Source questions

Question 1

Factory acts: at what age where children apprenticed at?

Answer 1

12, with little rules and regulations and with parental consent

Question 2

Why were children employed?

Answer 2

They worked more cheaply than adults and they could be disciplined more easily

Question 3

Factory acts: what was the health and morals apprentices act, 1802?

Answer 3

-dealt with apprentices in cotton factories allowing magistrates to appoint inspectors to check that they were adequately clothed and had some religious knowledge

Question 4

In 1819 what percentage of the labour force in cotton mills were under 19?

Answer 4

54%

Question 5

In 1833 what proportion of the textile factory workers were under 14?

Answer 5

1/6

Question 6

In the 19th Century, what percentage of the workforce did did children make up of?

Answer 6

15%

Question 7

Why was there increasing concern about child employment after 1830?

Answer 7

• factory system was seen as unnatural and upsetting the existing social order
• some were moved by ethical concerns and religious conviction that is was both immoral to employ children and a form of exploitation
• thought that the young weren’t being brought up with the correct principles
• some saw a simple reduction of working hours on humanitarian grounds as vital, of significance were the evangelical religion who’s believers were concerned with the moral welfare of child workers
• more publicity of factory system in newspapers (‘human interest’ story’)
• from 1830 the new whig gov. and the passing of parliamentary reform led to an interest in change and reform
• there was a higher demand for education(education provided to 1 million by the church)
• some working men concerned that the use of child labour kept wages low by offering cheap competition for adult work

Question 8

How many children did the church provide education to

Answer 8

1 million

Question 9

Who passed the factory act of 1833?

Answer 9

Whig government of Lord Grey introduces by Lord Althorp

Question 10

What was the aim of the factory act of 1833?

Answer 10

To improve conditions for children working in the factories

Question 11

What rules did the Factory act of 1833 state?

Answer 11

• employers much have an age certificate for their child workers
• children between 9 and 13 could work for no more than 9 hours a day
• children between 13 and 18 could work for no more than 12 hours a day
• children were not allowed to work at night
• there must be 2 hours of schooling each day for children under 13 (deductions to pay for this)
• 4 factory inspectors were appointed to enforce the law and report to the Home Secretary

Question 12

When was the Mines and Colleries act?

Answer 12

1842

Question 13

What did the mines and collieries act do?

Answer 13

Prohibited all underground work for women and girls of any age, and for boys under 10

Question 14

Who passed the factory act, February 1844?

Answer 14

The Home Secretary, Sir James Graham

Question 15

Why was the factory act of feb 1844 introduced?

Answer 15

Following a report of a parlimentary commission on the employment of children

Question 16

What rules did the factory act, February 1844 state?

Answer 16

• factory labour was forbidden for children under 8
• children between 8 and 13 could work a maximum of 6 and a half hours a day
• women, and children between 13 and 18 could not work more than 12 hours
• safety rules concerning fencing of machinery put in place and children were not allowed to clean moving machinery
• inspectors had the right to enter factories and schools
• surgeons were to be appointed to specify the age of the children. Their fees for certificates confirming the children age were to be paid for by factory owners
• parents or persons deriving direct benefit from child labour had to ensure that children attended 3 hours of school a day
• factory owners had to check that certification was taking place and pay the fees for schooling, which they deduced from the children’s wages
• the inspectors were to supervise the education provided and ensure it was competent

Question 17

What was the impact of the factory acts?

Answer 17

• by modern standards a limited piece of legislation
• there were attempts to enforce a 10 hour day for older children- this failed. Peel was insistent in 1844 that it should not be passed and it had to wait until 1837 when it was passed early out of revenge , with support from anti-Peel Tories and sympathetic whigs
• reports from inspectors revealed that many employers were not complying with the acts. Requirements for certification to confirm the age of the child were complex and the requirement for children to attend classes was difficult to enforce. It was also difficult to ensure that classes were of a good standard
• however the acceptance of the principle of regulation was an achievement

Question 18

When was the poor law amendment act?

Answer 18

1834

Question 19

What was wrong about the old system of helping the poor?

