Radical Reformers Flashcards
What was the LCS?
London Corresponding Society
What were the aims of the LCS?
Wanted to achieve universal manhood suffrage, secret ballot and payment of MPs
Who founded the LCS?
Founded by a shoe maker, named Thomas Hardy.W
When was the LCS formed?
1792
What was the composition of the LCS?
Membership was unlimited to any class and so members were skilled working men or traders.
By 1794, total active membership was 5,000
How did the members of the LCS decline?
1794 - 5,000
1796 - 2,000
1797 - 600
What methods did the LCS use?
Corresponded with other societies (such as revolutionary ones in france)
Printed pamphlets and created demonstrations.
Resorted for peaceful methods
What was the opposition to the LCS?
Loyalist associations disliked the society as they wanted to preserve liberty.
Seditious meetings act limits gathering
The LCS was infiltrated with government spies but they found that the LCS operated strictly within the law.
Why did the LCS decline in popularity?
Radicalism was silenced by the government.
More patriotism emerged during the war with France.
When were the Luddites?
1811 - 1817
What were the aims of the Luddites?
To break the new machinery in the textiles industry after it replaced their jobs.
Who made up the Luddites?
Named after Ned Ludd, the movement was made of textiles workers from the midlands who had previously worked with hand-operated machinery.
What were the methods used by the luddites?
1000 frames valued at over £6000 were destroyed
Mills attacked in Leeds, Manchester and Stockport.
Near Manchester, a power loom was attacked by a crowd of luddites which resulted in 10 killed by musket fire.
What were the government opposition to the Luddites?
Government made machinery breaking illegal by law.
Troops were stationed around industrial cities to counter the threat.
Government hung 17 luddites outside York 1813.
Why did the luddites decline?
After executions and the return to better economic conditions, Luddite action declined
When were the Hampden Clubs founded?
1812
What were the aims of the hampden clubs?
Universal suffrage & annual parliaments & policy of using petitions.
founded by John Cartwright
They replaced the LCS
What was the composition of the Hampden clubs?
Membership open to all that could pay the weekly subscription of 1 penny. Mainly made up of middle-class or aristocratic men.
Frequent meetings discussing political matters and public news.
How did the government oppose the Hampden Clubs?
H.clubs worked strictly within the law (Cartwright’s motto was ‘hold fast by the laws’) local authorities used any excuse to arrest political reformers.
Why did the Hampden Clubs decline in action?
H.Clubs could not act effectively after 1817 after the Gagging Acts were passed
(Suspension of Habeas Corpus 1817 and banning of seditious meetings – 1817)
When was The Political Register written?
1816
What were the aims of the political register?
universal manhood suffrage & annual elections
What was the political register?
Weekly pamphlet which would sell 44,000 in a week. The pamphlet avoided the high newspaper taxes imposed by the government.
What was the government response to the Political Register?
Gagging acts 1817 - suspension of habeas corpus, treason act and seditious meetings act.
What was the decline in the movement for cobbet and the political register?
To avoid arrest, Cobbett fled to America in 1817
Who was Henry Hunt?
Radical orator that wanted universal suffrage, secret ballot and annual elections
What methods did Hunt use?
He wanted peaceful protest. He believed in gathering masses to hear his speeches at open air meetings would persuade public opinion.
Government opposition to Henry Hunt
Hunts speeches were dispersed by troops such as Spa Fields 1816 and Peterloo 1819
He was arrested for 2 years for his part in the meetings
When was Spa FIelds?
1816
What was the SpaField meeting?
A radical group named the spenceans organised a mass meeting in Spa Fields, London - inviting Henry Hunt to speak. The spenceans rioted in the crowd which led to breaking into shops and seizing weapons.
How did the government respond to the Spa Field Meeting?
The Lord Mayor of London quickly dispersed the rioters and arrested the leader.
At the trial of the leaders of the Spenceans, they were not charged as it was proven that the government had a spy that had coerced into making extreme action.
How many people attended Spa Fields?
10,000
When was the Pentridge Rising?
1817
What was the aim of the pentridge uprising?
300 stocking makers marched to Nottingham castle to attempt to seize it and encourage nationwide rebellion.
What was the role of Oliver in the Pentridge Rising?
Oliver infiltrated the group as a spy and led them to believe that the march on Nottingham castle would start a rebellion.
How did the Government react to the Pentridge Rising?
