UK Government; The Historical Context of the UK political system - 1700-Present Flashcards
The Acts of Settlement -1701
The Act of Settlement came into being as another step towards changing the relationship between the crown and parliament. When it became clear that neither William III nor his heir, Queen Anne, would have any children, the succession should have gone to one of the heirs of James II or Charles I; however, these heirs were Catholic and the Protestant Westminster objected to a Catholic monarch. As a result, the Act of Settlement was passed to settle the succession problem and parliament decided to offer the throne to George of Hanover. Despite nearly 50 other people being close relatives of Queen Anne, George was the closest non-Catholic relative despite not being English.
Why was George I becoming King in 1714 significant?
It was significant as he was the first king who came into power as a result of an Act of Parliament, not through any divine right of inheritance. Along with granting parliament the power to choose the monarch, the Act of Settlement also established several principles that had been suggested during the debates over the Bill of Rights.
What other principles did this act establish? (Act of Settlement)
- Judges could not be removed without the consent of parliament
- Royal pardons were to be irrelevant in cases of impeachment
- The monarch could not take England into a war to defend their home country without the consent of parliament
- In governing Britain, the monarch could not make decisions alone and had to consult the full Privy Council
- No foreign-born man could join the privy council, sit in parliament, hold a military command or be given land or titles in Britain
- The monarch had to be a member of the Church of England
- The monarch could not be Catholic or married to a Catholic
What other provisions were there? (Act of Settlement)
It also contained a provision that after the death of Queen Anne, no person who has an office or place of profit under the king, or receives a crown pension, shall be capable of serving as a member of the House of Commons - had this clause not been repealed by the Regency Act of 1706, the UK would still have strict separation of power and the idea of a Cabinet government would not have been established.
- The Act also established that after being appointed to the cabinet, an MP would have to resign their seat in Commons and stand in a by-election, a practice that continued until 1918.
- This meant the monarch’s power along with the Prime Minister’s to appoint cabinet ministers was limited by the fear of losing a by-election.
- It also stated that the monarch could only choose ministers that could command a majority of support across both Houses of Parliament, so the king had to choose a ‘king in parliament’ who could control both chambers rather than appointing a minister of his choice.
The Bill of Rights and Act of Settlement were significant for marking a change in the power of parliament for these reasons -
The monarch was now of parliament’s choosing, rather than ruling through divine right
They established the principle of regular and free elections
They restricted the monarch’s ability to interfere with laws
They meant taxation could only be passed by parliament
The Bill of Rights and Act of Settlement were not significant for marking a change in the power of parliament for these reasons -
Parliament remained only advisory in nature
The monarch remained the dominant force in British politics
Parliament itself only represented the wealthiest 2% of the country
How did the rule of Scotland, England and Ireland change from 1275?
- Wales and England had developed as one country since the conquest of Wales by Edward I in the 1270’s; Wales retained its own language and culture but was politically run from Westminster and often was referred to as part of England
- England and Wales together are more accurately considered ‘Britain’ however - Scotland remained independent as a kingdom until 1707 with its own monarchs, laws, and institutions
- In 1603, King James VI of Scotland became King James I of England - the two kingdoms were legally still separate but they now shared the same head of state bringing about a period of peace and stability to Anglo-Scottish relations
- In 1155, Pope Adrian had offered the crown of Ireland to King Henry II if he could bring the Irish under control; following his own break with Rome, in the 16th century, Henry VIII began a more formal subjugation of Ireland
- This began initially with the persuasion of Irish Parliament to pass the Crown of Ireland Act in 1542, formally making the Kings of England the Kings of Ireland
- As a result, by the start of the 18th century, the same monarch had the rule of three separate kingdoms - England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales all still had separate parliaments, laws and customs and are still independent countries
Ireland and Anglo-Irish Treaty
In 1782, Ireland had gained effective legislative independence from Great Britain with its own constitution - However, only Protestants could hold political power, meaning the Catholic majority was largely excluded
- This led to a Catholic uprising in 1798 and an appeal to the French, now their allies, to invade the country - the uprising was suppressed but with continuing threat of invasion, the Great British Parliament and Protestant Parliament of Ireland agreed to form a formal political union to guarantee future security
- On July 2nd 1800, the Westminster parliament passed the Union with Ireland Act
- This was followed by the passage of the Act of Union by the Irish Parliament on August 1st
- The act came into effect on January 1st 1801 and saw the introduction of 32 irish peers to the House of Lords and 100 new Irish MP’s, all of whom had to be Anglican - these Acts created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
- Following years of pressure for Irish Home Rule and a civil war in Ireland, the British Parliament passed the Government of Ireland Act in 1920 to create two Irish regions with ‘Home Rule’ - the six northeastern counties form Northern Ireland and the rest of the country formed Southern Ireland
- In 1921, the Anglo-Irish treaty was signed by the British prime minister, David Lloyd-George to formally create the Irish Free State
- The six counties of Northern Ireland opted to remain part of the United Kingdom and so the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was established
The Acts of Union 1707 - why were there concerns over Scotland and England having separate parliaments?
The Act of Settlement allowed the English Parliament to decide who the next monarch would be, and there was a possibility that the Scottish Parliament may choose a different one, which would result in the breakdown of the informal union between the two kingdoms and possibly lead to future wars.
How and why were the Scots forced to accept the Acts of Union in 1707?
In 1698-99, Scotland attempted to establish its own colony in Panama, an expedition which proved to be disastrous and brought bankruptcy to the country. As a result of this, the Scottish parliament, urged by William III, was forced to accept terms from the English Parliament that would give Scotland a limited voice in Westminster in order to help them avoid the threat of financial disaster, internal division, commercial blockade and war. The Scottish Parliament passed an act accepting the union with Britain in January of 1707 and the British Parliament passed its own act of union in March, accepting new jurisdiction over Scotland and Scottish representation in Parliament.
What did the Acts of Union do the Scottish Parliament?
These acts led to the dissolution of the Scottish Parliament. On May 1st was the first meeting of the unified parliament in Westminster, resulting in the formal statute recognition of Great Britain as a state / country. (unifies all the parliaments of Scotland, Wales and England)
How did Britain become a democratic country?
Most of the political history of Britain has been about the transfer of power from the monarch to parliament
In the 19th century, issues relating to democracy and representation became more prominent - parliament needed to represent the people, and so the monarch and lords needed to transfer more power to the people
Before 1832, the Lords were the dominant house with the Commons representing less than 2% of the population
Elections were held but they were undemocratic with rotten boroughs, multiple votes and property qualifications leaving most people disenfranchised (without a vote)
1832-1969 - saw a huge growth in democratic representation, with the electorate growing from 2% to full adult suffrage.
This growth in democracy led to the shift in power from Lords to Commons
The 19th century also saw significant reforms to the way elections were held and seats were allocated, making representation across the UK fairer.
Constitutional Monarchy
Monarch is head of state, but the ability to make and pass laws resides with parliament.
1911 - the formation of the House of Lords
From the time of the Act of Settlement until the mid 19th century, the Lords had been the dominant force in UK politics - it was seen as a moderator between the House of Commons and the monarch / crown
Most Prime Ministers had sat in the House of Lords along with most leading statesman - however, the rise in democracy in the UK mean the status of the Lords as the ‘upper’ chamber was being increasingly challenged
Great Reform Act 1832
Anyone who owned property worth more than £10 were allowed to vote (middle classes)
This meant that the electorate was now 8% of the total adult population.
How it changed British Democracy - Rotten boroughs were abolished and more seats were allocated to the new industrial towns