Answer 19

1. )Elizabethan poor law
2. )1662 settlement act
3. )1723 workhouse test act
4. )1782 Gilberts act
5. )Outdoor relief

Question 20

Describe the Elizabethan poor law

Answer 20

• not amended for 233 years
• parish authorities responsible for looking after the poor in the parish
• a poor rate (tax used to help the poor) was to be collected
• overseer of the poor to be appointed to decide how much money was needed and how much tax each property owner should pay
• impotent (old and ill) poor were to have relief
• beggars to be punished
• able-bodied poor to be found work

Question 21

Describe the 1662 settlement act

Answer 21

• set out who was entitled to be a settled labourer
• workers could get certificates to allow them to go back to another parish for work which said the workers parish would take him back if he needed help
• old and sick put in almshouses to be looked after

Question 22

Describe the 1723 workhouse work act

Answer 22

• parishes could provide a workhouse where the able bodied poor would be given work
• if an able bodied person refused to go into the workhouse they would not be entitled relief from the parish
• 2000 workhouses by 1776 with 20-50 inmates

Question 23

Describe the 1782 Gilberts act

Answer 23

• parishes could group together into ‘unions’ to build workhouses
• workhouses were only for the old, sick and orphaned
• abled-bodied poor given outdoor relief money

Question 24

Describe outdoor relief

Answer 24

A persons wages would be made up into an amount that the magistrates thought was needed to feed a family, based on the price of bread

Question 25

Why was a new poor law needed by 1834?

Answer 25

• by 1830 cost of poor law was 60% higher than in 1802 at £6.8 million
• not uniform across the country
• unreformed system criticised for being inefficient and costly and for making able-bodied workers dependent o charity, lowering wages
• MP’s were alarmed by the rural unrest 1830-31 and by popular unrest during the reform bill crisis, poor law reform was intended to bring with it much tighter social disciplines

Question 26

Who opposed the new poor law?

Answer 26

• JP’s and overseers
• Working class poor
• Propertied Tory paternalists
• Working class radical groups

Question 27

Why did JP’s and overseers oppose the new poor law?

Answer 27

This group objected:

• the acts centralising tendencies
• its imposition of control by outsiders
• it’s inherent criticism of their previous administration of the system and obvious unsuitability of indoor relief in some areas

Question 28

Why did the working class poor oppose the new poor law?

Answer 28

-some of this group were terrified into action against the new poor law by rumours of the privations associated with the new ‘bastilles’ as the workhouses became known
(the Bastille was an infamous 18th century prison)

Question 29

Why did propertied tory paternalists oppose the new poor law?

Answer 29

• it destroyed what they saw as a traditional relationship between the rich and poor
• they saw it as the rich’s obligation to help the poor and that this helped to keep social and political stability
• Richard Oastler: “the 1834 poor law lays an axe in the root of the social compact, it must break up society and make England a wilderness”

Question 30

Why did working-class radical groups oppose the new poor law?

Answer 30

• these saw the new poor law as part of a wider pattern of the Whig governments contempt for the poor, which also included the 1832 GRA, the 1833 factory act and the persecution of the Tolpuddle Martyrs
• “the new poor law was passed to place the whole of the labouring population at the utter mercy and disposal of the moneyed and property-owning classes

Question 31

What rules did the poor law amendment act of 1834 state?

Answer 31

• outdoor relief continued for the old and infirm
• outdoor relief abolished for the able bodied (workhouses as only available relief)
• conditions in workhouses made ‘less-eligible’ than those of the lowest paid labourers in work (principle of less eligibility)
• central poor law commission based at Somerset house in London to administer new law
• 3 commissioners to oversee the system and impose uniformity across country
• parishes formed together to form poor law union, each with a central workhouse
• workhouses run by elected board of guardians, who employed a full time master and matron of the workhouses
• seven ‘classes of pauper’ separated within workhouses
• aim to reduce costs, cut poor rates and abolish outdoor relief

Question 32

By 1839 how many new workhouses ha been built?

Answer 32

530

Question 33

Poor law amendment act: Describe three of the ‘seven classes of pauper’

Answer 33

• children under 7
• men infirm due to age or illness
• able bodied men (over 15)

Question 34

When did opposition to the poor law amendment act of 1834 kick in?

Answer 34

1837

Question 35

Where was opposition to the poor law amendment act, 1834-strongest?

Answer 35

In the North

Question 36

Why was opposition in the north to the new poor law strong?

Answer 36

• previous localised reform of the poor law
• criticisms of inappropriateness in industrial areas where short term needs for relief were ignored
• resentment of centralism taking power away from JP’s
• bad timing, just as trade cycle moved onto a bad swing

Question 37

Opposition to the poor law: close relationship between the anti-poor law and factory movements own the North

Answer 37

-factory movements had 38 local committees in Lancashire towns by 1838

Question 38

What were the methods against the poor law amendment act used by the close relationship formed between the anti -poor law and factory movements?

Answer 38

• public meetings
• mass meetings (crowd reached 250,000 in Yorkshire)
• press campaign e.g Northern liberator

Question 39

What was southern opposition to the new poor law act like?

-what was a reason for southern opposition?

