Britain 1783 - 1885 (Parliament Facts, Pitt the Younger George III and more)

Question 1

What color seats are in the house of commons?

Answer 1

Green

Question 2

In the 18th century, the House of Lords was made up solely of what type of lords?

Answer 2

Hereditary

Question 3

What was the 18th century middle class also known as?

Answer 3

The merchant class

Question 4

What is the technical term for having the vote

Answer 4

Franchise / Sufferage

Question 5

What colonies were lost in the 1782

Answer 5

The Americas

Question 6

Who was responsible for the loss of the colonies

Answer 6

Lord North

Question 7

Who was the reigning monarch during the 1782 Political Crisis

Answer 7

George III

Question 8

What were the King’s motives for appointing Pitt

Answer 8

He could be trusted
Appointing Pitt meant Fox could be kept out of office
So George II would have a PM that would strengthen and protect his position.

Question 9

When was Pitt appointed as PM

Answer 9

1783

Question 10

Who is Pitt

Answer 10

Pitt the younger - William Pitt the 24yr old Prime Minister, the youngest British PM ever.

Question 11

When did Pitt resign

Answer 11

1804

Question 12

When was the Mince Pie Election and why was it given its name.

Answer 12

1784 and the term mince pie election or government was coined after the ‘rigged’ election since people did not expect Pitt to last as PM past Christmas.

Question 13

What evidence suggests that the King ‘swung’ the election

Answer 13

The king gave Pitt a sizeable election fund to be at his disposal
The king used all influence possible in govt controlled boroughs.

Question 14

What were some of the problems Pitt faced after being elected as PM

Answer 14

He did not have majority support in Parliament
Government was at an Impasse

Question 15

What does it mean by Government at an Impasse

Answer 15

The parties in the Government are at a stalemate struggling to agree and find a point to agree on

Question 16

Why did Fox’s criticism backfire

Answer 16

He talked himself into a hole and ended up promoting views too radical for its time, pushing some of his supporters to Pitt’s side.

Question 17

How was Pitt able to survive as PM despite his lack of positional strength

Answer 17

His reliance on the King along with allowing Fox to talk himself down and staying silent.

Question 18

Did the King behave in a constitutional way

Answer 18

It could be argued that he didn’t as he was supposed to select a PM from the majority. However it could be argued that he did since there is no legislation, or rule specifying that he must do so.

Question 19

What did Pitt abolish or challenge upon arriving in office

Answer 19

He abolished consolidated Funds
Central Stationary Dept was controlled and Govt loans were put out to competition.
Cabinet and the PM’s office was also reorganised
The Bank of England that Controlled all tax revenues was also reorganised.

Question 20

What was the Sinking Fund

Answer 20

Pitt arranged the sinking fund in which every year the government would sink £1mil GBP to sink into a big pot each year to achieve

Question 21

What was the Excise Bill

Answer 21

The Excise bill was a bill introduced that allowed tax free imports and exports on tobacco, spirits alcohol and more.

Question 22

Which massive company had its own army?

Answer 22

The east India company

Question 23

What is a constitutional Monarch

Answer 23

When a King or Queen acts as head of state

Question 24

What did Crompton create and when did he create it

Answer 24

He created the spinning mule which made it easier to produce cotton and yarn thread. He created it in 1779

Question 25

When did the first official census of the population carried out

Answer 25

1801

Question 26

What was the Hovering Act

Answer 26

1787 - Allowed the government to confiscate ships caught within 4 miles of the shore that were perpetrating illegal activities (i.e smuggling illegal goods)

Question 27

What was the Consolidation Act

Answer 27

1787 - custom duties and excise duties were amalgamated so that goods qualified for one tax.