changing influences in parliament

• the influence of the monarchy 


  George iii has sinecures and generous pensions afforded to individuals to secure support and to influence parliament. these were new avenues of patronage during American colony wars 1775.
• the influence of the monarchy:

  burke attacked high expenditure used to maintain royal court and his reforms would lead to reductions in these and allow gov to reduce taxes. However, none of these measures got through the House of Commons until the Civil Service Act which abolished over 130 sinecures
• influence of the monarchy:

  Pitt reduced sinecures by waiting for the offer holder to die, letting the position die. although a slow option by 1806 many officers vanished and therefore George iii couldn't keep the North in office. however, sinecures and pensions still remained
• influence of the monarchy:

  the 1832 reform act reduced influence of monarchy. parties were clearly defined. key example: William IV invited Peel to be PM but only held 175 seats and in 1835 election conservatives added 100 new seats so Melbourne returned and Peel resigned.
• influence of the monarchy:

  1839 Bedchamber Crisis, Victoria refused to change her ladies in waiting so Peel refused to be PM and Melbourne returned to office and after Victoria rarely expressed political views again and was forced to choose PMs based on support
• the influence of the monarchy:

  the 1914 Home Rule bill for Ireland was silently opposed by George V as he believed it would lead to civil war and gave royal assent in September because of WW1. Later he appointed Ramsay Macdonald in January 1924 and was praised for helpful attitude towards new labour cabiniet members.
• influence of the monarchy:


  1928 reform act greatly restricted ability of the monarch to get involved in politics. after the 1867 act W. Bagehot wrote that 'the sovereign has the right to be consulted, right to encourage and to warn'
• influence of monarchy:

  1832= Whig gov struggled to pass reforms as the House of Lords would always block them. William VI threatened to flood the House of Lords with pro reform peers. did it to avoid revlution not because he wanted to

  1884= liberal gov struggled to pass ROTPA in face of conservatives so Victoria stepped in and insisted parties met= Arlington Street compact (whigs got franchise extension 1884 and conservatives got advantageous distribution 1885)
• influence of aristocracy:

  • House of Lords made up of the head of the aristocracy family and male siblings in the House of Commons.
  • many were large landowners, coming with wealth and influence which many used to control elections
  • in small counties aristocrats could pay off voters to ensure they got their chosen candidates.
  • in Pitt's first gov 1783-94 only 3 members of the HofC against 9 of HofL were
  • Baldwin's cabinet in 1924 had 14 MPs and 7 peers
• influence of aristocracy:

  1. 1858: abolition of property qualifications= like land that produces £600 and has an income of £300, anyone can run
  2. 1872: Ballot Act= tackle corruption + protect electoral secrecy
• influence of aristocracy:

  1. 1883: Corruption & illegal practices prevention act= limited spending for party at elections. no more than £710 for first 2000 voters then £40 for additional 1000 voters
  2. 1911: Parliament Act= HofL could only delay a bill for 2 years before it could be passed. they also couldn't delay financial bills and general elections reduced from 7 years to 5 years. salary of £400 per MP
• influence of aristocracy:

  • king reduces influence so they are squeezed from above
  • middle class emerging and reform acts squeeze from below
• influence of aristocracy:

  • 1815 Corn Laws prevented the importation of cheap grain from abroad. so only British corn would be bought, therefore bringing in more money for the aristocracy
  • this protective legislation was repealed in 1846 as it was very unpopular
• influence of aristocracy:

  • 1928 act meant universal suffrage for men and women meaning aristocratic influence vanished.
• influence of aristocracy:

  • 1885 act meant locals were more likely to choose candidates whose attitudes to politics were more professional
• turning points in Conservative Party:

  • 1783 William Pitt younger
  • 1812 Lord Liverpool- repressive
  • 1829 Catholic emancipation- split party
• turning points in CP:

  • 1832 act starts ball rolling for CP. Barnham reorganises party nationally. Calton Club is formed which allowed a party ideology to be more marketable to get back into power. Chandos clause meant that tenant farmers were given the vote but voted with the aristocracy.
• turning points in CP:

  • 1834 Tamworth manifesto- renamed CP to distance from tory which created a shared ideology and united party
  • 1846 Repeal of Corn Laws- famine in Ireland but split the party but avg people benefitted.
  • 1867 Disraeli's leap in the dark- this act enfranchised some urban workers
• turning points in CP:

