Chartism:Political Reform in Great Britain

Chartists drew upon both traditional forms of social protest organization and developed new ways of having their voice heard û publishing newspapers, pamphlets, broadsides. Chartist songs and hymns were sung, Chartist sermons preached and attended to, Chartist plays produced and pageants performed as what might now be called a entire political and social counter-culture was created and reveled in. Chartists took advantage of newly licit forms of public protest and created others on their own.3

The laborersÆ push to bring about the reforms of Chartism often seemed frightening to the upper classes, who did not in general like to see large groups of the working classes gathered together. But in fact the movement was only marred by violence a single time; the rest of its strikes and public gatherings came off peacefully.4

Extending from 1838 to 1848, the movement drew its name from the People's Charter, the name applied to a legislative program submitted to Parliament in 1837 by the London Working Men's Association. The Chartist movement, which the association sponsored, resulted from widespread d

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ns that it met with such success. The Coercion Act for Ireland, passed in 1833, helped spread the same kind of populist discontent to Ireland, where all ordinary political activity could now be suppressed by ôperhaps the most repressive Irish measure ever proposed by an English governmentö.12 Not only were Irish workers suffering from the same economic uncertainties and cultural dislocations as English workers of the time, but they had been stripped of even the most peaceable ways of making their discontent felt. Given the consequences of the Industrial Revolution in England, it is not surprising that a populist labor movement like Chartism should be born to counter some of the move terrible effects of changing economic and social practices on the poor people of the country. Industrialization always causes social upheaval, but it was perhaps hardest for the English working class, for they did not have the example of other countryÆs having already gone through the process and having û along with their working classes û survived. There was no way for the English working classes to know that there was a light at the end of the tunnel. The trade depression of the late 1830s and early 1840s produced a sense of unease in the countryÆs
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Poor Law, People's Charter, Industrial Revolution, Scotland England, Crafts Movement, Warwick Gaol, Reform Bill, Lovett Collins, Revolution England, David Ricardo, chartist movement, industrial revolution, political social, arts crafts, arts crafts movement, poor law, crafts movement, reform bill, upper classes, inflicted industrialization elitist, english political, industrialization elitist, misery inflicted industrialization, reform bill 1832, seeing misery inflicted,
Approximate Word count = 2150
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)