1.Party Politics and Reforms

Robert Peel（1788-1850）

The development of the political parties in Great Britain in the 19th century mirrors the reform movements of the period.During the agitation for the reforms in 1832，the Tories，who were in power，continued in the old dogmatic conservative manner to ignore the demands of the bourgeoisie.The Whigs，who had already started a reform movement，received many middle class representatives into their party.But the abolition of the Corn Laws¹ in 1846by the Tory Prime Minister，Robert Peel，made the party boundaries blurred.The Corn Laws were originally planned to protect English home-grown corn from competition from imported foreign corn，their existence made for higher food prices，and assumed the superior importance of agricultural interests over urban industrial interests.As Industrial Revolution proceeded，the Whigs supported by workers and the urban middle class strongly demanded to abolish the Corn Laws.It was nonetheless a Tory Prime Minister who repealed these laws.The abolition of the Corn Laws was of historic importance in several ways：1）it divided the Tory Party，sending its most brilliant younger leader，Benjamin Disraeli，into opposition，with his supporters against Peel；2）it began the era of free trade；3）it admitted clearly that industrial interests were henceforth to be regarded as more important than agricultural interests；4）the most important proposition it caused was that an industrial nation could not forever keep its industrial workers politically without rights，especially after the middle of the century when they were becoming progressively better informed and organized.

William Gladstone（1809-1898）

In the last thirty years of the 19th century，English politics revolved about the personalities and programs of the leaders Gladstone and Disraeli.Gladstone in his early years was a conservative，but his support of the repeal of the corn laws alienated him from that party.Later he became the leader of the Liberal Party.Under him，the Liberal Party for thirty years stood for free trade，laissez faire in economics，gradual parliamentary reform，economy in public expenditure，nonaggressive foreign policy，and local self-government.Benjamin Disraeli was a fascinating and contradictory character.He founded the modern Conservative Party which developed out of the Tory Party.He was Prime Minister in 1868and in 1874-1880.He followed an imperialist policy，buying Britain a majority shareholding in the Suez Canal ² Company and making Queen Victoria³ Empress of India.Under Disraeli，the second important reform bill was passed in 1867.The Bill provided that 58seats in the House of Commons were to he extended to the industrial boroughs；the franchise was to be transferred to include￡12tenants and￡5lease-holders in the counties，and the male citizen in the borough if he occupied a separate dwelling or was a￡10 lodger.The practical effect was to grant nearly universal manhood suffrage in the cities.But millions of rural workers still remained voteless.

Benjamin Disraeli（1804-1881）

In 1884the third reform bill was passed，which made the electoral qualifications in the counties the same as in the boroughs，and two million rural workers were added to the voting list.The bill for redistricting the seats（1885）divided the counties so that there would be one member of the House of Commons for each 50，000people.With the exception of annual parliament and payment for members，all the reforms of the Chartists had been obtained by then.