Answer 39

More sporadic and far less organised

-growing demand for Labour in mines and railway construction

Question 40

How long did opposition to the poor law amendment act of 1834 last for?

Answer 40

The agitation was very short lived and by 1838 had virtually died out completely- alternative focus on chartism , division in movements

Question 41

What were the problems facing Peel in the early 1830’s?

Answer 41

1. ) His party hated him for Catholic emancipation
2. )The Whigs were in power and looking confident
3. )The Ultra Tories had left the party
4. )The radicals were pressing for even more reform
5. )The threat of revolution seemed to be only temporarily supported
6. )New middle-class voters looked sure to cote for the Whigs not the Tories
7. )People took the mick out of his accent and lack of aristocratic background

Question 42

What 2 things could Peel do to fix the problems facing him in the early 1830’s?

Answer 42

• bring the party together (change aims/policy)

- appeal to middle classes

Question 43

What was Peel’s strategy in the early 1830’s?

Answer 43

• support rather than oppose the Whig government wherever possible in order to prevent any relationship developing between the Whigs and the radicals
• win over moderate Whigs (to broaden Tories base)
• encourage divisions to develop within the government in hope that it would lose support
• broaden the party’s electoral fortunes by appealing to the middle classes without upsetting ultras or diluting the party with a large inflow of industrialists
• demonstrate the Tory parties continued relevance in a rapidly changing society and in a new electoral system
• gradually re absorb the ultras and create greater unity without having to depend on the traditional wing of the party

Question 44

What was the rationale behind Peels thinking in the 1830’s?

Answer 44

1. )The best way to prevent radicals achieving their aims
2. )Personal ambitions
3. )Genuine fear of the mass of people

Question 45

How did the Tamworth manifesto appeal to old traditional Tory supporters?

Answer 45

• rejected the idea that there should be further steps towards broader democracy
• reassured traditional Tories about his commitment to protecting property and the intrest’s of the established church

Question 46

How did the Tamworth manifesto appeal to the new conservative supporters?

Answer 46

• he appealed to the support of the newly enfranchised middle class
• he accepted that there were circumstances in which moderate reform was neccessary
• regarded the 1832 reform act as a final irreversible statement

Question 47

How were Peels circumstances the reason to why he won the election of 1841?

Answer 47

• the economy was beginning to deteriorate under the Whigs from 1838 on wards leading to economic depression
• Frequent general elections (Peels 100 days) gave opportunity to raise support
• discontent about the new poor law of 1834 and lack of electoral reform, saw a rise of protests in the Chartists

Question 48

How were weaknesses of the Whigs the reason to why he won the election of 1841?

Answer 48

• after the resignation of Earl Grey, the Whigs lost their reforming zeal-had they run out of passion and ideas?
• Whig support for non-conformist policies, especially after 1835 lost them support from Anglican sympathisers
• the Whigs were seen as being unable to control the radicals who were seen as an omnious threat to them
• The Whig treatment of the Swing rioters and Tolpuddle Martyrs lost them lots of support in the countryside

Question 49

How was Peels strategy the reason to why he won the election of 1841?

Answer 49

• Peel supported the Whigs to pass legislation, especially when it was aimed at maintaining law and order
• Peels Tamworth Manifesto showed he still respected the traditional values of the Tory party (land, church, monarchy)
• Peel pledged in the 1841 election campaign to maintain the corn laws (gave him support from the counties)
• Peel convinced Canningite Tories such as Stanley and Graham to return to his party and the Whig majority fell
• Peel wisely refused offer to become PM in 1837, in what is known as the bedchamber crisis. It showed his strength
• Peel directed appeal to new middle class voters in his Tamworth Manifesto of December 1834
• Peel’s Tamworth manifesto suggested he was open to cautious reform which appealed to new voters
• Peel made it clear that he accepted the GRA as ‘final and irreversible’ (he could not remove it)
• Peels deliberately moderate approach such as the municipal corporations act 1835 won him support
• Peel was an experienced politician who sat in the house of commons. He managed to steady the ship after 1830

Question 50

How were key characters the reason to why Peel won the election of 1841?

