A global power Flashcards
What marked the beginning of the Constitutional monarchy
The laws passed after the Glorious Revolution, including the Bill of Rights (1689) which confirmed the rights of Parliament and the limits of the king’s power.
What limits did the monarchy have after the Bill of Rights was passed
Parliament took control of who could be monarch and declared that the queen or king must be Protestant and every year the monarch had to ask Parliament to renew funding for the army and the navy
What are the first 2 political parties in Parliament
The Tories (a term also used when referring to the modern Conservative Party) and the Whigs
How often did a new Parliament need to be elected
At least every 3 years
Later every 7 years
Now every 5 years
How could a monarch govern effectively considering the new powers of Parliament
They would need advisers, or ministers, who would be able to ensure the majority of the votes in the House of Commons and the House of Lords
How often did a new Parliament need to be elected
At least every 3 years
Later every 7 years
Now every 5 years
1695
Newspapers were allowed to operate without government licence leading o tan increased number of newspapers being published
What happened to the power of eh monarchy after Wiliam III
Ministers gradually became more important than the monarch
Who was allowed to vote in the early days of the constitutional monarchy
Men who owned property of a certain value
What was a Pocket Borough
A parliamentary borough where potentially a single man or family can control the vote
What was a Rotten Borough
A parliamentary borough with few voters (e.g. where the population had declined)
1656
The first Jews to come to Britain since the Middle Ages settled in London
1680-1720
French Protestant refugees called Huguenots settle in Britain. Many were skilled and worked as scientists, in banking, or in weaving or other crafts
Queen Anne
Successor of William III and Mary
Had no surviving children
What was the Act of Union, known as the Treaty of Union in Scotland
Agreed in 1707, creating the Kingdom of Great Britain and although Scotland was no longer an independent country, it kept its own legal and education systems and Presbyterian Church
George I
German
Successor to Queen Anne because he was her nearest Protestant relative
Didn’t speak enough English making him reliant on his ministers
Sir Robert Walpole
the first Prime minister who served in the role form 1721-1742
1745
Charles Edward Stuart (Bonne Prince Charlie) the grandson of James II, landed in Scotland. He was supported by clansmen from the Scottish Highlands snd raised an army
1746
Charles Edward Stuart was defeated by George I at the Battle of Culloden and escaped back to Europe
What happened in Scotland after the Battle of Culloden
Scottish clans lost a lot of their power and influence
Chieftains became landlords only with the favour of the English king
Clansmen became tenants
Highland Clearances
Scottish landlords destroyed crofts (individual small farms) to make space for large flocks of sheep and cattle
What prompted the movement of Scottish people to North America during the 19th century
common Evictions during the Highland clearances
Robert Bruns (‘The Bard’)
A Scottish poet who wrote in the Scots language, English with some Scottish words and in standard English
He revised many traditional fold songs
Aud Lang Syne
The Enlightenment
During the 18th century
New ideas about politics, philosophy and science were developed
Individual right to determine religious beliefs
Many great thinkers were Scottish
How often did a new Parliament need to be elected
At least every 3 years
Later every 7 years
Now every 5 years
Great Thinkers of the Enlightenment
Adam Smith = economics
David Hume’s = ideas about human nature which continue to influence philosophers
James Watt = work on steam power that helped the progress of the Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution
In Britain in the 18th and 19th century
Development of machinery and the use of steam power
Agriculture and the manufacturing of goods became mechanised
Urbanisation
Cottage industries
People worked from home to produce goods such as cloth and lace
How did the Bessemer Process impact industry
The liquid steel production process led to the development of the shipbuilding industry and the railways
Manufacturing jobs became the main source of employment in Britain
Richard Arkwright (1732-1792)
Improved the original carding machine
Carding is the process of preparing fires for spinning into yarn and fabric
Developed horse-driven spinning mills
Ran factories efficiently and profitably
Developments during the Industrial Revolution
Better transport links including the building of canals
Poor working conditions, children treated like adults if not worse, no rights = long hours + dangerous work environment
Overseas colonisation, establishment of colonies in Australia, the EIC takes control of large parts of India
Trade and importing of goods from all over the world
How often did a new Parliament need to be elected
At least every 3 years
Later every 7 years
Now every 5 years
Sake Dean Mahomet (1759-1851)
Opened the Hindoostane Coffee House in George Street which was the first curry house to open in Britain
Him and his wife also introduced shampooing (the Indian art of head massage) to Britain
How did the slave trade operate
Primarily from West Africa, enslaved individuals were transported on British ships to work on tobacco and sugar plantations in America and the Caribbean
Which helped to sustain the commercial expansion and prosperity of the Industrial Revolution
How often did a new Parliament need to be elected
At least every 3 years
Later every 7 years
Now every 5 years
1807
The slave trade became illegal
1833
Slavery was abolished throughout the British Empire with the introduction of the Emancipation Act
The Royal Navy stopped slave ships from other countries, freed the slaves and punished the slave traders
Who set up the first formal anti-slavery group
The Quakers int eh 1700s who petitioned Parliament to ban the practice
William Wilberforce
An evangelical Christian and MP who with the abolitionists succeeded in turning public opinion against the slave trade
William Wilberforce
An evangelical Christian and MP who with the abolitionists succeeded in turning public opinion against the slave trade
How were the freed slaves replaced after the abolishment of slavery
2 million Indian and Chinese workers were employed to replace the freed slaves
They worked on sugar plantations in the Caribbean, in mines in SA, on railways in East Africa and the army in Kenya
1776
After a period of Britain attempting to tax the American colonies without giving them representation in parliament, 13 American colonies declared their independence stating that
1783
Britain recognised the American colonies’ independence
17889
Revolution in France and the new French government soon declare war on Britain which Napoleon (who became Emperor of France) continued
1805
Britain’s navy fought against combined French and Spanish fleets, winning the Battle of Trafalgar.
