1. British Parliament- Lecture
Schedule
Warm-Up
British Parliament- Lecture
Web Walk
Homework Check

2. Draw a political spectrum and label the following:
WARM-UP ACTIVITY
Draw a political spectrum and label the following:
Radical
Change
Status quo
Communism
Democracy
Socialism
Totalitarianism
Conservative
Liberal
Reactionary
Moderate
Work alone for 4 minutes

3. The British Houses of Parliament
The Westminster system of government

4. Roles of the British Parliament
Form the government
Examine and check the government
Debate and pass laws

5. Parliament has two chambers
The Upper House: The House of Lords
The Lower House: The House of Commons

6. The House of Lords
In the 19th century the House of Lords represented the aristocracy and the Church
It is the Upper House

7. The House of Commons
Members of Parliament (MPs) are elected to represent a region or district
The party with the majority of MPs forms government
It is the Lower House

8. Stop and Check How were the members of the lower house chosen?
The House of Commons was the _________house.
How were the members of the lower house chosen?
Who are the aristocracy?
Which house was controlled by the aristocracy and the church?
What are the roles of the British Parliament?

9. What does the Monarch do?
The1689 Bill of Rights restricted the role of the King
The King or Queen can only advise or warn the government
Head of State – he/she represents Britain on important occasions

10. Law-making The Houses of Parliament are a legislature
A bill (proposed law) must be passed by a majority vote in both Houses to become law
Once the monarch signs this law, it becomes an Act of Parliament

11. The Great Reform Act Before 1831 Only male land and property owners
Only 3% could vote
No MP represented boom cities Birmingham or Manchester
The Reform Act (1832) extended the vote (franchise) to 14% by allowing men with £10 worth of property to vote

12. The Whigs More reform Faster industrialization
Many had their own businesses
After the 1832 Reform Bill was passed they became the Liberal Party
Their supporters – urban middle class and mill owners

13. The Whigs, continued More power for Parliament Less power for the King
Lower taxes
More free trade
Most wanted to extend the vote to the middle class
“laissez faire” economics

14. Celebrity Whigs/Liberals
William Gladstone PM “The Grand Old Man”
Richard Cobden, manufacturer and radical peace activist

15. The Tories Supported the monarchy
Strong links with the Church of England
Loved tradition and life in the countryside
Many had titles and lived on country estates
Feared rapid change would lead to revolution
After 1832 was called the Conservative Party

16. The Tory view of the French Revolution
If you give too much power to the masses there will be chaos and horror

17. Tories and the Industrial Revolution
Distrusted “new money” – businessmen
Worried that big cities led to crime and sin
Wanted to preserve the old class system
But – one group of Radical Tories believed the aristocracy should help the poor
“noblesse oblige”
Christian ethics: “from those to whom much has been given, much will be required”

18. Michael Sadler: radical Tory
“The parents rouse them in the morning and receive them tired and exhausted after the day has closed; they see them droop and sicken, and, in many cases, become cripples and die, before they reach their prime; and they do all this, because they must otherwise starve. It is a mockery to contend that these parents have a choice. They choose the lesser evil, and reluctantly resign their offspring to the captivity and pollution of the mill.”
 Speech to House of Commons 1832

19. Earl of Shaftesbury
Supported Michael Sadler’s campaign for factory reform
Factory Act 1833
Campaigned against child labour

20. Shaftesbury’s 1842 report into child labour in the coal mines

23. Radical Tory Benjamin Disraeli PM 1874-78
“Two nations between whom there is no intercourse and no sympathy; who are as ignorant of each other's habits, thoughts, and feelings, as if they were dwellers in different zones, or inhabitants of different planets. The rich and the poor. “
Disraeli’s novel “Sybil”

24. Queen Victoria loved him…
He made her Empress of India!

25. Celebrity Tories William Wilberforce helped ban slavery
Margaret Thatcher PM
William Wilberforce helped ban slavery

26. Famous Conservative PM
Winston Spencer Churchill
World War II PM