held county seats or were members for small market towns
How had the conservatives managed to win the 1841 election?
It had been fought and won in the shires based on the question of agricultural protection, which was under threat from the whigs
Why did the majority of Peel’s MPs disagree with his decision to lower the sliding scale?
Because they thought it might lead to the repeal of the corn laws and the loss of agricultural protection altogether, which they saw as a right
Why did they think that the repeal would be so negative?
- They thought that it would open the floodgates to cheap foreign corn, which would undercut and ruin them
- They also thought that it would lead to the unemployment of thousands of agricultural labourers, who would fill towns and create further problems
- They argued that it was against the interests of the nation to be dependent on foreign corn, in case there was a war
Why were middle class manufacturers actually in support of repeal?
Because it would keep their workers’ wages low
Give an example of a farmer who was actually in support of repeal?
George Hope
What does Hope think motivated Peel’s decision to repeal?
He stressed the pressure placed on the government by the anti corn law league rather than the potato famine, which he pays little attention to
What was the consequence for Peel?
He was faced with fierce opposition and resigned in Dec 1845
Why was this resignation short lived?
Lord John Russell failed to form a government and Peel returned as PM after months of bitter arguement with his party
What happened after he returned to the position?
The repeal passed through the commons in May 1846, with the support of the whigs. The loyalty of Wellington then allowed it to pass through the commons
Give a statistic to show how many people died due to the Irish famine?
The population went from 9 million in 1841 to 6.5 million in 1851
How many Irish died as a result of starvation?
An estimated 1 million
How did the situation get worse in 1849?
A cholera outbreak wiped out even more of a population already weakened by malnutrition
How many Irish emigrated?
1.5 million by 1851, mostly to the USA and Canada
What was the political impact of the famine in Ireland?
It increased resentment against British dominance and allowed for the emergence of a new nationalist movement in the 1860s
Why did the repeal of the corn laws do little to help the Irish?
It happened to slowly, being phased in over three years
What happened in 1846 to make matters worse?
The potato blight continued, bringing even more misery
When was their some economic recovery for Ireland?
In 1850, in line with the agricultural boom across the rest of Britain
Why did the repeal of the corn laws not have the effect that many thought it would?
There was no sudden fall in the price of corn, British farmers did not face ruin and the price of bread did not fall
Why was the repeal of some benefit to the poor?
It stopped the price of bread rising
Why were the 1850s such a period of prosperity for farming?
Because many of the agricultural improvements that were in progress in the 1840s became financially profitable, and the growing population stimulated agriculture, creating extra demand for food
What concept was the repeal a great victory for?
Free trade
Why was it important that the manufacturers arguement had been right and the landowners’ had been wrong?
It validated their growing influence in British politics
What was the consequence of Peel’s decision for the conservative party?
It split the party and they would not win a majority in parliament for over 30 years
Why did Boyd Hilton think this split was inevitable even before 1846?
Because Peel had been elected on a lie in 184, having ‘not made clear his intentions’ regarding the corn laws
Peel’s commitment to what caused him to bring down the party?
Free trade ideas and policies
What does Hilton call Peel’s repeal of the corn laws?
The climax of his economic strategy
How did Peel get around the fact that he could not commit to repeal in 1841 according to Hilton?
He left his speeches sufficiently vague to leave the door open
What does Hilton think that Peel’s spontaneous reaction to the Irish famine shows?
That he had been waiting for an opportunity to repeal
Why does Hilton think that Peel did not repeal just to help the Irish?
Because if he really was doing it to alleviate the famine, he should have suspended them immediately instead of phasing them out over three years
What does Gaunt say influenced Peel’s decision to enact repeal?
His growing respect for Ireland, the success of his tariff reform policy and the ready availability of income tax as a means of securing government revenue
What can we not be certain of in terms of Peel and his relation with repeal?
When it was that he became convinced that they would have to be repealed altogether
When is it likely that Peel would have become convinced that the corn laws needed to be repealed altogether?
At some point in the early 1840s
What did Peel recognise had happened to Britain by 1845?
It had nearly become a free trade nation
Why can we conclude that Peel’s free trade policies were working?
Because economic recovery was underway and there was less distress and disorder
What had Peel’s free trade measures and their success done to the corn laws?
Made them stand out even more starkly as an economic oddity that were becoming harder to justify
What were the two longer term issues that pushed Peel towards repeal?
Shortage of food and the threat of the anti-corn law league
How did shortage of food push Peel towards repeal?
Between 1815 and the 1840s, Britain’s population had risen by nearly 50% and the food supply was barely able to keep up. Europe’s food supply was also overstretched under the strain of population growth. The opening of Britain’s ports to foreign wheat might stimulate further continental production and lead to the opening of new sources of supply
How did the anti-corn law league push Peel towards repeal?
The League had potential to overthrow government by the landed classes. Peel knew that the corn laws were a powerful and hated symbol of aristocratic power. Therefore repeal would remove what Peel feared most of all…
Give a quote from Peel in which he explains what he feared most of all if the corn laws were not repealed?
‘A war between the manufacturers, the hungry and the poor against the landowners and aristocracy, which can only end in the ruin of the latter’
