The 1867 Reform Act Flashcards
What was the size of the population of Britain in 1861?
31 million
What was the borough franchise qualification as set in 1832 Reform Act?
£10
What did Lord Russell propose in 1852 to extend the franchise?
that the existing borough qualification should be decreased from £10 to £6
How many times was Lord Russell’s bill (of 1852) to extend the franchise rejected by Parliament?
3 times
What was the main reason that measures to extend the franchise in the 1850s were defeated?
An uderlying fear of the working class becoming enfranchised and voting for the Liberals.
What reform measure did the Conservative Party offer in 1859?
To retain the existing borough franchise and extend it into the counties.
What law was passed in 1858 that enhanced the democratic process?
The removal of property qualifications for MPs
Give 2 reasons why political reform was off the agenda in the early 1860s?
Lord Palmerston was opposed to it and foreign policy issues were important
What did Birmingham MP John Bright found with Richard Cobden in 1839?
The Anti-Corn Law League
What did MP John Bright begin in 1858 aimed at promoting political reform?
A series of public speeches
When did the American Civil War begin and end?
1861-1865
How many people were employed in the textile industry in Lancashire by 1860?
355,000
How did the American Civil War contribute to political reform in Britain?
Cotton imports into the UK stopped due to the Union blockading the Confederate southern ports. Textile workers were laid off but they were supportive of the anti-slavery movement in the USA and this impressed British leaders such as Gladstone.
How did Lord Palmerston refer to the working class?
the ‘residuum’
What organisation was formed in 1864 calling for an extension to the franchise, equal distribution of seats and a secret ballot?
The National Reform Union
Who was Samuel Morley?
A prominent member of the Reform Union, MP for Nottingham, who campaigned for extending the franchise
What organisation was formed in 1865 that also campaigned for political reform but had more of a working class membership?
Reform League
What were 2 main differences between the Reform Union and the Reform League?
Middle-class v Working-class, tactics used, aims demanded, Reform Union had more money, Reform League had more widespread support
Why might the government have become worried about social unrest between 1865-1866?
Poor harvest 1865 led to price of bread increase, economic crisis in 1866 with companies going bankrupt, high unemployment, cholera epidemic in London.
What did supporters of political reform do on 23rd July 1866?
After the government banned a peaceful demonstration in Hyde Park the supporters, who believed that the government was acting illegally, broke through the railings and rioted.
How many more voters did the act create?
1 million more voters = 2.46 million voters total
What was there less of under the new system?
Corruption - but still no secret ballot
What did parties do more of under the new system?
Campaign because the size of the new electorate made it impossible to bribe
What did the wealthy still do in election?
Buy seats
What % of the population was the electorate?
Doubled to 18% of adult male population
What did each party need to encourage supporters to do?
Register so it became more centralised and organised
What did parties become?
. More definitive in their ideologies
. Two party system established
Who lost their seat after 1867?
Henry Hunt
Who was wealthy and could win seat because of this after 1867?
William Gladstone
When was Gladstone PM?
1868-1874,180-1885,1886,1892-1894
What reform was passed in Gladstone’s first ministry?
The secret ballot act
What did Gladstone do with the 1867 bill?
Attacked the bill and debated with Disraeli and it became more radical
What did the1867 bill aid?
The rise of the liberal party and helped Gladstone to victory - defeated Disraeli in 1880
What did Disraeli invest in the idea of?
One nation conservatism
Who did Disraeli appeal to?
Working class men
How did Disraeli want his party to vote on 1867 and why?
Wanted them to vote for the bill as the newly enfranchised electorate would be grateful and vote conservative
Did Disraeli’s prediction come true?
No - conservative lost there first election where the newly enfranchised vote
What repeal did Gladstone support?
Corn law
Who was still over represented
The south and England
What qualification still existed?
Property qualification
What fraction of adult males could vote?
1/3
Which parties were established
Conservative and liberal
How many boroughs were completely disenfranchised
7
Who did the power move slowly away from?
From the wealthy elite
Who were most of the new voters?
Industrial workers in towns
In Irish borough who were given the vote?
£4 ratepayers
What happened with Scotland?
The franchise was brought into line with England and 7 seats transferred from England to Scotland
What change was made to counties?
All owners or leaseholders of land worth £5 a year could vote
What change was made to boroughs voting?
All male householders who paid rates provided they had lived there for at least a year and lodgers who occupied property worth at least £10 for at least one year
How many boroughs got an extra seat?
6
Who was one seat reserved for?
