Democratic Reform And Activism PDF

Democratic Reform and Activism w !RfftPri¥1q),; ·.·· J :~ fi!':..O.m ~ by the demands of the During this period, Britain and...

Democratic Reform and Activism w !RfftPri¥1q),; ·.·· J :~ fi!':..O.m ~ by the demands of the During this period, Britain and France were transformed into suffrage Chartist movement Third Republic Dreyfus affair anti-Semitism ~ e Great Britain and France the democracies they are today. und~nt democratic reforms. Queen Victoria Zionism SETTING THE STAGE Urbanization and industrialization brought sweeping changes to Western nations. People looking for solutions to the problems cre- ated by these developments began to demand reforms. They wanted to improve conditions for workers and the poor. Many people also began to call for political reforms. They demanded that more people be given a greater voice in govern- ment. Many different groups, including the middle class, workers, and women, argued that the right to vote be extended to groups that were excluded. Britain Enacts Reforms As Chapter 5 explained, Britain became a constitutional monarchy in the late 1600s. Under this system of government, the monarch serves as the head of rutuMw 2rtA~t·~,, 1 state, but Parliament holds the real power. The British Parliament consists of a Use the graphic organizer online to take notes on House of Lords and a House of Commons. Traditionally, members of the House the events that expanded of Lords either inherited their seats or were appointed. However, this changed or impeded democracy. in 1999, when legislation was passed that abolished the right of hereditary peers to inherit a seat in the House of Lords. Members of the House of Commons are elected by the British people. In the early 1800s, the method of selecting the British government was not a true democracy. Only about five percent of the population had the right to elect tbe members of the House of Commons. Voting was limited to men who owned a substantial amount of land. Women could not vote at all. As a result, the upper classes ran the government. lhe Reform Bill of 1832 The first group to demand a greater voice in politics ~ the wealthy middle class-factory owners, bankers, and merchants. Beginning : 1830, protests took place around England in favor of a bill in Parliament that fri:d extend ~ ra&e, or the right to vote. The Revolution of 1830 in France tened parliamentary leaders. They feared that revolutionary violence would spreact to B.. the ntam. Thus, Parliament passed the Reform Bill of 1832. This law eased lb/~perty r~quirements so that well-to-do men in the middle class could vote. anct form Bill also modernized the districts for electing members of Parliament vo: Cht ~ve the thriving new industrial cities more representation. Movement Although the Reform Bill increased the number of British ' only a small percentage of men were eligible to vote. A popular movement An Age of Democracy and Progress 313  Expansion of Suffrage in Britain Before 1832 1832 1867, 1884 '. 5% 2% 7% 95% 5% 21 % ~ 93% 72% Percffltale of population R"orm Bill granted Reforms granted vote ovtr age 20 vote to middle-class to wofking-