Britain- B2- Changing Influences in Parliament and Impact of Reforms Flashcards
When was a motion passed by the House of Commons criticising the power of the Crown?
1780
When did the Whigs unite with the Liberals and the Peelites to form the Liberal Party?
1859
Who was responsible for the creation of a basic welfare state?
Liberals in the years before 1914
When and why did Lloyd George resign as PM?
1922 after his conservative-liberal coalition government fell apart
When did the LRC change its name to the Labour Party?
1906
When did Labour become the second biggest party in government?
1922
When did George III come to the throne?
1760
How did George III’s ascension affect politics?
He upset established conventions because he was keen to play an active role in government
When was Pitt’s first government?
1783–94
How many MPs were in Grey’s ministry in 1830?
3
What was the composition of Pitt’s first cabinet?
3 members of HoC; 9 members of HoL
In the 1780s, who were the most influential opposition group in the HoC?
Rockingham Whigs
Who led the Rockingham Whigs?
Edmund Burke
When did Burke present a reform plan to the HoC?
1780
What did Burke attack in his reform plan?
High expenditure that went on maintaining the royal court
What contributed to the collapse of the Yorkshire Association and other similar bodies and why?
Fall of North’s government in 1782; end of American war in 1783. As marked the end of the immediate political crisis, the sense of urgency diminished.
What was Pitt’s main aim as PM?
To bring the national finances under control
When did Pitt die?
1806
What contributed after 1810 to the declining influence of the Crown over the HoC?
Fading mental powers of George III
What legislation was especially important in reducing the influence of successive monarchs over parliament?
Reform Act 1832, as it shifted power away from patronage as their was increased representation of the people.
Who won the general election of 1832?
Whigs and their allies
Why and when did William IV dismiss Lord Melbourne as PM?
In 1834 as he was worried about the Whigs’ proposals for reforms to the Irish church
Who did William IV invite to form a government in Lord Melbourne’s place?
Peel
Why and when did Lord Melbourne return to office?
Melbourne returned in 1835, as Peel’s Conservatives only had 175 seats and so he asked for immediate dissolution of Parliament. However, in the Jan 1835 election they only gained 100 Conservative seats, not enough to form a stable government.
When did Victoria come to the throne?
1837
When did Lord Melbourne resign, following a defeat in the HoC?
1839
Who did Victoria invite to form a government after Lord Melbourne resigned?
Peel
When was the only time that Victoria acted against the wishes of her PMs?
Bedchamber Crisis
What and when was the Bedchamber Crisis?
It was in 1839. It was customary for incoming PM to appoint his allies to posts within royal household; Acting on Melbourne’s advice, Victoria refused to change her ladies; Peel refused to become PM under such restrictions and Lord Melbourne returned to office… again.
What happened as soon as George V succeeded to the throne?
Immediately involved in a major constitutional crisis over the HoL
When was a bill to grant Home Rule for Ireland passed through both the HoC and the HoL?
1914
Who briefly considered applying a royal veto to the measures for Irish Home Rule?
George V
When was George V widely praised for his tactful and helpful attitude?
Following his appointment of Ramsay MacDonald in 1924
How did the Reform Act 1832 work in the favour of the aristocracy in some ways?
Increased number of seats in counties- had more control of elections and choice of MP; enfranchised tenants of agricultural land- relied on goodwill of landowners and voted as they wished.
How many seats are estimated to have remained under direct aristocratic control after the Reform Act 1832?
60
How many MPs elected in 1841 came from the middle classes?
1/5
How many MPs elected in 1841 were related to peers/country gentry?
70%
What was a significant factor in reducing aristocratic influence in the HoC?
Creation of the single-member constituency in 1885
From when was there a gradual decline in the wealth of the nobility and gentry alike?
1880
What did the last 20 years of the 19th century see and why?
Fall in agricultural prices, as farmers struggled to compete with imports of cheap American corn
What also hit landed interest pretty hard?
Introduction of death duties in 1894
How many MPs elected in 1906 came from aristocratic/gentry families?
10%
When had aristocratic influence over elections and the HoC all but disappeared?
1928
Who made up Lord Salisbury’s (1895-1900) cabinet?
10 peers and 9 MPs
How did membership of the HoL grow between 1780–1910?
