Industrial Revolution & The Vote

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Britain in 1750

POPULATION -  towns and villages are small and sparsely populated

AGRICULTURE - farming is the most common way of earning a living / large open fields growing arable crops / work done by hand / sheep graze on common land

INDUSTRY - small mill / coal mine / blacksmith's forge / hand weavers' cottages

POWER - water wheel drives mill machinery / windmill to grind corn / villagers burn coal for heating and cooking / sails to catch wind

TRANSPORT - roads are little more than dirt tracks / packhorses to carry goods / wagon and horses / hay cart / river barge / sailing ship

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Britain in 1890

POPULATION - huge expansion of towns and villages shows population growth / terraced houses and overcrowding

AGRICULTURE - agriculture much less importany / fields enclosed by hedges / machines to reduce hand labour

INDUSTRY - most people in the area work in factories / huge mills employ hundreds of people / coal mine has expanded

POWER - factory chimmneys indicate steam engines to drive the machinery / gas storage tanks / electricity cables for the trams

TRANSPORT - well-surfaced roads / penny farthing bicycle / dual track railway / railway station / canal / steam-powered canal barge / steam-powered sailing ship / tram

PUBLIC SERVICES - public park / public library / school / policemen / postal service / shops / recreation ground / chapel

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Industrial Revolution

Industrial Revolution - the period 1750-1900 when Britain became the first industrial nation.

Why did the population explode?

clever kids - education improved / people read about healtheir diets, cleaning, child care and care of sick (increases birth and decreases death)

baby boom - more babies born so parents get money by getting them to work in factories (increase birth)

sobering up - tax on gin / few people can afford gin / less alchoholics (decrease death)

super soap - after 1800 soap became cheap and a powerful germ killer (decrease in death)

cleaner cities - clean water and sewers / better housing / lit streets and parks (decrease in death)

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Industrial Revolution (cont.)

doctors & nurses - anaesthetics and antiseptics/ safe operations / more nurses (decrease death)

fab farmers - after 1750, farmers produce more food / people have the option to enjoy a healthier diet (decrease death)

young love - people started to marry younger so more oppertunities to have children (increase births)

smelly pants - cotton became Britain's most popular cloth / cotton is easier to wash so regular washing killed germs (decrease death)

magic midwives - improvements in care of pregnant women by midwives (increase in births and decrease in death)

jenner's jabs - Edward Jenner made vacination for small pox / eventually small pox disappeared (decrease in death)

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Improvements in Farming

Jethro Tull invented a seed drill. It was better than a broadcasting because less seeds were wasted and more food was being produced.

Broadcast sowing wasted seeds because birds would eat them, people would walk on them, they couldn't grow on rock soil and too many weeds.

Robert Bakewell improved sheep.

Colling Brothers improved southhorn cattle.

Lord Townshend was famous for growing turnips

Thomas Cokeheld sheep-shearing evens

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Enclosure

To grow more food farmers needed to reorganise land.

The land was 'enclosed' - putting hedges around fields and farming it as one farm instead of ***** farming.

Parliament had to pass an Act in 1785 to let this happen.

This makes it possible to grow more food but many labourers lost their jobs.

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Before Enclosure

Before Enclosure:

-farming method called 3 field system

-all villagers had to grow the same crop

-majority of villagers had work on the fields

-villagers grew only enough for themselves

-villager's had a number of strips

-farming was a wasteful system

-a field was left fallow

-common land was used for grazing

-breeding of animals not controlled

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After Enclosure

After Enclosure:

-crop growing on large fields

-strips disappeared

-fewer people needed 

-farmers could experiment with new crops

-farmers used new farming methods

-farmers wanted to make a profit

-quanity and quality of food improved

-use of selective bredding

-villagers without work

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Changes in Food Production

-bigger animals reached their full weight and maturity earlier

-more crops available meant animals were fed throughout winter and weren't killed in Autumn

-enclosures meant less dieases were spread between animals

-selective breeding led to large animals that could feed more people with a higher quality of meat

-new improved methods of farming - selective breeding/rotation

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Selective Breeding

Selective breeding was the main cause for increased food production because farmer's chose the healthiest and largest animals to breed. This led to them producing cattle, sheep and pis which grew much larger but also tasted nicer. They were able to feed more people so the price of meat was raise, so farmers would keep producing larger animals. The selective breeding also rasied the quality and standards of the taste of meat so farmers would be able to sell more.

