BRITAIN Breadth 1- Redistribution of seats

Question 1

How many parliamentary seats were there in England, Scotland and Wales in 1780?

Answer 1

558

Question 2

How many parliamentary seats were there in the UK in 1800?

Answer 2

658

Question 3

What legislation abolished the Irish parliament?

Answer 3

Act of Union of 1800

Question 4

How many county seats were there before the 1832 RPA?

Answer 4

122

Question 5

Which borough was notorious for buying and selling votes?

Answer 5

Suffolk town of Sudbury

Question 6

How many MPs did Cornwall return before the 1832 RPA?

Answer 6

44

Question 7

How many Scottish MPs were there in 1780?

Answer 7

45

Question 8

When did Pitt become PM?

Answer 8

December 1783

Question 9

When was the Yorkshire Association founded?

Answer 9

1780

Question 10

Who founded the Yorkshire Association?

Answer 10

Christopher Wyvill

Question 11

What was the aim of the Yorkshire Association?

Answer 11

To eliminate corruption in parliament

Question 12

When did Pitt make unsuccessful proposals to reform parliament?

Answer 12

1782; May 1783; April 1785

Question 13

What did Pitt propose in April 1785?

Answer 13

Abolition of 36 corrupt boroughs; transfer of their seats to London/counties

Question 14

What did Pitt propose in May 1783?

Answer 14

Vague suggestion to disenfranchise a number of corrupt boroughs and transfer their seats

Question 15

Why was Pitt’s April 1785 proposal such a failure?

Answer 15

George III was openly hostile to measure; no groundswell of opinion in the country as a whole for reform

Question 16

Who was Pitt’s chief opponent in the HoC?

Answer 16

Fox

Question 17

What had Fox long supported?

Answer 17

Reform

Question 18

Why did Fox oppose Pitt’s April 1785 proposal?

Answer 18

Refused to accept Pitt’s suggestion that £1 million should be made available to compensate owners of seats

Question 19

How did Pitt’s April 1785 bill fare in the HoC?

Answer 19

Defeated by 248 votes to 174

Question 20

Why did Pitt not take up the issue of reform again after the April 1785 bill?

Answer 20

French Revolution; explosive growth in radical activity and ideas

Question 21

When did Grey introduce a reform proposal that was almost identical to Pitt’s in 1785 and opposed by the latter?

Answer 21

1792

Question 22

When had Pitt the Elder proposed some measures of reform?

Answer 22

1750-60s

Question 23

When were issues about widespread corruption in the boroughs brought into sharp relief?

Answer 23

With controversy over Catholic relief in the late 1820s

Question 24

When was Peel elected as MP for Oxford University?

Answer 24

1817

Question 25

What led to Peel resigning his seat for Oxford University and forcing a by-election?

Answer 25

His support of Catholic Relief

Question 26

When did Peel resign his seat for Oxford University?

Answer 26

January 1829

Question 27

Why did Peel force a by-election for his seat for Oxford University?

Answer 27

In an attempt to regain support of the university's electors

Question 28

When was Peel defeated in the Oxford University by-elections?

Answer 28

February 1829

Question 29

How did Peel regain parliamentary influence after the disaster at Oxford University?

Answer 29

Sir Manasseh Lopes of Westbury in Wiltshire resigned his seat; towns' 3 electors awarded seat to Peel

Question 30

When did PM, Earl Grey, order a comprehensive review of the whole electoral system that would inform the government's proposals in the reform bill?

Answer 30

1830

Question 31

How many English towns had a population of over 10,000 people but returned no MPs in 1830?

Answer 31

33

Question 32

How many new borough seats were created as a result of the 1832 RPA?

Answer 32

44

Question 33

How many new county seats were created as a result of the 1832 RPA?

Answer 33

65

Question 34

How many boroughs lost both of their MPs as a result of the 1832 RPA?

Answer 34

56

Question 35

How many boroughs lost one of their MPs as a result of the 1832 RPA?

Answer 35

30

Question 36

What is an example of the lack of uniformity in the boroughs that persisted after the 1832 RPA?

Answer 36

Lancashire had an electorate of 1,497; Reigate had just 153- both returned 1 MP

Question 37

Which seat did Peel leave Westbury for in 1830?

Answer 37

Tamworth in Staffordshire

Question 38

Which larger towns still didn't have any representation after the 1832 RPA?