350 to 623
How many bishops made up the HoL?
26
When did the HoL challenge the HoC’s supremacy over financial affairs?
1909
When did Liberal defeat lead to a decade of Conservative rule?
1895
What were the House of Lords especially opposed to?
Gladstone’s long campaign to grant Home Rule in Ireland
What was the Liberal majority in the 1906 election?
A majority of 125 over all parties
What brought the conflict between the Lords and the Commons to a head?
Lloyd George and the 1909 Budget
What position did Lloyd George hold from 1908?
Chancellor of the Exchequer
When were pensions introduced?
1908
Which measures of the 1909 Budget did the Lords view as a class-based assault on the landed aristocracy?
A tax on the unearned increase in land values; a further tax on undeveloped land; a super tax on incomes above £8,000 a year
How did the House of Lords react to the 1909 Budget?
Rejected it by 350 votes to 75
What did the House of Commons decide two days after the Lords rejected the 1909 Budget?
Their action breached the constitution
As a result of the 1909 Budget, when was an election called and what was the outcome?
January 1910 and was a virtual stalemate
How did the Liberals remain in office after the January 1910 election?
Depended on the support of 71 Irish MPs and 41 Labour MPs
When was the Parliament Bill announced into the House of Commons?
April 1910
When did King Edward VII die suddenly?
6 May 1910
Who asked for a second election in 1910?
Asquith
What did Asquith also ask for from George V?
Agreement to create enough Liberal peers to pass the Parliament Bill
What result did the December 1910 election produce?
An almost identical outcome to January (stalemate)
When did the Parliament Act (finally) pass?
August 1911
What was the vote count for the passage of the Parliament Act?
131 votes to 114
What did the Parliament Act 1911 establish?
House of Lords could not reject or amend any money bill; life of Parliament reduced to 5 years
When did Pitt fall from power?
1801
What did the Whigs split over in the early 1790s?
The French Revolution. It divided opinion on whether the revolution’s ideals of liberty and equality were to be supported or feared.
When was there a period of almost unbroken Tory rule?
1782–1830
What were some hallmarks of Tory political philosophy up to 1830?
Law and order, defence of property, strong armed forces, moderate economic policies
When did Tory government become more moderate?
1820s
How did the Tory government become more moderate under Peel?
Relaxed restrictions on trade unions; reduced crimes carrying the death penalty; prison reforms
What did their long period in opposition allow the Whigs to do?
Develop their ideology
How were the Whigs able to return to power in 1830?
Exploited Tory divisions over religion; supported repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts and Catholic Emancipation
Why did Peel avoid supporting parliamentary reform in 1831–32?
He had already been criticised for supporting Catholic relief and didn’t want to further alienate his party
When was the Tory party soundly defeated?
December 1832
When did the Whig government pass reforms to please the new middle-class electorate? Give example.
1833–34. e.g. Factory Act 1833, limited hours of work for factory children.
Who succeeded Wellington as Tory leader?
Peel
What did Peel realise was necessary to strengthen the Tory Party?
Adapt to the political changes since 1828
When did Peel work to reform the Tory Party’s beliefs? And through what was this shown and when?
1832–41. Tamworth Manifesto (issued 1834-35 election campaign)
What was the Tamworth Manifesto?
Peel’s statement of intent to pursue mild reform, echoing Liberal Toryism of the 1820s
How did the Tories increase their representation at Westminster in the 1935 election?
Won 279 seats
When did the ‘Tories’ become the ‘Conservatives’ and why.?
1835 because ‘Conservative’ was a more moderate term, not tied to repression or anti-reform stances
When and what was the Lichfield House compact?
Whigs, Radicals, and Irish MPs agreed to work together to topple Peel’s government in February 1835
What did the Whigs promise the Irish MPs in return for support in the Lichfield House compact?
To work on resolving Irish grievances
When did the term ‘Liberal Party’ come into general use? When was the label officially adopted?
1835 in general use. 1839 it was officially adopted.
When did the Lichfield House compact begin to fall apart?
Late 1830s
What was the state of the Whigs in the 1841 general election?
Disunited coalition
Who won the 1841 election?
Conservatives, with a majority of 76
When did the Conservatives split again?
