a global power Flashcards

Question

the British empire during the Victorian period

Answer 1

grew to cover India, Australia and large parts of Africa largest empire, with an estimated population of over 400M people between 1853 and 1913, as many as 13M British citizens left the country between 1870 and 1914, around 120,000 Russian and Polish Jews came to Britain

Answer 2

had prevented the import of cheap grain - helped the development of British industry, because raw materials could be imported more cheaply promotion of policies of free trade, abolishing a number of taxes on imported goods

Answer 3

in 1847, number of hours that women and children could work was limited to 10 hours daily better housing began to be built

Answer 4

George and Robert Stephenon pioneered the railway engine and a major expansion of the railways took place in the Victorian period railways build throughout the Empire

Answer 5

originally from Portsmouth engineer who built tunnels, bridges, railway lines and ships responsible for constructing the Great Western Railway, which was the first major railway built in Britain

Answer 6

produced more than half of the world's iron, coal and cotton cloth centre for financial services, including insurance and banking in 1851, the Great Exhibition opened in Hyde park in the Crystal Palace, a building made up of steel and glass

Answer 7

from 1853 to 1856, Britain fought with Turkey and France against Russia in the Crimean War first war to be extensively covered by the media through news stories and photographs conditions were poor and many soldiers died from illnesses caught in hospitals rather than war wounds Victoria Cross medal introduced - honours acts of valour by soldiers

Answer 8

born in Italy to English parents trained as a nurse in Germany at the age of 31 went to Turkey in 1854 and worked in military hospitals improved the conditions in hospitals and reduced mortality rate in 1860, established the Nightingale Training School for nurses at St Thomas' Hospital in London - school was the first of its kind and still exists founder of modern nursing

Answer 9

conditions were not as good - 2/3 of the population depended on farming to make their living, and potatoes as large part of diet in the middle of the century, the potato crop failed and Ireland suffered a famine - 1M died from disease and starvation - 1.5M left Ireland (by 1861, large populations of Irish people in cities) Irish Nationalist movement grew strongly through the 19th century - some, like the Fenians, favoured complete independence - others, like Charles Stuart Parnell, advocated Home Rule, where Ireland would remain the in the UK but have its own parliament

Answer 10

middle classes demanded more political power Reform Act of 1832 increased the number of people with the right to vote - also abolished old pocket and rotten boroughs - more parliamentary seats given to towns and cities - permanent shift of political power from countryside to towns but voting still based on ownership of property

Answer 11

campaigners, called the chartists, presented petitions to parliament - at first, unsuccessful in 1867, another reform act - created more urban seats in parliament and reduced the amount of property that people needed to have before they could vote - however, majority of men didn't have the right to vote and no women could vote politicians realised that the increased number of voters meant they needed to persuade people to vote for them if they wanted to be elected - political parties began to create organisations to reach out to voters universal suffrage followed in the next century

Answer 12

women in 19th century Britain had fewer rights than men until 1870, when a woman got married, her earnings, property and money automatically belonged to her husband acts of parliament in 1870 and 1882 gave wives the right to keep their own earnings and property in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, an increasing number of women campaigned and demonstrated for greater rights and the right to vote - formed the women's suffrage movement and became known as suffragettes

Answer 13

born in Manchester set up the Women's Franchise League in 1889 - fought to get the vote in local elections for married women in 1902, helped found the Women's Social and Political Union - first group whose members were called suffragettes - used civil disobedience as part of their protest - many women went on hunger strike in 1918, women over the age of 30 were given voting rights and the right to stand for parliament, in recognition of the contribution women made to the war effort during WWI in 1928, women were given the right to vote at the age of 21, the same as men

Answer 14

grew until the 1920s, but there was discussion about its future direction - supporters of the expansion believed that it benefitted Britain through trade/commerce - others thought it was over-expanded and frequent conflicts were a drain on resources Boer War of 1899-1902 made discussions more urgent - British went to war in South Africa with settlers from the Netherlands called the Boers - fierce fighting and many died from fighting or disease as different parts of the empire developed, they won greater freedom and autonomy from Britain - orderly transition from Empire to Commonwealth by the second half of the 20th century

Answer 15

born in India, later lived in India, UK and USA wrote books/poems set in both India and the UK - reflected the idea that the British Empire was a force for good awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1907 just so stories, the jungle book