The Growth Of Parliamentry Democracy Flashcards
(43 cards)
What were the Six Acts of 1819?
1) Restrictions on Public Meetings
2) Gave power to search for and seize arms
3) Gave power to seize blasphemous publications
4) Banned Paramilitary training
5) Newspapers had a 4D duty, making them more expensive
6) Sped up procedure for bringing treason cases to trial
When was the french revolution?
1789
When did the American war of independence end?
1783
When was Lord Liverpool Prime minister?
1812-1827, he died in 1828
What was the Peterloo Massacre?
1819 in which Henry Hunt spoke to a crowd in manchester demanding universal suffrage.
A second meeting in august had 60,000 people. The yeomanry tried to arrest Hunt but were swarmed by the crowed. The 15th Hussar were called in, killing 11 people and wounding 400-600
What was the cato street conspiracy?
1820, in which a group planned to assassinate Lord Liverpool’s cabinet. They aimed to trigger uprisings across the country. A government spy knew the plan. The leader and his conspirators were arrested 3 months later. 5 others were transported.
What was the people’s charter?
The 6 beliefs of the chartists
What did the chartists support?
1) Suffrage for every man over 21 (no a criminal record)
2) The secret Ballot
3) No property Qualifications for parliament
4) Payments from MPs to ensure devotion
5) Equal Constituencies - Constituencies represent the same number of electors
6) Annual parliament elections
How did Economic Issues and The 1832 Reform Act cause Chartism?
Economic issues:
The economically worse hit areas, such as Lancashire, were the chartist’s greatest supporters
Great Reform Act: The reform act had neglected the working class The London Working Men's Assocation (LWMA) drew up the people's charter in 1837 for more radical reform
What were the plug riots?
1842, followed the rejection of the second petition.
500,000 workers in yorkshire went on strike and broke factory boilers. Spread to 15 english and Welsh counties. 1000 chartists were arrested. However the government did agree to cancel wage reductions.
Describe the First Petition of the Chartists
- 1839
- 1.2 Million signatures
- Parliament rejected it with 235 votes to 46
- A retaliation strike was planned but was met with 6000 troops to “keep peace”
Describe the Second Petition of the chartists
- 1842
- Major Economic recession at the time
- 3.3 Million Signatures
- Rejected by 287 Votes to 49
Describe the Third Petition by the Chartists
- 1848
- This was the final Petition of the Chartists
- 5.7 Million signatures but only 2 million were real
- 1848 French Revolution increased confidence in the chartists
Why did Chartism Fail?
1) Lack of middle class support (post great reform act)
2) Chartism support grew during economic crisis and so fell during positive reforms (e.g mines act 1842)
3) Parliament may have seen change as already occurred, not seeing the need for the petitions. Violent riots only harshened their support from MPs.
4) Regional differences - It was strongest in the north. But no attempt was made to mass coordinate the action. This division made it easy for parliament to rule and go unaffected.
What did the 1836 Municipal Corporations Act do?
Town councils were now elected by all local male ratepayers
When was the Irish famine?
1845
What did the First Great Reform Act change?
- 42 new boroughs and 62 seats given to England counties
- Vote given to the middle class men
- Electorate rose from 366,000 to 650,000 (approx 18% of male population)
- More organisations to help people vote
- Politicians increasingly voted along with their party, making it easier to pass bills
When was the First Great Reform Act?
1832
What did the First Great Reform Act NOT change?
- Political system was still ran by land owners
- The motive of the whigs was to achieve moderate change to gain support of the middle class
- Too expensive to stand as an MP (needed income of £600)
- Voting was still public until 1872 (subject to corruption)
- Only 14 of the 103 individuals in the cabinet were Middle Class
- Only Two parties competiting
What did the 1815 Corn Law Do?
A bill that ensured the price of wheat reached 80 shillings a quarter before foreign grain was allowed to enter the market
This increased the price of wheat and was hated by the working class as they needed wheat to eat and sell. The middle class hated it for the political dominance of the landed elite
What issues did the Napoleonic war cause britain?
- Increased Tax, to pay £902 million national debt
- Napoleon blockade of britain from 1806
- 400,000 soldiers returned home post war, needing jobs
What was the population growth between 1801 - 1821
1801 - 10.5 Million
1811 - 12 Million
1821 - 14.1 Million
What and when were the Swing Riots?
1830, in which riots spread to 20 counties. Mostly involving arson and machine breaking.
In 1830, 200 petitions were sent to parliament demanding tax reductions.
What was the National Reform Union?
In 1864, it was a passive middle-class union that stood for:
• All male ratepayers
• Equally distributed seats across the country
• A secret ballot
