Demand For Parlimentry Reform 1780-1832

Question 1

What was the house of parliaments regarded as

Answer 1

Private gentleman’s club

Question 2

Why was John Wilkes an important figure?

Answer 2

He championed causes which challenged the status quo

• he raise questions about the freedom of press
• he asserted the right of voters to choose and MP without interference from parliament
• he supported the reporting of parliamentary debate
• in 1776 he put the case for male suffrage

Question 3

What series of political developments had combined to further undermine the credibility of the ruling elite?

Answer 3

• the disastrous and crippling American war (1776-1783)
• fears that George III was abusing his powers of royal patronage to keep in power the unpopular administration of Lord North
• The exploitation of rotten boroughs to secure pro-government majorities

Question 4

What do most historians now believe in regards to British radicalism

Answer 4

They believe it was not created by French Revolution. Rather, the French Revolution provided momentum to a process already underway