University of London
What types of boroughs lost seats and how many seats were lost
. 45 seats lost
. Boroughs with less than 10,000 people
Of these 45 lost seats where did they go?
. 25 went to counties
. 15 to boroughs without an MP
. 1 extra MP to Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham
. 1 MP to University of London
1872 Ballot Act
. Attempted to deal with the problem of electoral malpractice by allowing secret ballots.
. Bribery and corruption reduced
. Made a difference where there were lots of voters
. Voting was a political act rather than as social occasion
The Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act of 1883
. The Ballot Act had failed to remove bribery
. The 1883 act established what a candidate could spend on election expenses
. Allegations of illegal acts during elections declined significantly and average election expenditure of candidates fell
What did the 1880 election lead to the government setting up?
The government setting up a Royal Commission to investigate electoral practices
When was the The Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act?
1883
1884 Parliamentary Reform Act
. By the 1880s it was widely recognised that voters in counties deserved the same political rights as those in the boroughs
. Act created a uniform franchise in both county and borough
. But plural voting was permitted
After the 1884 Parliamentary Reform Act how many had the vote?
. 2 in 3 men had the vote
. Almost 18% of the total population
When was the Parliamentary Reform Act?
1884
1885 Redistribution of Seats Act
. Gave growing towns the right to send more MPs to Parliament
. Redistribution of 142
. Cut the old dominance of southern England
. Increased Scottish representation to 72.
When was the Redistribution of Seats Act?
1885
1911 Parliament Act
. Reduced the power of the House of Lords
. Replaced their veto with the ability only to delay bills from the House of Commons for two years
When was the Parliament Act?
1911
1918 Representation of the People Act
. Feeling WWI had to be for something positive
. Gave vote to all men over 21 and all women over 30
When was the Representation of the People Act?
1918
What did Robert Peel not support?
The 1832 Reform Act
Who was John Bright?
. Liberal MP for Manchester and Birmingham
. Founded anti corn law league with Richard Cobden
National reform union - founded, lead by who and who supported it?
. Formed in 1864
. Led by wealthy Manchester merchants, industrialists and radical MPs
. Supported by middle class liberals
Who was the National Reform Union attractive to?
Attractive to the intellectual elite of the Liberal Party
National Reform Union aims
Household suffrage, distribute seats more evenly and bring in secret ballots
By 1867 how many branches of the National Reform Union had been set up and where?
150 branches mainly in industrial towns
Reform bill 1852
. Withdrawn due to opposition
. Radicals said it didn’t go far enough
. Proposed extending the vote to men in property worth £5/year in boroughs and £10/year in counties
When were further reform bills introduced before 67, what happened and what did this show?
. 1853 and 1859 but all not passed.
. Shows there was a stronger will within Parliament to achieve reform
What did Lord Palmerston do in 1830?
Defected from the Tories to the Whigs
What did Palmerston do as PM and what did he think about democracy?
. Blocked further parliamentary reform
. Democracy would bring scum to the top
During 1821-1861 what did the population rise to?
24 million to 31 million
What was public opinion about reform like in the 1850s?
. Not a great deal of agitation unlike 1832
. People had a more modern outlook and were more accepting of democracy
Reform league
. Formed in 1865
. Pressed for complete manhood suffrage
. Met in pubs and working men’s clubs
The National Reform Union vs The Reform League
The National Reform Union had the money, the Reform League had the membership and by 1867 were working together
Who did The Reform League attract?
. It attracted trade unionists and ex-chartists
. Mainly a working-class organisation
How many branches did The Reform League have 1867?
Had 400 branches by 1867
What did The Reform League do in Hyde Park?
A league rally in Hyde Park, July 1866 led to rioting in London
What did Disraeli separately want to end?
The Liberal Party’s stranglehold on power
Although the Earl of Derby was the PM
1866-1868, who steamrollered the 1867 Reform Act?
Disraeli
What reform bill did Gladstone try to introduce?
A cautious reform bill to give the vote to 1 in 4
instead of property qualification - Whigs sided with Tories to defeat it
The US Civil War impact on reform
. Interrupted cotton imports and caused widespread unemployment during the ‘Cotton Famine’
. Sudden economic downturn in 1866 increased social discontent
. Boosted memberships of the Reform League, the Reform Union
Party rivalry helped the passage of 1867
Rivalry between Gladstone and Disraeli
What did the Tories do after the defeat of the Liberal bill in 1866?
. Seized the political momentum
. They won the next election with a small minority and Disraeli introduced a reform bill in 1867
