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Use Cases
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Pricing
Representation and Reform
Representation and Reform
1829 - 1831
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Leads to high grain prices and unemployment.
January 1830
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June 1830
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July 1830
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August 1830
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Widespread uprising by agricultural workers.
November 1830
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November 1830
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March 1831
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Defeated by Tories in committee stage; Earl Grey calls an election
April 1831
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Returned with a majority of 130.
July 1831
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October 1831
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Majority of 31; leads to Riots in Nottingham, Derby and Bristol. Prominent members of the Lords attacked, including several bishops.
December 1831
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March 1832
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(Faces possible defeat in Lords)
May 1832
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This would ensure a majority in Lords.
William IV refuses to agree - Grey resigns.
Wellington tries for six days to form a Tory ministry but is unable to do so.
King asks Grey to return as PM.
New Whig peers not needed as Tory supporters in Lords abstain.
June 1832
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Seperate Reform Bills for Ireland and Scotland.
1834
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1836
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January 1837
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May 1837
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November 1837
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1838
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February 1839
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May 1839
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June 1839
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July 1839
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235 votes to 46
November 1839
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South Wales valleys rose in revolt.
Living and working conditions appalling.
John Frost and Zephania Williams deported to Australia.
Lovett and O'Connor arrested and imprisoned.
July 1840
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August 1841
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January 1842
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May 1842
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Rejected by 287 votes to 49
August 1842
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Sabotage campaign to remove plugs from factory boilers, especially in North and Midlands.
August 1842
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1843
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April 1845 - 1848
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June 1846
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1848
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1851
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1855
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1865
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1865
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1866
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July 1866
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Political riot in central London.
A meeting by the Reform League ended in a major right when the police attempted to stop the meeting from taking place.
1867
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1867
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Gave the vote to working class men for the first time.
March 1867
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1872
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Secret ballot.
1883
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Rigid rules for the conduct of elections.
Limit on how much candidates could spend.
Set heavy penalties on those guilty of corruption.
1884
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All occupiers of houses got the vote.
Doubled the size of the electorate since the 1867 Reform Act.
Applied to the whole of the UK (unlike the Great Reform Act and the 1867 Reform Act).
40% of adult males could still not vote.
1885
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Multi-member seats abolished.
Equal electoral districts.
1868 - 1874
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1869
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IRISH REFORM
Disestablished Church of Ireland.
No representatives sent to House of Lords.
1870
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ARMY
Allowed adding of 3 extra years to 12-year enlistment.
1870
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EDUCATION
Established a system of 'school boards' to build and manage schools where they were needed.
1870 - 1871
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FOREIGN POLICY
Did not intervene.
Got an agreement from both sides NOT to invade Belgium (1870).
Negotiated to reduce French reparations.
1870
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FOREIGN POLICY
Withdrew troops from Canada when they faced internal revolts.
Completely abandoned Gambia to France(June 1870).
1870
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IRISH REFORM
Protection for tenants.
1870
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IRISH REFORM
Gave Irish administration special powers to control agrarian crimes.
1870
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ARMY
Aimed to improve efficiency.
1871
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ARMY
Increased the size of the army from 200, 000 to 497, 000.
1871
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TRADE UNION REFORM
Prevented violence in strikes by making intimidation illegal.
1871
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LOCAL GOVERNMENT REFORM
Recognised health administration under a minister for local government.
1871
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TRADE UNION REFORM
Gave them the legal protection they wanted.
1871
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EDUCATION
Allowed Roman Catholics, non-conformists and non-Christians to take up fellowships at universities of Durham, Cambridge & Oxford.
1871
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IRISH REFORM
Allows arrest and detention without trial.
March 1871
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FOREIGN POLICY
Granville organised an international conference in London.
Russia made to revoke Black Sea clauses.
1872
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ELECTORAL REFORM
Secret ballot.
1872
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LICENSING REFORM
This act was passed in response to the opposition from brewers and distillers to Gladstone's Licensing Act.
However, in some areas, the Act curtailed licensing hours even further and, in the end, pleased nobody.
1872
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LICENSING REFORM
Fix opened and closing hours.
Check on the adulteration of beer.
1872
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LOCAL GOVERNMENT REFORM
Established Urban & Rural Sanitary Authorities responsible for public health in local areas.
1872
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FOREIGN POLICY
USA accused Britain of breaching it's neutrality in American Civil War.
Britain awarded USA with damages of £3.25 million.
