Account for the widening of the franchise in Britain essays

Account for the widening of the franchise in Britain essays Account for the widening of the franchise in Britain Between 1850 and 1928 enfranchisement had grown rapidly. There were many aspects which contributed to the rapid growth of the franchise in Britain: government legislation, changing society, various reform movements, different individuals who worked for reform, the womens right movement, emergence of socialism, a factor which preached equality and finally the Labour Party. Changing society, the period 1867 to 1928 saw a very large change in Britains political identity. The effectiveness of industrialisation and urbanisation were catalysts for social change which transferred the political system from a limited democracy to a modern representative Liberal democracy. This made people fight for justice and equal rights. They began to fight for political, social , economic change through pressure groups like the Independent Labour Party, Woman Social, Political Unions and Trade Unions. People sought social, political and economic change, however reform was not given, therefore it had to be fought for. I think this partly contributed to the widening of the franchise because people now began to want change, they sought for equality and were determined to get it. This encouraged other people, therefore it had a knock on effect on other people. More and more people wanted the right to vote. Another aspect, the Government dreaded the idea of revolution. In 1848 there were plenty of revolutions occurring around the world there was the French revolution, this encouraged ideas to spread. the Government despised this reaction. the French revolution led to an upsurge of interest in reform, however the violence of the French Revolution made the consider enlarging the franchise. The apprehension of the French Revolution saw an greater extend in democratic changes which allowed the expansion of franchise in ...