Answer 50

• Sir Thomas Freemantle was appointed chief whip in 1837 and brought the party together following an agree line
• Francis Bonham set about reorganising the party especially with newly registered voters, he also set up the Carlton club to act as a central base to organise electoral campaigns and policy
• Numerous local conservative parties were formed who worked hard with newly registered voters

Question 51

Arguments for Peel (1830/40s)

Answer 51

• he did not automatically oppose change, this appealed to new voters
• he maintained his support for key Tory institutions (church/land and monarchy)
• The Tamworth manifesto is seen by historians such as Gash as the formation as a modern conservative party
• the expectation after 1832 that the future rivalry between the Whigs and radicals, but Peel managed to correct the Tories and reform them into the post GRA world
• Peel was himself middle-class from an industrial background, therefore he understood the new world
• he was able to make a party that appealed to a broader spectrum of people
• Gash “without Peel, the great conservative victory of 1841 would not have been possible

Question 52

Arguments against Peel (1830/40s)

Answer 52

• Peels support was rural and English, protectionist and traditional
• His new conservatism had failed to gain votes from the new electorate
• Peel did not welcome meetings with his backbencher (didnt see them as part of the new team) or local supporters
• the re-orginisation of the part nationally and locally were not done by Peel
• Peel had served his political apprenticeship pre-1832 when parties were less formal. He did not understand the new post-GRA system properly
• His first loyalty was to the monarchy not the party
• Peels strategy of supporting the Whigs in opposition was mainly to maintain a safe and stable government against the dangerous radicals, not a plan to divide and conquer
• Peel quickly began to betray his party once in power, had he just used them to become an MP?

Question 53

What 6 policies did Peel bring in to deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46?

Answer 53

1. )Banning of the Repeal association
2. )Appointment of Lord Heytesbury at Lord Leitenant of Ireland
3. )Royal Communion led by Lord Devon into land tenure and poverty
4. )Charitable Bequests act
5. )Maynooth bill
6. )Irish Colleges bill

Question 54

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Banning of the repeal association- October 1843: details

Answer 54

• Peels strong government banned a mass meeting and O’Connel backed down by calling the meeting off
• O’Connel was later arrested and although released shortly afterwards he did not organise any more mass meetings

Question 55

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Banning of the repeal association- October 1843: motives, response

Answer 55

motives: to avoid the perception that religious people were being stung by taxation and Westminster after their deaths
response: describes as Monster meeting by the times. Peel had turned the tables on O’Connell, seen as a turning point. Members of the repeal associated were disappointed and O’Connel never again held the dominant force he had in the movement. Other more violent protests emerged

Question 56

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Appointment of Lord Heytesbury at Lord Lieutenant of Ireland- Details

Answer 56

-He replaced Lord De Grey who had been a hard-line upholder of the protestant ascendancy. The new official representative of the monarch of Ireland was prepared to recruit Catholics as magistrates and civil servants

Question 57

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Appointment of Lord Heytesbury at Lord Lieutenant of Ireland-motives, response

Answer 57

• To remove the impression that Peel was anti-catholic and always repressive and try to make the government and act of union workable
• a clear improvement though much damage had already been done to the English rule in Ireland

Question 58

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Royal commission led by Lord Devon into land tenure and poverty- 1844-details

Answer 58

-the issue of compensation for tenant farmers evicted from land they had invested in was proposed to spread across all of Ireland, alongside public work schemes and land reclamation projects

Question 59

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Royal commission led by Lord Devon into land tenure and poverty- 1844- motives and details

Answer 59

• to try to improve the relations between tenants and the predominately English landlords
• defeated in house of Lords because landowners were not prepared to accept any infringement on their property rights

Question 60

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Charitable banquest’s act 1844: details

Answer 60

-this made it easier for individuals to make private endowments(give it to them) of land or money to the Catholic Church in their wills

Question 61

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Charitable banquest’s act 1844: motives, responses

Answer 61

• to avoid the perception that religious people were being stung by taxation from Westminster after their deaths
• was a direct benefit to Catholic interests

Question 62

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Maynooth bill- October 1945

Answer 62

-One off payments of £30,000 to develop the Catholic Seminary (training college for priests) and a trebling of its annual grant from the Government to £26,000

Question 63

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Maynooth bill- October 1945: motives responses

Answer 63

• poor standards had deterred entrants from respectable middle class and gentry families
• instead only young men from lower ranks of Irish society were training here which reinforced the link between Catholic priests and nationalist agitators
• provoked a backbench rebellion and an opposition group was set up, 1.2 million signed a petition against
• Peel was saved by support from the opposition. It had limited impact on Ireland but a damaging impact on Peels relationship with his party due to ‘betrayal’
• Gladstone resined from Peels government in response

Question 64

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Irish colleges bill- 1845

Answer 64

-three new higher education colleges set up in Belfast, Cork and Galway which aimed at preparing middle-class catholics for careers in the legal profession and civil service

Question 65

How did Peel deal with the challenge of Ireland 1841-46? Irish colleges bill- 1845-details, motives