1845, over Ireland and Protestant ascendancy
What did Peel’s party collapse over/resign and when?
Repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846
What and when were the Corn Laws implemented?
1815- Laws limiting foreign corn imports to protect British farmers
Why were the Corn Laws repealed?
The Irish Famine of 1845
What did Peel and his supporters merge in the 1850s later become?
The Liberal Party
After Peel’s Conservatives collapsed, when did the party next form a majority government?
1874 with Disraeli
When was there a Whig-Peelite government?
1852–55
When did the Whigs and their allies reunite to bring down the government?
1858
When do most historians credit the creation of the Liberal Party to?
1859
What encouraged the development of the Liberal Party in the 1860s?
Financial reforms by Gladstone as Chancellor
When did Gladstone become leader of the Liberals and form his first government?
1868
When were many Liberals and other people becoming disillusioned with Gladstone’s government? Why?
1872, as more concerned with institutional and political issues rather than social reforms, and Gladstones insistence on tackling Irish problems didn’t appeal to all voters.
What did Disraeli decide in 1872? and through what did he do this?
To appeal to working-class voters and create a truly national party. Did this through his speeches such as to NUCCA members in 1872, in which he outlined ‘Tory Democracy’.
What is NUCCA?
National Union of Conservative and Constitutional Association
Who won the 1874 election?
Conservatives – first majority in nearly 30 years
When was Tory Democracy put into action and how? What was a limitation of this?
1874–76. Towns and cities empowered to address slum clearance and public health. However while some cities embraced their new powers, others didn’t, so limited impact.
When did Disraeli lose the election?
1880
After Disraeli, when was there almost unbroken Tory rule?
1885–1906
What did the Education Act 1870 (under Gladstone)do? What was its impact?
Allowed creation of board schools where existing provision was inadequate. Near-universal literacy by century’s end.
What was a feature of Gladstone’s Liberalism?
Investigation and rationalisation of national institutions (looking into institutions and making them more efficient).
When was the vote extended to the Irish peasantry?
Third Reform Act, 1884
When did the Liberals and Irish MPs combine to bring down Salisbury’s government?
1886
When and over what did Gladstone split the Liberal Party over?
1886, over Irish Home Rule
Who led the Conservatives after Disraeli?
Lord Salisbury
How many elections did Salisbury win?
3
What explains Salisbury’s success?
Liberal disunity; Conservative party unity
Which Salisbury measure ensured Tory dominance for decades?
Redistribution Act 1885
Who withdrew from the Liberal Party in 1886? and who did they support instead?
Whigs led by Hartington; radicals led by Chamberlain. Supported Salisbury’s Conservatives instead.
Who won the July 1886 election?
Conservatives – beginning a 20-year ascendancy
What did Chamberlain propose in 1903 that split the Conservatives?
Protective tariffs
How did the Tories perform in the 1906 election?
Reduced to 157 seats – lowest ever
What reunited the Liberal Party?
Opposition to Chamberlain’s 1903 tariff proposal
What terminally weakened the Liberal Party?
1910–14 HoL crises, civil war threats in Ireland, suffragette violence, trade union militancy, WWI
When did Gladstone resign as party leader?
1894, leaving Liberals weakened and demoralised.
What destabilised the Liberal Party after Gladstone?
Second Boer War (1899–1902)
Which Liberals supported the Boer War and the Conservative response?
Asquith and Grey
What challenged Gladstonian laissez-faire beliefs? Give specific evidence.
Boer War and early 1900s poverty investigations. exposed the extent of poverty, poor diets and insufficient health provisions as 1/3 of potential recruits for the Boer War were rejected due to poor health.
When were labour exchanges introduced? What did they do?
1909, very successful in helping men and women to find jobs.
What did the National Insurance Act 1911 do?
Offered health and unemployment insurance to a minority of workers
What social reforms did the Liberals introduce post-Boer War?
Free school meals, medical inspections, scholarships, pensions
How did WWI weaken the Liberals?
Undermined core Liberal values of peace, reform, and retrenchment
When did the Liberal Party split after WWI?
1916
Who became PM in 1916?
Lloyd George
When did Asquith form a wartime coalition with the Conservatives?
1915
How many Labour MPs were elected in 1918?
57
When did Lloyd George’s coalition collapse?
