The Great Reform Act. docx

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The Great Reform Act

= Not just one even but a whole remodelling of 18th C. Gov & Soc.

—> Parl. Reform not out of the blue; present since Radicals 1790 & 1810’s. + remained v. important issue

—> Post Pitt = Reform was only issue that united TORIES + All against: a) King George III

b) French Revolution b/c messed w/ constitutions = dangerous

= frightened many off idea of Parl. Reform.

Causes

1) Discrediting System Itself

a) Boroughs = complicated

b) Counties = simple; 40s- freeholders

—> Views = counties were fine + ideal w/ property owners holding vote h/e

Radicals (only) wanted to separate vote from property ownership. —> Views = borough system was wrong, confusing & complete mess

—> Rotten Boroughs = v. small electorate; controlled —> Open Boroughs = w/ larger electorate; better Nevertheless,

Strong argument present that CURRENT system was GOOD =

-

Opinion that too based on _LAND

h/e

not the case; very open to MONEY + COMMERCIAL INTERESTS were v. well represented in H. of Commons.

-

Opinion that too open to _TALENT;_any_{rich talented}_{person could}_buy_{their way in} = allows young MP’s & PM’s (e.g. Peel; 21st bday

present)

-

Opinion that system must be _{retained on property}

-

System was _{NOT corrupt}_{(h/e not really the case)}

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some votes bought on HUGE national scale;

incredibly corrupt using national issues to buy votes.

-

Britain now _{successful empire =}_{suggests old system is reason for this.}

Argument opposition to old System =

-

Rotten Boroughs _{= nom. of candidate by}_absentee_{who was never seen.}

- Problem of North vs. South = old system represented med. demographic —> most people lived in S & SE

= most MP’s & boroughs in S & SE h/e

1820’s = industrialisation in NORTH; big cities = North now underrepresented

- Controversial issue of rising M/C attitudes (had no vote under old syst.) h/e

by mid. 19th C. = distinct M/C + people who championed it (although hard to see if this present pre-1832)

- Radical view = Vote is a right & NOT a privilege

= want to break bonds of difference b/w poor/wealthier = 1 man, 1 vote h/e

M/C wanted vote

+ increasingly disliked aristocracy although not prepared to accept W/C either. - Landed Aristocratic View = Need to balance b/w old & new

= make some changes; preserve importance of aristocracy = 1832 —> Clever WHIG manoeuvre to preserve

aristocracy.

- Britain becoming wealthier & wealthier

h/e

old syst. becoming more and more costly (e.g. bribery at elections) = these costs must be cut.

—> Old system both attacked & defended; good & bad

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- Rise of non-conformists = v/ wealthy & high status

= focus on CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGE; succeed 1828 (Test & Corp.)

+ v. influential in moulding public opinion

+ owned many newspapers = public opinion v/ closely tied to rise of non-conf.

- Some M/C Radicals = e.g. Atwood (B’ham manufacturer) —> founded campaign for Parl. Reform w/ Political Union

= was copied by others

- 1826 Election = hit headlines more than any other for all wrong reasons

a) huge corruption; punished by losing MP’s = redistribution —> L’Pool decides to give to Yorkshire instead of B’ham = v. bad

decision.

- Panacea Factor = trying to find ‘one target’ (e.g. Hitler w/ jews) = many people find absurd targets & reasons;

Ultras —> Catholics

Inflationists —> Cash payments

= Parl. Reform starts to be seen as SOLUTION.

(causes) 3) Catholic Emancipation; (leads to Parl. Reform?)

- Disturbs Tory party who are major opponents - Sets a ceiling = things can be changed w/o disaster

h/e these are not causes —> many people agreed & Tory Gov. survived

(causes) 4) Disruption of Tory Party

= undeniable & had been going on for a long time h/e

not necessarily disastrous (unlike Wellington’s leadership)

(causes) 5) Party Advantage

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—> as this was built up by the Tories = Whigs permanently EXCLUDED

= Whigs would want to change system to advantage of their party.

