QUEEN VICTORIA - last of Hanoverian Dynasty. Ruled for 64 years.

VICTORIAN SOCIETY

1. Upper class - barons, Queen, her family, nobles - all with aristocratic title, lords

2. Middle class - wide section, industrialists, factory owners, merchants, traders, church, army, navy, banking. They had steady income, life pretty comfortable. Some of them had right to vote, could choose MPs, they had political power. They could be also promoted and enter upper class.

3. Poor/working class - factory workers, farmers, unemployed. His life was gloomy, poor, children and women had to work, nobody cared for them, they couldn't vote, neglected.

1832 - The Reform Bill - gave right to vote to more man (only middle class men). Significant document, began under reign of William IV, under Victoria it really took place. Many workers who hoped that The Reform Bill would something for them also, felt disappointed. It caused political movement called…

CHARTISM - they worked with liberals and radicals.

1849 - Chartists (workers) wrote a document National Petition (=People's Charter) - it included demands:

1. Universal suffrage (=right to vote - prawo wyborcze)

2. Ballot (voting by secret ballot)

3. Annual parliaments

4. No property qualifications to MPs - no matter if you had property or not, you could be MP

5. Salaries for MPs - they would work more effectively

6. Equal electoral district

All these changes happened, but it took more time.

SUFFRAGE

1832 - The Reform Bill (suffrage depending on financial situation)

1867 - Reform Act (also working man could vote)

1884, 1885 - Redistribution Act (tripled electoral) more people by this time had right to vote, even without property - it was right.

1918 - Act - all men over 21 and women over 30 had right to vote. Why women? Because during World War I they worked really hard (some even with the soldiers: nurses, cooks) while men was at the battle field.

SECRET BALLOT

1872 - Ballot Act - at first voting was not secret as it is today. There was lot of corruption to vote for specific MPs. This act made voting secret, put an end to bribery and corruption. It was opposed by landlords and factory owners (before they had control over their workers votes).

EQUAL ELECTORAL SYSTEM

New industrial cities - were not represented in Parliament. Ghost town - miasto widmo.

1832 - The Reform Bill - gave right to new cities, abolished old

1867 - The Reform Act - each constituency should hold roughly to the same number of electors.

NO PROPERTY QUALIFICATIONS FOR MPs

1858 - before this year if you wanted to be MP you had to have property. In 1858 it was abolished - only sufficient number of votes was qualification to be MP.

Salaries were introduced.

HISTORIA - ĆWICZENIA - 20.01.2012

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