1922
What confirmed that the Liberals had been overtaken by Labour as the main opposition of the Conservatives?
Elections of 1923/1924
When was the Carlton Club formed?
1832
What did the Carlton Club function as?
Social club for Tory MPs rather than as a central hub for organising the party in parliament and the country
Who expanded the Carlton Club’s role and how/why?
Peel. To forge links between the national party and constituencies in the country
Who was appointed to reorganise the Conservative Party nationally during its re-brand?
F.R. Bonham
When and when was the Reform Club founded? Who did it become to unofficial headquarters for?
1836 in London. Unofficial headquarters of Liberals.
When did the importance of party organisation become very clear?
By late 1830s
Which was the first election fought by two clearly defined political parties?
1841
When was the first election in which the role of the monarch was insignificant?
1841
Who won the 1841 election? What was their majority?
Well-organised Conservative Party with an overall majority of 76
What took party organisation to a new level?
Birmingham Caucus by Joseph Chamberlain (strong supporter of Liberals).
What proved the success of the Birmingham Caucus system?
Birmingham was represented by 3 Liberal MPs for many years
When was the National Liberal Federation (NLF) formed?
1877, intended to spread caucus system throughout country.
What helped persuade Asquith to consider female suffrage at the Speaker’s Conference in 1916?
NLF’s pressure
When was the NUCCA founded?
1867
Who did Disraeli entrust with party reorganisation after his loss in the 1868 election? Why was he significant?
J.E. Gorst. He established the Central Office; recognised importance of new urban electorate; supported creation of Conservative clubs as social centres, especially for working men
What did the Central Office do?
Oversaw the selection of candidates for election
When did Disraeli die?
1881
Which organisation was formed in memory of Disraeli and when?
Primrose League in 1884
What did the membership of the Primrose League change from and to between 1884 and 1910?
Grew from 957 members in 1884 to 2 million in 1910
How many Primrose League members were women?
1/2
When did the Primrose League flourish?
Until WW1
What decreased the importance of the Primrose League?
Granting of female suffrage; opening of Conservative membership to men and women
Which working men’s associations were most popular post-1867?
Conservative clubs
Why did many middle-class Liberals switch to the Conservatives?
Alarmed by growing radicalism of party and Gladstone’s attempts to tackle the Irish question
Why did the Conservative Party fare better than the Liberals?
More effective organisation
What helped to secure the Liberal Party’s landslide victory in the 1906 election?
Operated very successful party machine post-1900; forged links with the LRC
Post-1900, when were there growing divisions within the Liberals?
1910
How did the Liberals split in 1916?
Between supporters of Asquith and Lloyd George
When did many Liberal supporters switch their allegiance to the growing Labour Party?
After 1918
When did the Liberals have the same substantial national network of associations as the Conservatives?
By the 1880s
When was the Independent Labour Party formed?
1893
When did real progress in promoting working-class interests come?
1867-85
How did Britain respond politically to the socialist ideas that were influencing European politics in the 1880s?
3 socialist organisations were formed
What were the socialist organisations formed in 1884?
Social Democratic Federation (SDF); Socialist League; Fabian Society
Why were the 1884 socialist organisations important?
Shifted political climate slightly away from laissez-faire individualism and towards a more collective attitude towards society
When did trade union membership reach a million?
1874
What did the economic downturn of the 1870s and 1880s lead to the growth of?
‘New Unionism’
What highlighted the changing nature of trade union activity?
Strike by female workers at the Bryant and May match factory in London in 1888
Who founded the Independent Labour Party?
Trade union delegates; representatives from the Fabians and the SDF
What did the ILP propose at its founding?
Free education; legal minimum wage; free access to medical treatment; comprehensive welfare provision
How many ILP candidates stood in the 1895 election?
28
How many votes did the ILP secure in the 1895 election?
44,000
What made it easy to denounce the ILP as unpatriotic?
Party’s open hostility to Boer War in 1899
When was the LRC founded?
February 1900
Why was the affiliation between Labour and the trade unions beneficial for everyone involved?
Unions promoted their own interests through party; Labour gained widespread electoral support from trade union members
When did the trade unions turn an issue into a mass political movement with the help of the LRC?