(causes) 6) Rise of Economic Distress after 1829

- h/e not main reason & hardly significant

- depends on size of ‘Captain Swing Riots’ = not v. significant.

(causes) 7) French Revolution 1830

- 1830 = Wellington feels secure + helped by GIV death as William easier to deal w/

= confident about election however,

- July 1830 = FRENCH REVOLUTION w/ Rise of Bourbons

—> England informed by Aug. 3rd = some Radicals made big issue of this - Election July/Aug 1830 = Wellington; 250 seats

Opposition; 192 seats Independents; 212 seats

= looks fine h/e

Gov. did badly in open boroughs; where public opinion mattered & couldn’t be controlled

+ odd results based upon revolts that were influenced = shows that w/o control, Gov. were in danger.

= Wellington’s prestige PLUMMETS b/c draws wrong conc. from French Revolution —> thinks it will become nasty = Parl. Reform must be opposed & public opinion will rally round.

h/e

- 1790’s is NOT repeated

= decision to completely ignore Parl. Reform is BAD as French Rev. ended WELL & opposite was happening in London;

- Revolutions etc. b/c everyone knew of free press in France —> Peel’s police force ridiculed.

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-

STOCK MARKET CRASHES = Petitions _{for Parl. Reform by}_{big organisations}

Captain Swing Riots

—> due to economic & other issues = panics gentries & land owners

+blame French Rev. coming across for things happening to poor.

= Gentry doubt Wellington’s competence; expect him to come up w/ Parl. Reform speech in Nov - does not.

= Loses Vote & hands over to King. = NEW TORY GOV. expected h/e

only person is Peel; refuses b/c would be expected to introduce Parl. Reform

= didn’t want to because already punished for Cath. Emancipation = would only be brief

—> King has to call on WHIG; EARL GREY b/c only option for Gov. that would pass Parl. Reform (NOT b/c whigs won)

= CRUCIAL; Wellington’s misinterpretation of French Rev.

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a) Did it give power to MIDDLE CLASSES?

—> NO

h/e

some viewpoints state that:

a) 1832 almost as ‘great’ for Whigs as 17th C. Revolution

= v. magnified; say they ‘saved’ Britain = very warped view

- still had MIDDLE CLASS supporters; John Bright & Richard Cobden = very M/C & v. wealthy

—> create idea that Aristocracy is poor & M/C are great; industry vs. landed gentry.

= argued that G/R/A did pass power onto them.

- Marxist view; history is history of CLASS STRUGGLE h/e

NOT the case;

b) All above views assume M/C are easy to define & hand power over to h/e

definitely not the case; can go from millionaire to shop owner = v/ varied. = not an organised, set group.

c) Assume that M/C had no power before h/e not the case

—> new-monied men had too much power & no barrier to wealthy M/C actions

d) Can’t be seen in Marxist terms;

18/19th C. NOT based on class struggles but rather on property & land e.g. Liverpool, Huskisson, Sidmouth; powerful but M/C

Sidmouth only picked title up on the way

= if anything, M/C businesses seen as too powerful. e) Assumption that M/C actually want power

= true that Bright & Cobden saw it in that way h/e

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+ Westminster = ‘Club’

= if wanted vote, had to spend time in Parl; communicate, contact & network h/e

M/C didn’t have the time

= had to vote for a landed Gent as MP rather than a M/C if they wanted benefits for a M/C business.

—> M/C wanted LOCAL influence & power = Acts post.1835 much more important.

So, why was power not transferred?

a) Increase in Electorate (doubles) = sounds Radical h/e

are they M/C? different to previous electorate? - NO = exactly the same; mix of propertied people

+ slightly more of same type of person w/ vote after 1832 = more uniform electorate & wealthier

—> Old system actually more representative than new? Post 1832 = £10+ had vote

Pre- 1832 = £2-£20 had vote (so even artisans)

= Middle Class issue more of a SYMBOL

e.g. Cobden & Bright = suited them to say that power was now balanced

“It might not have been a good bill but it was a great bill” —> said after event

= did not hand power to M/C but symbol of it being passed was great.