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A New Age of Iron

Iron is produced by melting iron ore, lime-stone and charcoal. Hot liquid iron separates and pours out. The red hot liquid iron is poured into casts to make things like cannons. It can be reheated and hammered to become stronger.

Cast iron is poured into casts but contains air bubbles so can be brittle.

Wrought ironis reheated and hammered to remove air bubbles so it becomes stronger.

 

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What was iron used for?

Iron was mainly used for:

-steam engines

-machinery

-train tracks

These helped Britan's industry become more mechanised.

The Darby Family were famous iron makers from Coalbrookdale, Shropshire. Their iron was one of the finest in the world and one member of the family was so keen to show it off, he built the worlds first iron bridge over the River Severn.

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Material Production in Britain

Coal Production

1750 - 5 million tons

1800 - 11 million tons

1850 - 50 million tons

1900 - 225 million tons

Iron Production

1750 - 30 thousand tons

1800 - 250 thousand tons

1850 - 2000 thousand tons

1900 - 9000 thousand tons

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The Industry

The number of people in Britain was growing rapidly from 6.5 million people in 1751 to 32.5 million people in 1901. All these people needed to buy goods. There were also far more people to work in the factories.

Britain had a reputation for high quality goods and many other countries wanted to buy from them. Britain had good links abroad and were able to easily sell their goods. It also has many ports as it is an island so it was easy to import and export goods.

Canals and railway allowed efficent and cheap transport of goods.

Britain has lots of iron ore hich i needed to make iron ore to make iron and steel, and a lot of coal that could be mined.

There were many British people coming up with new inventions.

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Inventors in Britain

Many British people were coming up with new ideas for machines.

James Hargreaves - the spinning jenny

Brindley - canals to carry goods over uneven land

Canals were good for carrying coal, wheat, iron, cotton and manure.

Heavy bulky goods were best moved by canals because at least 40 tonnes of goods could be moved 5km per hour.

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Trains

A locomotive is an engine used to pull trucks or passenger carriages along a track.

1805 - the first ever train journey pulling 10 tonnes of iron and 70 passengers 9 miles in 4 hours

1825 - several railways were using horses and locomotive wagons on tracks

1830 - the official opening of the railways but Liverpool MP died

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Reform - The Vote

A reform was needed in Britain because working people didn't have the right to vote.

There was no one in Parliament to speak up for the working class, as MPs weren't paid so only rich people could become MPs.

The rich people were easily bribed and people didn't vote based only on policies.

Voting wasn't done in secret so everyone knew who you voted for.

O'Connor wanted someone from working class to become an MP to speak up about changes needed.

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Rotten Boroughs

A rotten borough was parliamentary constituencies that had declined in size but still have the right to elect members of the House of Commons.

They were usually under the control of one man and with just a few individuals with the vote and no secret ballet, it was easy for candidates to buy their way to victory.

Dunwich in Suffolk was a rotten borough.

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The Qualities to Vote

3% of the population were entitled to vote.

To vote, you had to:

-be a man

-own land (upper class property owners)

-have money

The rules varied in different areas of Britain. The upper class didn't think there was anything wrong with the system.

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The Rebecca Riots

The Rebecca Riots were lots of protests between 1839 and 1843. They took place in West Wales. People protesting included farmers which were angered because of taxes - they were unjust and always increasing.

Farmers that didn't earn much money were rioting because they couldn't afford to pay for the taxes that were getting larger. There were also taxes for things like transport.

The people called themselves Rebecca from a verse in the bible.

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The Reform - Grey & Burke

Grey's aim was to reform the political system to protect the exsiting power of the upper class and prevent a revolution that could destroy the political system for good.

Edmand Burke had new ideas about power and change that became very significant and important. He wrote about how all animals have to evole to adapt to their surroundings in order to survive just as people do. He need to make changes, even if they were only small, to keep the people happy and avoid a revolution for the time being. 

These small changes would give people hope that one day they would get all the changes they asked for.

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The Great Reform Act - Changes

The Great Reform Act of 1832. 