1901 – Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants (unionists) was forced to pay the Taff Vale Railway Company £23,000 in damages. Dismayed unions.
When did the Liberals agree an electoral pact with the LRC? What was it?
- Liberals wouldn’t put forward candidates in an agreed number of seats, giving LRC candidates a free run against Conservatives.
How many seats and votes did the LRC win in the 1906 election?
29; 254,000
When did the LRC change its name to the Labour Party?
Shortly after 1906 election
Why was the renaming of the LRC an inspired choice?
Suggested party was aimed at promoting the interests of a class rather than a set of political beliefs
When did the Labour Party make slow progress, partly due to its broad support of New Liberalism’s agenda?
1906–18
When did Labour establish itself as a major political force?
1918–24
When had the Labour Party gained some experience in government?
Members were given 3 minor positions in Asquith’s coalition government of 1915
How many seats did Labour take in the 1918 election?
57
How many votes did Labour take in the 1918 election?
2 million
When did Labour become the largest single party in opposition to the Conservatives in the HoC? How many seats did they win?
1922 with 142 seats.
What issues was the 1923 election fought on?
Free trade and protection
What was the major achievement of the first Labour government?
1924 Housing Act – promoted construction of 500,000 houses to be rented out at controlled rents
How did Labour use the Liberals to form its first government? How many seats did each have?
Labour had 191 seats – combined with 158 Liberals
Why was the 1924 Labour government unable to carry out wide-ranging reforms?
Dependent on Liberal support
How long did the first Labour administration last for?
Less than a year
When did the first Labour government get in?
January 1924
What were the results of the 1924 election?
Conservatives triumphed with 412 seats to Labour’s 151
How many seats did the Liberals lose in the 1924 election?
118
When did Labour secure the greatest number of seats in the election?
1929
How many seats did Labour secure in the 1929 election, which was still not enough for a majority?
287
How many MPs in 1780 were the sons or brothers of peers?
1/5
When did Pitt create many new peers?
1780–90s
How many MPs in 1780 had gained their fortunes as merchants, bankers and industrialists?
Around 110
Why did the extension of the franchise and the redistribution of seats throughout the 19th century not lead to a change in the social composition of the HoC?
Increasing number of county seats entrenched power of country gentry; redistribution worked against interests of merchants/bankers who had purchased and controlled seats before 1832
When did the social make-up of the HoC hardly change at all?
1832–67
When were 2 miners, supported by the Liberals and the Trade Unions, elected?
1874
When did real change come to the composition of the HoC?
After 1900, with the growth of Labour
How many Labour MPs elected in the 1918 election were from a working-class background?
56/63
When had women begun to play an important role in local politics?
Following the passage of the Local Government Act 1894
What gave women the right to stand as MPs?
Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act 1918
How many candidates in the 1918 election were women?
17/1623
Who was the only successful female candidate in the 1918 election?
Countess Markievicz
Who was the first woman to actually sit in the HoC?
Viscountess Nancy Astor
When did the first female MP take her seat?
1919
When was the abolition of the property qualification for MPs?
1858
When had the property qualification been introduced in England?
1711
When was the issue of the property qualification brought to a head?
With the case of Edward Glover
When did trade unions begin to subsidise a number of MPs?
1870s
When was the payment of MPs introduced?
1911
How much did the Chartists want MPs to be paid?
£500 a year
When was Gladstone converted to the idea of payment of MPs?
1880s
When did the Liberal Party formally adopt the payment of MPs as a cause?
Newcastle programme of 1891
When did the issue of the payment of MPs take on wider significance?
After 1867 franchise reform
Who sponsored Keir Hardie?
Miners’ Federation
When was Keir Hardie elected?
For West Ham South in 1892
When did the Labour Party provide up to £200 a year to support its MPs?
From 1904
How many MPs did Labour have in 1924?
191
Who proposed the 1911 payment of MPs?
Lloyd George
How much was it agreed that MPs would be paid from 1911?
£400 a year
What was a major setback in the journey to secure payment for MPs?
Osborne judgment of 1909
Who was Osborne of the Osborne judgment?
Liberal supporter who objected to the political levy collected by his union, the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants
Who was the first Labour PM?
Ramsay MacDonald
What does LRC stand for?
Labour Representative Committee