+ Anti-Corn Law League then founded (M/C Organisation) = to get what they wanted

—> Whig motive = detach propertied from any alliance w/ M/C

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b) Test for transfer or power =

- Social constitution of MP’s was the same; no more M/C becoming MP’s

—> Althorp; v. aristocratic Whig (Grey’s Gov) - claimed that it gave aristocrats too much power

“MP’s will continue to be selected from same classes” = very true & hardly any change seen = Liverpool (v. M/C) replaced by Viscount Sandom (landed

aristocrat)

c) Power transfer to Local Gov’s where M/C did want power?

- Only 1835 = MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS ACT (no town council previously) = provided mech. where it was suggested that boroughs could

establish town councils

h/e ensures that electorate are RATE PAYERS; people who own property

b) Did it give power to ARISTOCRACY? (more telling)

-

Key Whig aristocratic aim = _{save & preserve aristocratic system.} (easy to look at what G/R/A doesn’t do to see if it preserved system)

—> What doesn’t change about aristocratic power?

a) ELECTORAL PROCESSES;

- No secret ballot until 1872 (h/e still takes long time for honest votes)

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= Corruption continues

b) NAMES

- 1832 = Rotten boroughs abolished h/e all TORY-OWNED —> Whig owned boroughs continue until 1885

c) CLASS VOTER

- Same sort of voter before & after - Much less representative

—> G/R/A limited growth rate of electorate; almost doubled 1780-1832

only 150,000 increase after G/R/A (strange seeing as economy was booming)

d) ORGANISING ELECTORATE

-

£10 line = defines electorate simply + more controllable & organisable

—> What does change?

a) HELPS LANDED ARISTOCRATS RETAIN POWER & CONTROL ELECTORATE

- Have to be registered to vote

- 1832 = Legal requirement to be in poll book —> made it easy to look people up —> work out who to bribe

—> w/ enough influence, could change names on books (post 1832 = 40% of should-be voters were not) = complaints

b) COMPOUNDING

- Worry when £10 line introduced = local tax included in rent

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c) CHANDOS CLAUSE

- 1/3 voters = chandos voters

= voters had to do what they were told or thrown out of electorate

d) DIVIDING

-

Divided counties = _{SMALLER & more controllable}

e) STOP TO OUTVOTING

- Had to be resident for 1yr min.

= kept lots of working class out of electorate

f) BOUNDARIES

- Some boundaries re-drawn

= neutralised whole groups of people

= A lot reinforces

LANDED CONTROL

- Impact on Political Parties

- WHIGS = great beneficiaries

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otherwise, system created obvious benefits for Whigs; 1st election = 483:175 votes.

+ All rotten boroughs that go = TORY-owned + Boosts party-image of ‘liberty’

h/e Whigs disillusioned w/ measure; thought it would be quick to get passed but wasn’t

—> Also strengthens RADICAL END of Whigs = Irish policy listened to

= Church reform listened to

—> Aristocratic Gov. only listen to intellectuals = alienates W/C

=

Whigs are great

beneficiaries

h/e not all great; some things are mishandled

- Tories =

v. damaged by G/R/A

+ leader still Duke of Wellington (awful)

—> Depends a lot on whether Tories can reinvest themselves + create moderate elec-torate

h/e not possible w/ Wellington

= PEEL comes in; more Conservative than Tory

= asks for propertied by appealing to them

Long term = maybe good for Tories to give a chance to grow graduallyw/ good public opinion

+ definitely not Radical unlike what Whigs thought. —> only obstacle = Duke of Wellington

- Radicals = v. varied

—> had hoped for most from 1832 but gain LEAST (lots lost vote post 1832) —> feel that propertied have far too much power despite initially supporting them.

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