Changes:

-18% of adult male population could vote

-65 MPs given to towns and cities in Midlands and North

-criteria to vote was the same in all boroughs

-rotten boroughs had 1 MP instead of 2 MPs

-41 new boroughs created

-56 rotten boroughs abolished

-130 pocket boroughs abolished

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The Great Reform Act - No Change

But many things didn't change in the Great Reform Act:

-landowners could still influence voters with bribes or threats

-elections still held in the open so could be forced to vote for candidates

-men still had to be wealthy property owners to become an MP

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The Chartists

The Chartists demanded:

-universal suffrage

-secret ballot

-no property qualifications for MPs

-equal constituencies

-annual elections

-payment for MPs

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The Chartist Demands - Reasons

A VOTE FOR EVERYMAN 21 YEARS OLD -all men could take part in deciding who ruled them.

THE BALLOT SHOULD BE SECRET - no bribery or threats.

NO PROERTY QUALIFICATION - don't have to be rich to be an MP.

MPS SHOULD BE PAID - working class could be full time MPs.

EQUAL CONSTITUENCIES - all people were represented.

ANNUAL ELECTIONS - there could be change if the government were not doing a good job.

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Timeline - Votes for Men

1832 - THE GREAT REFORM

1839 - FIRST PETITION

1842 - SECOND PETITION

1848 - CHARTISM FAILED BUT MEMBERS BECAME EDUCATED

1861 - PEOPLE BEGAN TO THINK MEN HAD EARNED RIGHT TO VOTE

1866 - PARLIAMENT DEBATED A BILL FOR WORKING MEN 

1867 - PARLIAMENT GAVE VOTES TO CHARTISTS

1928 - ALL BUT ONE DEMANDS ACHEIVED

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The Perfect Victorian Wife

Victorian wives were expected to stay in the family home and look after children while their husbands were out at work earning money.

They are not expected to speak about politics and become a possession of her husband when she is married.

The ideal wife has fair skin and a pretty face. 

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Women and the Vote

Women should not be allowed the Vote because:

-men can look after a woman's needs

-women must look after children

-most women don't want the vote

-woman was made from man

-women were irration and indessisive

-only men went to war to fight so only men should vote

Until 1884, a wife was officially listed as one of her husband's possessions.

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How did Women try to get the Vote?

The suffragists and suffragettes were groups of women trying to get the universal vote.

Suffrage: the right to vote in political elections.

Suffragists: members of NUWSS who wished to obtain the vote through peaceful means.

Suffragettes: member's of the women's suffrage movement, which fought to win Britain's womens right to vote. (Emmeline Pankhurst - October 1903)

National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies

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How did Women try to get the Vote?

The suffragists and suffragettes were groups of women trying to get the universal vote.

Suffrage: the right to vote in political elections.

Suffragists: members of NUWSS who wished to obtain the vote through peaceful means.

Suffragettes: member's of the women's suffrage movement, which fought to win Britain's womens right to vote. (Emmeline Pankhurst - October 1903)

National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies

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The Suffragists

Suffragists campaigned peacefully by:

-holding meetings

-making posters

-writing letters

-peaceful marches

-prepared petitions

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The Suffragists

Suffragists campaigned peacefully by:

-holding meetings

-making posters

-writing letters

-peaceful marches

-prepared petitions

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The Suffragettes

Women's Social and Political Union

'Deeds not words'

The suffragettes did unthinkable things including:

-going on hunger strikes when imprisoned

-chainging themselves to railings

-setting fire to unoccupied houses

-smashing windows in shops

-defacing art work

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The Suffragettes (cont.)

1905 - Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Kenney were arrested for heckling Sir Edward Grey

1909 - 20,000 copies of the 'Votes for Women' was sold a week

1913 - Emily Davison moved onto a racetrack in front of the horse owned by King George, losing her life for the cause

The Colours of the Suffragettes:

Purple - dignity

Green - a sign of living things (hope)

White - purity

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The Methods of Suffragettes

Suffragettes went to extreme methods to get noticed. They wanted attention so used publicity such as newspapers to get more members. They held marches to feel united and used banners and posters to spread the message

They demanded to be treated differently to criminals. They went on hunger strikes and would be released, but then they began forcing them. The prison guards didn't want the 'Political Prisoners' to die and become martyrs.

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Timeline - Votes for Women

1909 - hunger strikes and force-feeding began

1914 - World War I begins and protesting stops 

1918 - representation of the People Act passed allowing men over 21 and women over 30 to vote

1919 - Nancy Astor is the first female MP to sit in the House of Commons

1928 - representation of the People Act amended and allows everyone over 21 to vote

1970 - Equal Pay Act - men and women get the same wage for the same job

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