To What Extent was Britain a Democracy by 1900?
Today, we take for granted the rights that we have, to take part in the political process, as by 1979 all adult men and women were able to vote, and could vote in secret. However at the beginning of the nineteenth century, both Houses of parliament were made up by the land-owning class, and at this time only 4 out of 100 people in the country had the vote. This system of Parliamentary Representation had not been changed since the sixteenth century. In the 1850's, rights to vote were still near non-existent for most people. Few men and no women had the right to vote to choose members of parliament. Their right to vote had to be won through perseverance by individuals or by popular movements who were representing sections of society, like: women, the working class. A series of Reform Acts, starting from 1832, were to transform Britain into a developing democracy. However, whether Britain had reached a democracy by 1900 is determined by a number of factors including voting age, gender, the role of MPs, property qualifications etc. The most significant area that should be explored is "The Voters." Who could vote before 1900? After the Reform Act of 1832, there was still a divide between two types of constituencies. Thes
A historian's verdict was that the secret ballot was very beneficial. "With secrecy of ballot after 1872, the workers of both town and country were able to use their vote freely without fear of reprisals from employer or landlord. Public opinion came to be more of a reality in politics." However, the corruption was not completely gone and four towns had been disenfranchised due to corrupt practices. This is why the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act had to be passed. The Act made sure that: candidates' election expenses were determined by the size of the constituency; election agents accounted for their spending; there was a detailed definition of illegal and corrupt practices and that involvement in corruption would result in a fine or imprisonment.
Some topics in this essay:
Reform Act,
Practices Act,
Act Act,
Counties Boroughs,
Ballot Act,
People Act,
England Wales,
Reform Acts,
Parliamentary Representation,
,
reform act,
boroughs counties,
reform act 1832,
total mps,
act 1832,
corrupt illegal practices,
democracy britain,
male householders,
towns population,
increased electorate 25,
population 15000,
people act 1884,
corrupt practices,
representation people act,
owned property,
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Approximate Word count = 1244
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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