Causes of 1832 Reform Act Flashcards
What did the London Society for Constitutional Information founded in 1780 propose?
Raise public awareness of the need for reform
What did William Pitt propose in 1785?
Disenfranchisement of 36 boroughs and redistribution of seats to counties
Name 2 organisations that tried to raise the issue of political reform in the 1790s.
Sheffield Society for Constitutional Information, London Corresponding Society
How many people attended a rally at Copenhagen Fields to call for political reform in 1795?
100,000
What law of 1795 clamped down on political reform activity after the start of the Napoleonic Wars?
Treason Act
Which early radical writer and journalist called for political reform in the early 1800s?
William Cobbett
Between what dates did Lord Liverpool serve as a PM?
1812-1827
How many soldiers returned from the Napoleonic Wars?
400,000
Which radical spoke to the crowds at St Peter’s Fields, Manchester, 1819?
Henry Hunt
When and where were the Spa Fields Riots?
Islington, London, 1816
Who was hung for his role in the Pentrich Rising in 1817?
Jeremiah Brandreth
How did the government try to crush the reform movement in 1819?
Six Acts
Suspension of Habeas Corpus
What happened during the Cato Street Conspiracy?
Led by radical Arthur Thistlewood a plot to assassinate the cabinet was uncovered
What does the term ‘laissez faire’ mean?
Principle that government should not control the economy or markets
Why did middle-class business men think that they should have the vote? Give 2 reasons.
Because they created the wealth of industrial Britain, their entrepreneurial skill and hard work, they were educated
Why did Britain prosper after 1820?
Improved harvests, GNP grew by 16.8% and manufacturing grew by 25% during 1821-1829, no large scale discontent
When did (the more liberal) Robert Peel become Home Secretary?
1822-27
In what years did poor harvests re-energise discontent amongst workers?
1828,1829
Why did the Swing Riots break out in 1830 in the South east of England?
Poor harvests, mechanisation (threshing machine) of seasonal labour
In what city did major riots occur in response to the failure of a reform bill in 1831?
Bristol
Who established the Birmingham Political Union in 1829 and what was his profession?
Thomas Attwood, banker
What was the aim of the Birmingham Political Union?
To achieve more representation for industrial centres/towns/cities
Why did the ‘union’ of Ireland with Britain in 1800 create more problems than it solved for the British government?
It brought into sharp focus the issue of Catholic Emancipation – (Catholics since Penal Laws in 1691 were barred from sitting in Parliament)
Following the resignation of Lord Liverpool in 1827 how many PMs did the Tories have in less than a year?
3
