CDAs - Why were the CDAs Repealed? Flashcards
The Parliamentary Commissions - What were the P commissions established to do and what did they do and conclude?
Two parliamentary commissions were established to inquire into how the laws were organised and administered – the Royal Commission in 1870 met for 45 days and interviewed 80 witnesses – it concluded that the acts had caused a ‘marked diminution’ in venereal disease and the number of prostitutes (a statistic which opponents challenged)
The Parliamentary Commissions - What did the Royal Commission question and recommend, and what did the gov do in response?
However, it questioned whether the system could be maintained morally, and recommended the removal of the parts of the law which required periodical examinations – three members of the Commission joined the opposition after the report – the gov ignored the recommendation, but it strengthened the opposition’s arguments
The Parliamentary Commissions - What happened in 1879 and what was the outcome of this?
In 1879, a Select Committee of the House of Commons formed which investigated the acts for 68 days over 3 years and interviewed 71 witnesses – their reports in 1882 stated that the acts has successfully protected the army from venereal disease
The repeal of the acts - What happened in 1883 and what did P do?
Despite the commissions supporting the acts, James Stansfeld presented a speech in 1883 where he claimed that the laws were immoral and undemocratic, and that the statistics showed no positive impact – he proposed to abolish the part of the act which required compulsory examinations for prostitutes – this was passed by a vote of 182 to 10
The repeal of the acts - What happened in 1886?
In 1886, the Liberal gov of William Gladstone indicated an intention to abolish the acts completely – this was passed by a majority of 114 votes
Why did P repeal the laws - What was the main reason P repealed the CDAs?
The main reason was the scale of opposition to the laws – by the 1880s, opposition had growth enormously – over 10,000 petitions had been presented to Parliament – unlike the Chartist movement which failed to made headway in part because of the association with radical working class politics, the opposition included respectable, eloquent advocates
Why did P repeal the laws - What did Gladstone think and how did Stansfeld help?
PM Gladstone supported the repeal, but was distracted by a divided Lib Party over Irish Home Rule – the Acts were only repealed once James Stansfeld offered his support to Gladstone on Irish Home Rule in exchange for the repeal of the Acts
Why did P repeal the laws - What groups were involved in the opposition?
The opposition also involved many different groups – EG in 1872 a contingent of working men met with the Home Sec to ask him to repeal the law, and in 1873 2000 Anglican priests signed a petition opposing the acts
Why did P repeal the laws - Why were the arguments presented by the opposition effective?
The arguments presented by the opposition were logical and practical – as well as the concept of democracy, they focused on how ineffective the laws were EG in using the 1880 medical report, opponents were able to demonstrate that among the armed forces, venereal disease was not reducing – other doctors presented evidence that it was hard to prove a woman was not infected, and that she could be signed off an uninfected while actually spreading the disease
Why did P repeal the laws - How did the change in gov help the cause?
For most of the 1870s, a Con gov has been in power which favoured maintaining the laws – however, the elections of 1880 and 1886 led to Lib govs which favoured taking action where it would improve social conditions
Why did P repeal the laws - Wider context of improved rights EGs
The abolition in the 1880s was part of a wider context of small changes to women’s rights EG the 1870 and 1882 Married Women’s Property Acts has allowed women the right to keep some control over their property while married – in 1871, women had gained the right to vote in municipal elections, and by 1880 women were studying at Oxford and Cambridge universities
Why did P repeal the laws - Media coverage shift
Gradually the media gave more favourable coverage to the opposition point of view, making them more visible and respectable EG in 1870, The Times published a summary of a Butler speech and list of supporters, but in 1874 published the first full speech of an MP opposed to the Acts – by the 1880s, there was more coverage of speeches and debates