Admiral Nelson
In charge of the British fleet at Trafalgar and was killed in battle
Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square
His ship HMS Victory can be visited in Portsmouth
1815
French wars ended with the defeat of the Emperor Napoleon by the Duke of Wellington (aka the Iron Duke who later became Prime Minister) at the Battle of Waterloo
1801
Ireland became unified with England, Scotland and Wales after the Act of Union of 1800 - creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The Union Flag (Jack) consists of what 3 crosses
The cross of St George, patron saint of England, which is red on white background
The cross of St Andrew, patron saint of Scotland, which is a diagonal white cross on a blue background
The cross of St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, which is a diagonal red cross on a white ground
Why does the Welsh dragon not appear on the Union Flag
When the first Union Flag was created in 1606 from the flags of Scotland and England, the Principality of Wales was already united with England
1837-1901
The Victorian Age which saw an increase in increase in power and influence for Britain abroad
Rising middle class
Reforms for improving the lives of the poor
Queen Victoria becomes queen of the UK at age 18, ruling until 1901
The British Empire
India, Australia and large parts of Africa
One of the largest ever
Approximately 400 million people
1853-1913
13 million British citizens leave the country as people were encouraged to settle overseas
1870-1914
Approximately 120 000 Russian and Polish Jews came to Britain to escape persecution
1846
Corn Laws repealed = an example of the British government beginning to promote free trade
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-59)
An engineer responsible for constructing the Great Western Railway
1853-1856
Britain fought with Turkey and France against Russia
First war with photographic media coverage
Hospital conditions were so poor that there were deaths from illnesses caught there
The Victoria Cross medal was introduced
Florence Nightingale (1820-1910)
At the age of 31 she trained to be a nurse in Germany and in 1860 she established the Nightingale Training School for nurses at St Thomas’ Hospital in London (the first of its kind)
Fenian
19th century Irish revolutionary nationalist organisation which favoured complete independence from the United Kingdom
Charles Stuart Parnell
An Irish politician who advocated ‘Home Rule’, in which Ireland would remain in the UK but have its own parliament
The Reform Act of 1832
Greatly increased the number of people who could vote, got rid of the old pocket and rotten boroughs and more parliamentary seats were given to the towns and cities
The Chartist
Campaigned from 1836 for
worker’s right to vote
a salary for MPs
secret ballot
general elections
abolition of the need to own property
Until 1870…
…When a woman got married her earnings, property and money automatically belonged to her husband
Emmeline Pankhurst (1858-1928)
Born in Manchester
Set up the Women’s Franchise League in 1889 which fought to get the vote in local elections for married women
1903
Emmeline Pankhurst helped found the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU). This was the first group whose members were called ‘suffragetes’
1918
Women over the age fo 30 were given the right to
1928
Women were given the right tot vote at the age of 21, the same as men
The Boer War in South Africa (1899-1902)
The British went to war in South Africa with settlers from the Netherlands called the Boers
Saw the start of a strong demand for independence by parts of the British empire
Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)
Writing promoted the British Empire as a force for good
He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1907
He wrote the ‘Just So Stories’ and ‘The Jungle Book
His poem ‘If’ has often been voted among the the UK’s favourite poems