1873
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IRISH REFORM
Expanded University of Dublin into a secular national university, incorporating multiple colleges.
1873
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LEGAL REFORM
Established Supreme Court.
Split into High Court and Court of Appeal.
1874 - 1880
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1874
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Reduced hours that workers had to work to 10 hours and half a day on Saturday.
1874
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RELIGIOUS MATTERS
Although supported by the Queen, outraged Anglo-Catholics in the Cabinet such as Hardy, Carnarvon and, above all, Salisbury.
It helped to deepen the splits within the Anglican Church.
1875
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Allowed local authorities to impose the compulsory purchase of slums and replacement with planned housing.
1875
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TRADE UNION REFORM
Fully decriminalised the work of trade unions.
Allowed peaceful picketing.
1875
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PUBLIC HEALTH REFORM
Brought all previous legislation on health under one act.
Established checks on sewage and draining, public toilets and cellar dwellings.
1875
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FOREIGN POLICY
Bought the Khedive (ruler of Egypt)'s share-holding in the Suez Canal company.
Purchased a 44% share in operation of Suez Canal (one of the world's major sea routes since 1869).
1875
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PUBLIC HEALTH REFORM
Laid down regulations about the adulteration of food.
Impact was reduced by the failure to compel local authorities to appoint analysts to assess adulteration.
1876
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FOREIGN POLICY
Disraeli created the Queen's title of Empress of India.
Helped to strengthen links with India.
1876
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EDUCATION
Increased pressure on working class parents to send their children to school.
1877
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FOREIGN POLICY
Colonel Secretary, Lord Carnarron, planned to confederate 3 British colonies.
Intended to strengthen Britain's hold on South Africa.
1878 - 1879
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FOREIGN POLICY
Annexed Baluchistan and installed a pro-British leader in Afghanistan.
Led to British invasion.
1878
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FOREIGN POLICY
Treaty of San Stefano - would create a 'Big Bulgaria'.
West feared this would create a large Russian satellite state.
Treaty of Berlin - Britain get Cyprus.
Disraeli manages to break up the Dreikaiserbund.
1878
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FOREIGN POLICY
Sir Bartle Frere decided to confront Zulus.
Defeat at Isandwana.
Disraeli was furious.
1880
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FOREIGN POLICY
Withdrew from Afghanistan but failed to reverse Disraeli's imperialist policies.
1880 - 1885
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1880
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DEALING WITH THE AGRICULTURAL DEPRESSION
Repealed the malt tax and replaced it with a tax on beer.
This eased the tax burden on farmers who had to pay a tax on malted barley.
1880
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DEALING WITH THE AGRICULTURAL DEPRESSION
Allowed tenant farmers to shoot hares and rabbits as a supplement to their diet.
1880
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FOREIGN POLICY
Gladstone succeeded in dropping the Conservative plan of defending Turkey's Asian border with Russia.
1880
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FOREIGN POLICY
Boers had hoped the election of Liberal Party in 1880 would mean independence for Transvaal, but Gladstone insisted on maintaining control of Pretoria.
1881
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IRISH REFORM
Gave tenant farmers the three 'Fs' for free sale, fair rent and fixity of tenure.
1882 - 1885
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FOREIGN POLICY
Gladstone wanted to withdraw British troops but they never found the right time.
1883
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DEALING WITH THE AGRICULTURAL DEPRESSION
Made Disraeli's permissive legislation of 1875 compulsory.
This gave tenant farmers extra security of tenure.
1883
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FOREIGN POLICY
Gladstone replaced Lord Lytton with Lord Ripon as Viceroy of India.
Ripon attempted to win support from western-educated Indian elite.
1883, he put Ilbert Bill - planned to allow Indian magistrates on the right to sit in judgement on whites.
This sparked off widespread white opposition.
Bill was withdrawn.
1883 - 1885
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FOREIGN POLICY
"The Mandhi" of Sudan started a 'holy war' against Europeans and westerners.
1883 - destroyed Anglo-Egyptian army.
Cabinet sent General Gordon to Sudanese capital, Khartoum.
Gordon unwilling to withdraw, Liberal government unwilling to send aid.
Gordon killed by Mahdist troops.
Caused uproar in Britain.
1884 - 1885
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FOREIGN POLICY
Gladstone forced to abandon British informal control in areas such as Cameroon, Togoland and the Congo basin in favour of Germany, France and Belgium.