Repeal of Corn Laws Flashcards
Who was the prime minister in charge during repeal?
Sir Robert Peel
what are the corn laws/ their goals
tariff on grain entering Britain (corn=wheat)
- goal was to promote the growth of wheat
- classic mercantilist measure (regulate trade to allow gov to collect taxes)
- want to support the population who were living off of bread
- allows for price floor for British wheat (will make farmers want to produce more)
What were the two major parties in Britain
- Conseratives (or Tories) led by Sir Robert Peel
- -conservative on everything
- Whigs (will become the Liberals)
- -composed of many factions
describe Peel’s gov/ ttime in power
- Peel wins 1841 election: to do with budget issues brought/maintained by whigs
- 1842 budget, Peel reduces many tariff rates by small amounts–leaves corn laws alone–because they were so high, nobody bothered to import anything
- Peel’s government balances the budget
- Corn Laws remain under attack : critics apply classical liberal logic, gather public support
describe the effect of the Potato Famine in Ireland on the Corn Laws
- began in 1845
- Corn laws don’t cover Ireland, it would be unaffected by corn law repeals
- wheat grown in Ireland during Potato famine is being shipped to Britain
- bad weather causes disease that kills potatoes (1845)-debate about severity
- feel worried about wheat getting similar disease
- how can government justify tax on Britain, if buying food from US and shipping it to Ireland
Describe peel’s resignation and his return to office
- Dec. 1845, Peel resigns (because party isn’t behind him on corn law repeal), but Whigs (under Lord Russell) fail to form a government
- Peel returns to office; proposes gradual Repeal (over 3 years)
- –will also help farmers move into different agricultural sectors
- Repeal passes in 1846 but splits Tories
- Peel’s government falls afterwards
What are system-level explanations for repeal?
realist view: Britain hegemonic (Krasner)
- Britain is most powerful, its actions will influence other countries
- the only industrialized country–Britain great at manufacturing, needs agricultural goods
- –wants free trade because they are stronger in this
- Britain triumphant in Napoleonic Wars– militarily on top
- Krasner: Britain promotes free trade to benefit itself
What are the criticisms of Krasner’s argument?
- timing wrong (McKeown)–why wasn’t it after Battle of Waterloo? (1815)
- Britain’s action unilateral
- realist counter: British market a positive form of power (James and Lake)
What are domestic-level arguments on repeal?
- repeal=domestic legislation
- tied to other issues (taxes)–want to collect money
- -Peel would have to bring back income tax (usually only there in war)
- hotly debated in domestic products
- trade policy generates domestic winners and losers (due to specialization)
- Issues described by Marxists and by several arguments within analytical liberalism
Describe Britain’s endowments
- comparative advantage in producing goods that nee labour rather than land
- Britain relatively rich in capital and labour, poor in land
- reflected in content in trade
- high population density, high amount of capital per worker
Apply Stolper Samuelson to the Repeal of Corn Laws
capitalists and labourers prefer free trade; landowners prefer protection
- urban(capitalists)/rural (landowners) cleavage (Rogowski)–coalitions will form, one vs. other: aristocrats-protectionism, workers-free trade
- doesn’t help explain hy repeal occurs
Apply sector-specificity in Britain
- some sectors that are internationally competing (export competing) and some domestically competing (import competing)
- also interested in agriculture and manufacturing sectors:
- -capital-intensive manufacturing (iron)
- -labour-intensive manufacturing
- -capital intensive agriculture
- -labour intensive agriculture
- -land intensive agriculture
land-intensive industries prefer protection
capital intensive farmers may benefit from repeal
Describe Anti-Corn Law league and its importance
-formed by textile manufacturers from Manchester (centre of British textile industry)
-early example of Lobbying group
-Leaders: Richard cobden and John Bright (will give speeches about the positive effects of repeal)
-1839
-registered voters in rural areas: got people to buy land to register as voters, creating voters
(a sort of pressure tactic): tories worried about how now voters will vote in the future
-very successful–built broad movement (won some seats in 1841)
-disbanded after repeal
Who has political power in Britain in 1840s
landowners, specifically aristocrats through house of Lords
- wealthy urban representation increase in Parliamentary Reform Act of 1832
- -this act redrew boundaries of seats to reflect industrialization. “liberalized” voting a bit
Who were the chartist
working class who demanded democratic political reforms (adult male suffrage)
