British government in 1783 Flashcards
What was Britain?
A monarchy.
Who was the king?
George III.
How did the King rule?
As a constitutional monarch. That meant that he had to choose a government that had enough support in parliament to pass laws.
What is the situation with the constitution?
There is, and was, no written British constitution, just individual laws.
What were MPs?
MPs were elected either for counties, which each sent two MPs to the House of Commons, or for boroughs, which also send two MPs.
Who was Pitt?
Pitt was an MP for a pocket borough.
What was a rotten borough? Give an example.
Some boroughs had declined so they were not much more than villages, or one place, Old Sarum, in Wiltshire, was uninhabited. These were called rotten boroughs.
How many men could vote, 1780-1831?
About 11% of men had the right to vote.
What was Britain’s religion?
Strongly protestant country. Its main Catholic population was in Ireland, but it was tightly controlled by a dominant Protestant ruling class.
Who were the non-conformists?
The official religion was that of the Church of England, but there were other Protestant religious groups. These included Baptists, Quakers etc. and were known as nonconformists.
What could catholics not do?
Be Members of Parliament and there could not be a Catholic monarch.
What happened in 1776?
In 1776 the British colonists in North America had begun a rebellion. It ended, with French help, in the defeat of Britain in 1783 and the independence of the thirteen colonies on the Atlantic seaboard, which became the United States of America. However, Britain still held Canada.
Who were the two main political groups?
In the late seventeenth century, two groups had emerged. Each was given a nickname by their opponents. The Tories, who favoured the king, were named after Irish bandits; the Whigs, named after poor Scottish farmers, favoured controlling the king’s power.
Define smuggling.
This was the practice sneaking goods into the country to avoid paying the taxes which the government put on certain goods.
Define national debt.
This is the amount of money that the government owes. The government agrees to pay interest on the value of the bond every year - usually between 3% and 6% interest. Therefore, bonds raised money, but it costs the government more money in the long run.
