Post War Distress & Discontent 1812-1820/1822

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  • Created by: ktommo
  • Created on: 14-05-17 16:56
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  • Post War Distress and discontent 1812-1820/1822
    • After Effects of the War
      • Why a Reason?
        • Price of Corn fell
        • Protective Tariffs
        • Loss of Government orders
        • Half of the blast furnaces shut
        • 1/3 Million men were discharged from the army and navy
        • Unemployment and lower wages
      • However...
        • The Corn Laws-although a piece of class legislation-did bring some stabilisation to the price of corn
        • Must not be looked at in isolation of other factors
    • Agricultural and Industrial
      • Why a Reason?
        • De-skilling and new machinery
        • Speenhamland System
        • Population increase
        • Enclosure
        • Poor living and working conditions
        • Urbanization
        • Use of Truck Shops
      • However...
        • The Speenhamland System had good intentions
        • Despite conditions in urban areas being bad, working and living conditions in rural areas were not much better
        • Developments in agriculture meant that population growth was sustained-there was no mass starvation
        • The effect of enclosure was probably overstated
    • Government Policies
      • Why a Reason?
        • Sometimes made a bad situation worse
        • Not concerned with causes of distress
        • Combination Acts 1799/1800
        • Abolition of Income Tax
        • Corn Laws
        • Use of spies, informers and agent provocateurs
        • Maintain Law and Order = suspencsion of Habeas Corpus;Six Acts
      • However...
        • Liverpool's Government did want to maintain Income Tax after the war had ended, but a majority in the House of Commons voted in favour of abolition
        • Genuinely feared a revolutionary situation and acted accordingly
        • Government faced problems that were unprecedented in number, scope and complexity
        • Government had few effective law enforcement tools
        • When the economy allowed, Liverpool's Government introduced reforms
        • Government acted in moderation and with restraint
    • Lack of the Vote and the Radical Press
      • Why a Reason?
        • Lack of the vote removed a peaceful means of protest
        • William Cobbett's Two Penny Trash
        • Radical press helped people make the connection between economic distress, misgovernmetn and the need for political reform
      • However...
        • Although leading radicals appealed to the working class they were generally not of the working class and their interests were not necessarily working class interests
        • Radicals didn't make up a coherent group or party and different radical had different views

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