By the time that the men arrived at Nottingham from Pentridge (armed with pikes, forks and guns), they were surrounded by troops and 80 were arrested.
The leaders of the rising were hanged and beheaded, including the leader Jeremiah Brandreth.
Gagging Acts 1817
What was the March of the Blanketeers?
A group of 600 unemployed weavers in Manchester wanted to march to London to present a petition to revive their trade to the King.
When was the March of the Blanketeers?
1817
What were the methods of the Blanketeers?
The 600 men walked in groups of 10, each with a petition (as that was the limited amount that could present a petition to parliament) towards London to ask Prince Regent to help their dying industry.
How did the government react to the March of the Blanketeers?
200 were arrested at Stockport and most of the remainder were chased away by cavalry
One man was allowed through but nothing came of this pathetic incident except that 13 of the leaders were sent to prison.
When was the Peterloo Massacre?
1819
What were the aims of the Peterloo Massacre?
1819 slump in exports and a return to unemployment. This led to renewed Radical demands for reform and a plan to hold a meeting of Radical leaders from all over the country.
What was the Peterloo massacre?
Radical activists decided to stage a meeting in Manchester in 1819 and invited Henry Hunt to address the gathering in S. Peter’s Field.
How many people attended the Peterloo meeting?
80,000 men, women and children attended.
How did the government react to the meeting?
After Hunt began addressing the crowd, magistrates ordered the Yeomanry to arrest Hunt. To try to reach hunt, the yeomanry slashed through the crowd with their swords .
11 people were killed in the trampling that occured from the crowd. 400 injured.
The government passed the SIX acts in 1819 to avoid peterloo happening again.
What was the effects of the Peterloo Massacre?
provoked widespread national revulsion, leading to several outbreaks of sporadic rioting and further growth of political unions.
There was an outcry in the press, including the Times – even in Parliament much was made of the massacre.
What was the Cato Street Conspiracy?
a half-baked plan to murder the entire cabinet at a dinner, parade the heads of the ministers on pikes, capture the Tower, Bank and Mansion
How did the government intervene with the Cato Street Conspiracy?
Government spies knew all about it and the conspirators were arrested at a house in Cato Street
Five leaders, including Thistlewood, were executed and five other transported.
What was the impact of the Cato Street Conspiracy?
The incident justified the Six Acts & the agitation died down towards the end of 1820 as the economic situation improved.
What was the weaknesses of Radicalism?
Cobbett himself was a journalist and propagandist rather than an active agitator. This limited his power in terms of radicalism.
Chose Moral force.
The French Revolution and subsequent war with france had preserved radicalism in the middle class. The French revolution also had evidence of effecting Britain during the 1810s due to violent revolutionary seizure attempts such as the Spencians at Spa Fields.
Radicalism was always a problem, although it died down in 1820s, it revived with the chartists in 1830s.
What was the suspension habeas corpus?
The suspension of habeas corpus meant that people could be kept in prison without evidence. This meant that those who opposed government could be arrested for little reason.
When were the Habeas corpus repealed?
1794-5
1817
What was the Treason Act?
An extension to what was classified as “treason” to include written and spoken words, even if no further action was taken/
When was the treason act passed?
1795
What were the 1792 proclamations?
Against seditious writings. Authorised government use of spies, opening letters and infiltration of revolutionary groups
What was the seditious meetings act?
Prohibited meetings over 50 people
This heavily affected groups like the LCS and Hampden Clubs
When was the seditious meetings act passed?
1795
What were the gagging acts?
Extensions built on the seditious meetings acts,treason acts and another suspension of hte habeas corpus following George III death and the events at Spa Fields.
When was the gagging acts passed?
1817
What were the Six acts?
Acts put in place after Peterloo to limit further radical demonstrations. Revived the seditious meetings act, despite Whig opposition, as well as other limitations to press including the Newspapers and Stamp Duties Act that increased the amount of stamp duty paid.
Who was Thomas Paine?
One of the most influential radicals of the 18th century. He supported the French Revolution, hoping that it would lead to more democracy in France
What was in Thomas Paine’s Book?
The Rights of Man was published in 1791 countered the conservative ideas against Reform.
When was Thomas Paine’s book published?
1791
When was the French Revolution?
1789
Who was Edmund Burke?
A conservative who wrote about the negative effects of the French Revolution. He had polar opposite view to Paine.