Answer 38

Yorkshire; Warwickshire

Question 39

Which organisation began to campaign for measures to remedy the imbalance in the distribution of seats as well as universal suffrage in the mid-1860s?

Answer 39

Reform League

Question 40

What was the imbalance in the distribution of seats before 1867?

Answer 40

334 borough MPs represented a total 9.5 million; 11.5 million people in counties had 162 MPs

Question 41

How many constituencies were created as a result of the 1867 RPA?

Answer 41

11

Question 42

How many extra seats were the English and Welsh counties allocated as a result of the 1867 RPA?

Answer 42

25

Question 43

How many new seats was Scotland given as a result of the 1867 RPA?

Answer 43

5 and 3 new university seats

Question 44

How were boroughs with a population below 10,000 affected by the 1867 RPA?

Answer 44

Lost one or both of their MPs

Question 45

Which large towns were assigned 3 MPs rather than their previous 2 as a result of the 1867 RPA?

Answer 45

Liverpool; Manchester; Leeds; Birmingham

Question 46

What suggested that Disraeli had miscalculated the effects of the 1867 redistribution on the Conservative Party?

Answer 46

1868 election

Question 47

How did the Conservatives fare in the 1868 election?

Answer 47

Lost 8 seats- Gladstone's Liberals stormed to power with a substantial majority

Question 48

Why did the 1867 RPA have such an important effect on the counties?

Answer 48

New 25 seats strengthened landed interest; creation of new borough seats meant that their electorates wouldn't be voting in counties, where they might challenge the nobility

Question 49

When was the Ballot Act?

Answer 49

1872

Question 50

What was different about the Ballot Act from most of the other reform legislation passed?

Answer 50

It wasn't controversial

Question 51

Where was the most important short-term effect of the Ballot Act seen?

Answer 51

Irish Home Rule movement grew dramatically over next 20 years

Question 52

How effective was the Ballot Act?

Answer 52

While it may have ended some of the worst forms of malpractice, its initial effects weren't clear

Question 53

When was the Corrupt Practices Act?

Answer 53

1883

Question 54

When was Gladstone's 2nd ministry?

Answer 54

1880-85

Question 55

What led to the Corrupt Practices Act?

Answer 55

MPs were scandalised by widespread bribery and corruption that had taken place during 1880 election

Question 56

When was Sudbury disenfranchised for corruption?

Answer 56

1844

Question 57

What did the Corrupt Practices Act do?

Answer 57

Set stringent limits on campaign expenses; candidates and their agents were required to keep detailed records of expenditure

Question 58

What was the impact of the Corrupt Practices Act?

Answer 58

Finally brought end to culture of electoral corruption

Question 59

What were the stringent limits put on campaign expenses in England and Wales as a result of the Corrupt Practices Act?

Answer 59

Candidates could spend no more than £710 for first 2,000 votes and £40 for each additional 1,000 voters

Question 60

When was the Redistribution Act?

Answer 60

1885

Question 61

Why was it a surprise that the Marquess of Salisbury pushed for the Redistribution Act?

Answer 61

Resigned from Derby's cabinet in 1867 in opposition to Disraeli's proposed reforms

Question 62

What changed the Marquess of Salisbury's mind about reform?

Answer 62

Conservative victory in 1874 convinced him that the extension of the franchise hadn't damaged Tory Party

Question 63

Which group was only of limited value to the Conservatives in reality?

Answer 63

Suburbans

Question 64

What kind of redistribution of seats did the Arlington Street Compact favour?

Answer 64

Equal electoral districts

Question 65

How many MPs sat in multi-member constituencies in 1885?

Answer 65

70%

Question 66

When were boundary commissioners appointed to determine the new electoral geography?

Answer 66

1884

Question 67

What did the Redistribution Act do?

Answer 67

28 boroughs with populations of over 50,000 remained as two-member constituencies; in all other cases single-member seats were established

Question 68

When did MPs drawn from industry and commerce outnumber those related to the aristocracy for the first time?

Answer 68

General election of 1885

Question 69

What provided the biggest single boost to the Conservative Party throughout the period?

Answer 69

Redistribution Act 1885

Question 70

Why did Salisbury push for single-member constituencies?

Answer 70

Believed that it would provide significant electoral benefits for the Tories

Question 71

When was the Easter Rising in Ireland?

Answer 71

1916

Question 72

What was the redistribution of seats like with the 1918 RPA?

Answer 72

Some major towns and cities gained seats- limited growth of urban influence in the counties