  • 1885 act- redraw constitution in favour of conservative workers as well as redistributing seats to constituencies that favoured CP
  • 1903 tariff reform- imported goods were taxed so they were made more expensive. Chamberlain split the party because until then there was free trade. led to liberals getting into gov
• influence of the aristocracy:

  • impact of the 1832 reform act meant that influence remained
  • social composition meant that 70% of gov was still country gentry
• influence of aristocracy 


  the extension of the franchise 1867 and 1884 meant that the new electorate was more influenced by increasingly organised parties and not aristocratic influence
• turning points in Liberal party:

  • 1830-4= Earl Grey, great reform act, Whigs were pro reform
  • 1835= Litchfield House Pact, bring down Robert Peel and alliance between Irish and Whig MP.
  • 1836= The Reform Club, club looked at ideology not organisation and unofficial headquarters of lib party
• turning points in the Liberal party:

  • 1859= Willis rooms, formation of the party
  • 1860s-90s= Gladstones gov, 4 govs
  • 1870s= Birmingham Caucus, Joseph Chamberlain (mayor) 2 votes for every elector, 3 MPs. JC directed them to spread votes evenly to allow libs to take clean sweep
• turning points in the Liberal party:

  • 1877= National Liberal Federation, union of regional liberal groups held annual party conference. aim was to spread caucus system across multimember seats.
  • 1878- 80= Midlothian Campaign making Gladstone clear leader
  • 1886= 1st Home Rule bill to 'pacify Ireland' but split the party
• turning points in the Liberal Party:

  • 1903-6= Tariff Reform, united libs but split conservatives. meant free trade and therefore cheaper food.
  • 1906-14= New Liberalism, introduced pensions (1911 national insurance) and moved away from Gladstonian free trade to helping the poor.
  • 1914-18= WW1, 1915 munitions crisis showed incompetence from Libs. 1916 party split and Asquith forced out by David Lloyd George. 1922 coalition gov.
• growth of labour party:

  1. emerging working-class with specific issues
  2. gradual enfranchisement of working class
  3. absence of working class political party
  4. hostile legislation against TUs
  5. radicalism- political organisations of working class
  6. working class leadership
• growth of labour party:

  • 1867= reform act enfranchised some of working class but didn't lead to MPs
  • 1884= Social Democratic Federation formed and were influential in shifting political climate slightly
  • 1888= May and Bryant matchstick strike. new unionism saw organisations for unskilled workers and women
• growth of labour party:

  • 1893= independent labour party founded, SDF and Fabians society met to discuss reforms 1. free medical access 2. free education 3. welfare provisions 4. minimum wage
  • 1900= LRC founded
  • 1901= Taff Vale- TU pay £23,000 because they were liable for profit loss after striking- made strikes ineffective.
• growth of labour party:

  • 1903= Lib + Lab pact meant the liberals only had to compete with conservatives.
  • 1906= general election because of LIB LAB pact and taff vale they won with 254,000 votes.
  • 1906-1918= reversed judgement on Taff Vale so message was unclear. party split 1910 because of women's suffrage and Lloyd George budget for social reform
• growth of the labour party:

  1914-18= WW1. munitions crisis made them look weak. 3 members joined Asquith's coalition, gov in 1915

  1918= 4th act and general election. electorate now 21 million and opened up areas where labour support was more concentrated (142 seats won)
• growth of labour party:

  1924= first labour gov. Housing act saw 50,000 houses built and rented at controlled rates. pensions improved, unemployment benefits, extended secondary education and health provisions.

  1929= by now universal suffrage and lost the election had 287 seats but not enough for majority.
• social makeup of HofC:

  1. class background= 1780 parliament made up of brothers and sons of landed gentry. 1832-67 saw barely any change and no influx of middle class men. 1885 redistribution act did nothing. increased number of seats entrenched power of gentry and redistribution worked against merchants and bankers
• social makeup of HofC:

  3. property qualification 1858= Edward Glover elected 1857 but had no property qualifications so was barred from HofC and imprisoned for 3 years. addressed that law didn't matter to Scottish MPs and the law was a sham so it was abolished.
• social makeup of HofC:

  4. Salaries for MPs 1911= as franchise expanded, wanted to involve men who couldn't afford to live and commute. chartists supported it at £500 a year. 1911 parliament approved £400.
• development of political parties on a mindmap/ paper flashcards
• social make up: women

  • local government act 1894 allowed women to vote for locl parishes and councils
  • nancy astor 1919
  • 1918 act gave women over 30 the vote
  • qualification of women act 1918- 17 out of 1623 elected