a global power Flashcards
the bill of rights in 1689 - constitutional monarchy
read at the coronation of william and mary
- king can not raise taxes or administer justice without agreement from parliament
changed the balance of power between monarch and parliament
- confirmed the rights of parliament and the limits of the king’s power
parliament took control of who could be monarch and declared they must be a protestant
- new parliament had to be elected at least ever three years (became seven years, and is now five years)
beginning of party politics
monarch needed advisers or ministers who would be able to ensure a majority of votes in the house of commons and the house of lords
two main groups in parliament - whigs and tories
development of a free press
from 1695, newspapers allowed to operate without government licence
increasing numbers of newspapers published
constitutional monarchy
monarch still important but can not insist on particular policies/actions if parliament does not agree
after William III, ministers gradually became more important but not a democracy in the modern sense
- number of people with the right to vote for members of parliament very small: only men who owned property of a certain value were able to vote
some constituencies controlled by a single wealthy family - pocket boroughs
- other constituencies had hardly any voters and were called rotten boroughs
growing population
first Jews to come to Britain since the middle ages settled in 1565
between 1680 and 1720, refugees called Huguenots came from France
- Protestants that were persecuted for their religion
William and Mary’s successor
Anne
- no surviving children
uncertainty over succession
Act/Treaty of Union in Scotland - 1707
created the Kingdom of Great Britain
Scotland was no longer an independent country but kept its own legal and education systems and Presbyterian Church
Anne’s successor in 1714
Parliament chose a German, George I, to be the next king
- nearest Protestant relative
did not speak good English which increased his need to rely on his ministers
- most important minister as the Prime Minister
- first PM as Sir Robert Walpole, from 1721-1742
rebellion of the clans
in 1745, attempt to put a Stuart king on the throne in place of George I’s son, George II
- Charles Edward Stuart, the grandson of James II, landed in Scotland
- supported by clansmen from the Scottish highlands and raised an army
- defeated by George II’s army at the Battle of Culloden in 1746
clans lost power and influence after this
highland clearances
- Scottlish landlords destroyed individual small farms to make space for large flocks of sheep/cattle
- evictions were common
Robert Burns, the Bart
Scottish poet
wrote in the Scots language, revised traditional folk songs by changing/adding lyrics
best known work as Auld Lang Syne
- called Hogmanay in Scotland
the Enlightenment
during the 18th century, new ideas about politics, philosophy and science developed
- many thinkers were Scottish
Adam Smith developed ideas about economics, David Hume’s ideas about human nature
James Watt’s work on steam power helped the progress of the Industrial Revolution
one of the most important principles of the Enlightenment was that everyone should have the right to their own political and religious beliefs, and that the state should not try to dictate them
the Industrial Revolution
before the 18th century, agriculture was the biggest source of employment
rapid development of industry in the 18th and 19th centuries
- Britain as the first to industrialise on a large scale
- development of machinery and the use of steam power
- agriculture and the manufacturing of goods became mechanised
development of the Bessemer process for the mass production of steel led to the development of the shipbuilding industry and the railways
Richard Arkwright
originally trained and worked as a barber but shifted to textiles
improved the original carding machine
- carding as the process of preparing fibres for spinning into yarn and fabric
developed horse-driven spinning mills that used only one machine
- increased the efficiency of production
- used the steam engine to power machinery
why were canals built?
better transport links to transport raw materials and manufactured goods
built to link factories to towns and cities and pots in the new industrial areas
poor working conditions during the Industrial Revolution
no laws to protect employees who were forced to work long hours in dangerous situations
children also worked and were treated in the same way as adults
increased colonisation overseas
Captain James Cook mapped the coast of Australia and a few colonies were established there
Britain gained control over Canada, and the East India Company, originally set up to trade, gained control of large parts of India
- colonies established in southern Africa as well
Sake Dean Mahomet
born in 1759 and grew up in the Bengal region of India
served in the Bengal army and came to Britain in 1782
- moved to Ireland and eloped with Jane Daly in 1786
returned to England and opened the Hindoostane Coffee House in 1810 (first curry house)
- also introduced shampooing, the Indian art of head massage
the slave trade
commercial expansion and prosperity sustained in part by the slave trade
- fully established industry overseas dominated by British and American colonies, despite being illegal within Britain
slaves came primarily from West Africa, travelling on British ships in horrible conditions, and were taken to America and the Caribbean, where they were made to work on tobacco and sugar plantations
opposition to the slave trade
first formal anti-slavery groups set up by the Quakers in the late 1700s, who petitioned Parliament to ban the practice
William Wilberforce, an MP, played an important part in changing the law
- along with other abolitionists, he succeeded in turning public opinion against the slave trade
in 1807, illegal to trade slaves in British ships or from British ports
in 1833, Emancipation Act abolished slavery througohut the British empire
after 1833, 2M Indian and Chinese workers were employed to replace freed slaves
the American war of independent
by the 1760s, substantial British colonies in north America
- wealthy and largely in control of their own affairs
British government wanted to tax colonies, who saw this as an attack on their freedom
- said there should be no taxation without representation
Parliament tried to compromise by repealing taxes, but relationships worsened
- fighting broke out between colonists and British forces
in 1776, 13 American colonies declared their independence, stating that people had a right to establish their own governments
- colonists defeated the British army, and Britain recognised their independence in 1783
war with France in the 18th century
in 1789, revolution in France and the new government declared war on Britain
- Napoleon, who became Emperor, continued the war
Britain’s navy fought against French and Spanish fleets, winning the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805
- Admiral Nelson in charge of the British fleet and was killed in battle
- Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square as a monument to him
- his ship HMS Victory can be seen at Portsmouth
in 1815, French Wars ended with the defeat of Napoleon by Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo
- Wellington known as the Iron Duke and later became PM
the Union Flag
Ireland remained a separate country until 1801 where it became unified after the Act of Union of 1800
- created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
symbol of the union was the official flag, also called the Union Jack
- combined crosses associated with England, Scotland and Ireland
cross of St George, patron saint of England as a red cross on a white ground
cross of St Andrew, patron saint of Scotland, as a diagonal white cross on a blue ground
cross of St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, as a diagonal red cross on a white ground
Welsh flag
shows a Welsh dragon
does not appear on the Union Flag because when the first Union Flag was created in 1606 from the flags of Scotland and England, Wales already united with England
the Victorian age
in 1837, Queen Victoria became queen of the UK at the age of 18
reigned until 1901, almost 64 years
- longest reign of any British monarch
time when Britain increased in power and influence abroad
- within the UK, middle classes became increasingly significant and a number of reformers led moves to improve conditions of life
the British empire during the Victorian period
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
repealing of the Corn Laws in 1846
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
better working conditions
in 1847, number of hours that women and children could work was limited to 10 hours daily
better housing began to be built
better transport links
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
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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
British industry led the world in the 19th century
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
the Crimean War
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
Florence Nightingale
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
Ireland in the 19th century
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
the right to vote
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
movement for the right to vote
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
women and the right to vote
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
Emmeline Pankhurst
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
the future of the empire
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
Rudyard Kipling
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