Answer 65

• to plan for future generations of law and government in Ireland, Peel needed a reliable, well prepared and more secular workforce
• seen as ‘Godless Colleges’ and disliked by both Church leaders, though moderate catholics and nationalists approved. Recruitment to the new colleges were damaged. Only Belfast survived

Question 66

Arguments for the corn laws

Answer 66

• protectionism. The corn laws had been in place since the defeat of Napoleon and had helped Britain to recover from the destabilising effects of peace
• British producers would have protection against the dumping of large quantities of grain at rock bottom price
• removing the corn laws would result in the destruction of British farming and thus cut demand for British manufactured good
• the corn laws were class legislation which protected the landed interest
• removing the corn laws would make food supplies dependant on other countries
• the corn laws protected the jobs of agricultural labourers as well as the land owners

Question 67

Arguments against the corn laws

Answer 67

• the corn laws kept food prices high so that the domestic market for manufactured goods was damaged. People had little cash left to buy goods, so sales fell and unemployment rose. Profits fell, this set up a typical “slump cycle”
• Britains unwillingness to buy foreign grain upset the balance of trade and severely restricted foreign markets for British manufacturers
• free trade would encourage good relations through reciprocity. This would then reduce the chance of war because of international interdependence
• the corn laws were the cause of poverty because they were an indirect tax which fell proportionately more heavily on the poor
• employers complained that ag. was receiving unfair and unnecessary protection to preserve the high rates on which landowners lived. Rent was seen as unearned income but manufacturers had to work hard and take risks to make profits and provide work for their employees
• the corn laws were an obstacle to free trade and would lead to greater economic growth and prosperity
• the corn laws did not protect farmers as they did not guarantee profits. the farmers were dependent on good harvests for their prices but were exploited by the grain merchants
• the corn laws therefore only protected the landowners and the grain merchants

Question 68

Reasons to suggest that the anti corn law leagues activities were significant in obtaining the repeal of the corn laws

Answer 68

• the organisation, structure, personalities and methods were highly impressive
• the threat of continued agitation may have persuaded the Lords to accept repeal. Even Peel fortified his own home
• the League was never short on cash
• other factors were moving in the direction of repeal. Economists advocated free trade and the political establishment had already begun the process before the league was funded
• the success of Peel’s policy in restoring prosperity provided an argument for going further
• the league had one clear aim and was widely trusted by the urban middle-classes unlike the chartists
• the league had powerful, symbolic messages behind mere economics
• the anti corn law league was one of the most famous political pressure groups in British history
• the contrast between the success of the league and failure of the chartists is often noted

Question 69

Reasons to suggest that the anti corn law leagues activities weren’t significant in obtaining the repeal of the corn laws

Answer 69

• the corn law could only ever be repealed by an act of parliament and the electoral system was still dominated by aristocratic whigs and the tories
• the house of commons only ever had a small minority of MP’s connected to the league. Despite all the noise they made the Leaguers were never in a position to exert decisive and political influence
• Peel had privately decided against the corn laws long before the Leagues final agitation
• some argue that Peel waited until the law was struggling to make the conversion. He never wanted to risk looking like he was influenced by outside pressure
• the league had a difficult relationship with the chartists
• the league was divided on its motives “one issue” versus a radical agenda

Question 70

What were early trade unions like?

Answer 70

• given the opposition to organisations, the combinations often resorted to secrecy, with meetings held at night, passwords, symbols and oaths of loyalty
• the laws of 1799 against illegal oaths and against combinations in general were not introducing anything new but were a ‘brace and braces’ provision against any possible disorder
• trade unions became skilful in concealing their meetings, helping their members by raising funds to support them and intimidating employers and employees who continued to work during trade disputes
• between 1710 and 1800, 29 conspiracy trials of tradesmen groups took place
• though small in numbers even as late as 1850 there were only 250,000 union members, the early unions were widespread and active

Question 71

The challenges to early trade unions

Answer 71

• rapid rise in population after 1780 and technological developments introduced mainly into the larger workshops and ‘factories’ put pressure on the unions trying to keep traditional practices and guarantee prices
• 1814 statue of artificiers reduced apprenticeship restrictions and threatened the statue of craftsmen
• the 1799 combinations act made associations of both workers and employers illegal. In practice, made little difference as there was already legislation which could be used against workers unions (repeal in 1824 led to increase in union activity)
• In Scotland, an 1820 strike involved 60,000 workers in different trades though though with limited success (significant repression of protests generally)
• new machinery, especially in textiles, reduced the competitiveness of many traditional trades
• new unskilled workforce of women, children and unskilled workers could be trained to use new machinery quickly and were not protected by any organisation
• ending of apprenticeship rules which had insisted on long periods of training before boys could work as tradesmen
• determination of employers to oppose them