Chartism

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    Abstract

    The Chartist campaign for the democratic reform of Britain's political institutions has a rightful place in British history as the first nation wide mass movement of working people. Less well known is its place in the history of Australian democracy. Published in 1838, the People's Charter codified into six principal demands the radical program that had been developed over the years since the passage of the Great Reform Act in 1832. The first of the six points, the heart of the Chartist program, was universal (manhood) suffrage. Despite an increase in the British electorate as a result of the Reform Act, the vote remained the privilege of a small minority: one in five adult males in England and Wales, one in eight in Scotland, and even fewer in Ireland. The second point called for annual elections. Underpinning this desire to exercise power over members of parliament more frequently was a belief in the efficacy of a more direct form of representationone that anticipated transition to the age of electoral pressure later in the century. In their internal structures and, in some cases, as holders of public office, Chartists gave practical effect to this principle by annually seeking the confidence of their constituents at a public meeting. Henry Parkes, future premier of New South Wales, was one former Chartist who followed this practice after his election in Sydney in 1854.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationThe Oxford Companion to Australian Politics
    EditorsBrian Galligan and Winsome Roberts
    Place of PublicationOxford UK
    PublisherOxford University Press
    Pages1pp
    Volume1
    Edition1st
    ISBN (Print)9780195555431
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2007

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