British Politics & Pitt Flashcards
mostly period of Pitt the younger
What was the system of governance in England in the 18th century called?
A constitutional monarchy
What was patronage?
The right to give priviledges and make appointments into important positions
What were the three key institutions that shared power in 1783?
The King
They House of Lords
The House of Commons
Why was the King unable to govern alone?
2 points
The King was bound by oath to govern according to stutues passed by parliament.
The King’s annual funds were approved by the parliament through the Civil List
Why was parliament unable to govern alone?
The memebers of parliament relied on the King’s patronage for their own social advancement
What were the two parts of the parliament?
House of Lords
House of Commons
which was more powerful:
The Lords or the Commons?
The Lords.
However the power of the Commons was steadily rising
Who were the members of the House of Lords?
Unelected hereditory peers
Who were the members of the House of Commons?
Gentry elected by the landowner electorate
What were the qualitites necessary in a prime minister?
Needed to be a prominent member of the party with the majority in the commons
Had to be trusted by the King
Was the parliament any more democratic than the monarchy?
Explain your answer
No
Members of parliament mostly consisted of the social elite that was focused in improving their own power through patronages
The electorate in england was extremely limited
What was the order of prime ministers coming into power after the loss of the American colonies?
North ; Rockingham ; Shelbourne ; Fox North coaliation ; Pitt
How did George use his power to dismiss the Fox-North coaliation?
Threatned to make a lifelong enemy of any peer who voted for the India Bill put forward by the coaliation. This led to the defeat of the bill in the Lords which gave George grounds to dismiss the coaliation.
When and what was the India Bill
It was an attempt to root out corruption in the East India company
Put forward by the Fox North coaliation in November 1783
When was the Fox-North coaliation defeated?
17 Decemeber 1783
When did William Pitt the younger first enter parliament?
What was his initial position?
1782
The chancellor of the Exchequer
When was Pitt appointed prime-minister
19 Decemeber 1783
How did Fox lose support in the commons?
His outspoken condemnation of the action of the King to whom most of the electorate was still loyal to
How did the King use his power to support Pitt in the elction to win the majority in the house of commons?
4 points
- Waited unitl Pitt had a chance to win over the electorate and dissolved parliament in 3 years instead of the usual 7 years so that Pitt could gain the majority in the commons.
- Provided a sizable fund for Pitt to use in his campaigning
- Attempted to influence the vote in goverment controlled boroughs
- Influences a group of voters referred to as the “Kings friends” who voted according to the Kings wishes
How did the King use his power to support Pitt in the elction to win the majority in the House of Lords?
Created new peerages among the trading class in London so the influence of the old whig aristocracy which would have supported Fox would be reduced
How much was the national debt by 1783 and what was the annual interest?
£240 million
£8 million
What was the sinking fund and how successfull was it?
A fund to which Pitt paid £1 million annually
Reduced national debt by £10 million
Why could the sinking fund be considered unsuccessfull?
It was a failure as a wartime policy as money kept being taken out to fund the war
What were the problems with trade by the time Pitt came into power in 1783?
2 points
there were high and complicated taxes and duties on imports and exports leading to commodities being smuggled in. This was bad for the goverment as taxes composed 3/4 ths of the governments revenue.
England had lost it’s trade relationship with America which was a key market for English goods
What were Pitt’s reforms to tackle smuggling and low trade volume
5 points
- Passed the Commutations act in 1784 reducing tax on tea and improving trading with China
- Pitt simplified and lowered many taxes to incentivise legal trade through the consolidation act of 1787
- Passed the Hovering act in 1787 which allowed authorities to consificate smuggling ships within 4 miles of the shore.
- passed an excise bill removing taxes for importing storing and exporting tobacco and spirits
- Formed free trading treaties
What was the act under which rates and duties on imports were simplified and reduced?
Which year was it passed in?
Consolidation act
1787
Which country did Pitt fail to make a free trading treaty with? Why?
Ireland
British manufacturers feared that they would not be able to compete with the pricing set by Irish manufacturers as the Irish had lower wages (so produced at lower cost )
Which country did Pitt successfully make a free trading treaty with?
What was it called?
When was it made?
France
Eden treaty
1786
What were the drawbacks of the Eden treaty?
The break out of the French revolution in 1789 led to the negating of any positive effects from it
What were the intial consequences of Pitt’s trade reforms?
Lower income from taxes initially
However led to increased volume of legal trade which led to increased taxes as time passed.
How did Pitt improved the governments finance?
Pitt introduced new taxes onto commodities that would be primarily utilised by wealthy and aspiring classes to fill in the money lost from his trade reforms
Pitt introduced income tax in 1798
What was the overall outcome of Pitt’s reforms on trade and finance?
two points and a year
By 1793 annual government income rose by £4 million
Value of imports and exports doubled
What were Pitt’s reforms to reorganise the administration?
7 points
- Abolished many sinecure offices
- He devised a new budgeting system
- Set up a central stationary station (1784)
- Created a consolidated fund in the central bank to pay taxes into (1785)
- Created an Audit department to curb corruption
- Abolished free post for MP’s (1784)
What is an example for a sinecure office Pitt abolished and how much was it worth?
The clerkship of Pells
worth £3000
How big was the middle class by 1800
25% of the population
What were the advantages of working in cities rather than in agricultural lands?
higher wages
Consistent work (agriculutral labourers had more work during harvest season and not much work during other periods)
what were the disadvantages of working in cities?
4 points
During times of recession workers were laid off
There were no saving opportunities for the working class( all the money was spent on basic necessities)
Extremely unhygenic working conditions
Long working hours
What were the working hours and days of an average labourer in a city?
16 hours a day
6 days a week
What was the effect of industrialisation on the social division?
The trading and manufacturing class benefitted from industrilisation while the labouring class continued to suffer.
This increased social division
